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Nick Sirianni once again found himself at the center of some controversy thanks to a viral clip that showed him screaming at an Eagles fan toward the end of the game, but the man on the receiving end of the outburst has downplayed the incident while providing some necessary context.
On Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles improved to 3-2 with a 20-16 victory over the Browns at home. It was a solid win for the team, but one that they were expected to get when you consider Cleveland entered the contest sitting at 1-4 and was listed as an 8.5-point underdog by the time the action got underway.
An interesting scene transpired on the Eagles sideline in the closing minute of the contest courtesy of head coach Nick Sirianni, who was captured holding his finger to his ear while yelling in the direction of the theoretically friendly crowd that had nonetheless voiced its displeasure with him earlier in the game.
And of course Nick Sirianni is yelling at Eagles fans who were chanting “Fire Sirianni” earlier in the game
The Eagles beat the now 1-5 Browns by 4 points today and this guys is flexing on his own fans what a JOKE!
pic.twitter.com/jqo57Ree7x— Dylan Mehl (@DylanMehl) October 13, 2024
Sirianni declined to directly address what went down when he was asked about the video after the game, and plenty of people assumed the notoriously outspoken coach was giving some members of the Philly faithful a piece of his mind after being subjected to boos and negative chants.
However, that’s not actually the case if you believe the Eagles fan who said they were at the receiving end of Sirianni’s supposed tirade in a post that appeared in the team’s subreddit on Tuesday.
The fan (who posted a screenshot of their ticket along with a now-deleted photo of themselves in the area of the stands Sirianni was filmed yelling at) asserted the exchange stemmed back to Philadelphia’s first offensive drive of the game, saying:
“There I was in section 138, row 2, seat 4. 1st play of the game was a 5-yard run by Barkley. 2nd and 5, incomplete pass. 3rd and 5, incomplete pass. 4th and 5, punt. During the Browns’ next drive, there was a TV timeout due to injury. It was during this time that I voiced my concerns to Kellen and Nick.
I began to yell, “If your star running back gets 5 yards on first down, you give it to him again! RUN. THE. BALL. RUN. THE. BALL.” I had some more to say, but you get the point.
Nick turned around, gestured for me to calm down, and said something to the effect of “We will, don’t worry. I’m on it!”
Based on their account, Sirianni was essentially taking a victory lap at the end of the fourth quarter by yelling something along the lines of “I told you we would run! I told you!” and they stressed they didn’t think his decision to go that route was “unwarranted” or “aggressive.”
I acknowledge there’s no way to officially verify the account of the fan in question, but it does sound like the whole thing was blown out of proportion if the guy is telling the truth.