Most of what we’ve heard about Nick Sirianni’s job security from respected voices aligned. He just led the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl. It’s a bad business practice to fire him a year later, and he just signed a lucrative contract extension.
So, as frustrated as everyone was, it just wasn’t going to happen. Some fans clamored for his dismissal. There was pushback and some expected back-and-forth, but, as he should, Coach Sirianni will return for a sixth season.
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He has had a weird tenure. One-and-done postseason appearances during the odd years of his coaching era (2021, 2023, 2025). Super Bowl appearances during the even years (2022 and 2024). If you’re superstitious, things set up nicely for 2026.
Coach Sirianni faces scrutiny and a plummeting approval rating. That was also the situation after the 2023 collapse. People said at the time that he shouldn’t be allowed to return in 2024. He was allowed an opportunity to right the ship. What followed was one of the best seasons in franchise history, but Jeff McLane tells us that opportunity came oh so close to being cut short.
Might some recent history be a sign of a coming wrinkle in the Jeffrey Lurie-Nick Sirianni working relationship?
We’d all like to know what Jeffrey Lurie is thinking from time to time. No one knows for sure, but sometimes, we can make an educated guess. Based on recent history, we can assume runs, as we saw with Andy Reid in this organization, are over.
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The boss seems more impatient, having made three changes since the end of Reid’s 14-year reign. It sounds as though he was close to making another after Nick Sirianni’s 2-2 start to the 2024.
Jeff McLane covers the Eagles for The Philadelphia Inquirer. He also hosts UnCovering the Birds with Jeff McLane. He noted during a recent broadcast that Sirianni’s job was indeed in «peril» after four games of the 2024 campaign.
«It’s become increasingly clear and as I’ve since understood, and we probably knew at the time, Nick’s future was in doubt. (Jeffrey Lurie) was certainly considering moving on at that point. There’s history here. Jeffrey has become increasingly impatient when it comes to his head coaches. In fact, when they got to 2-2 to start the (2024) season and there was that bye there, as I’ve since now understood and reported, Nick Sirianni’s job was in peril, and he had to make a lot of changes because Jeffrey was going to possibly fire him.”
There was an old saying: lightning can’t strike twice in the same place. That’s a fib. Lightning can absolutely strike the same place twice.
Nick Sirianni’s job is safe for now, but McLane often hits the bullseye. It stands to reason that, if Lurie gave his coach a short leash in 2024, he may be willing to do so again.
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Championship windows are sometimes hard to open. They can also close quickly once they are. This team was much too talented for a first-round exit, and you can best believe that Lurie will do everything in his power to ensure that won’t happen again.
That’s the ‘new norm’ that Coach Sirianni faces in his sixth season. This is about more than a winning record. He isn’t coaching for grace or goodwill. He now coaches to confirm belief. Standards must be met. Wasting elite talent is unacceptable, but the good news is this. We’ve learned that with great coordinators, Sirriani can flip a switch when his back is against the wall.
This article originally appeared on Eagles Wire: Nick Sirianni was nearly fired after a slow start in 2024
