The other big reason Nick Sirianni loves joint practices

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The other big reason Nick Sirianni loves joint practices

 

 

 

Reuben Frank

EAGLES INSIDER

The first reason Nick Sirianni loves joint practices is obvious. 

He appreciates the competitiveness when his guys line up against players from a different team, and he likes to see them work against players they’re not comfortable with.

And there’s another reason that may be just as important.

Sirianni believes spending time away together is valuable when it comes to his favorite core value – connecting.

The Eagles spent four days in Florham Park last summer for joint practices and a preseason game with the Jets, and Sirianni said the value of sequestering the team together for a few days was clear.

It’s the same reason Andy Reid still takes his teams away to a small college campus for training camp, just like he did his entire 14-year stay with the Eagles.

Bonding.

"As far as going away, I think that's good,” Sirianni said. "I felt last year that there was some good bonding and some good connecting going on in the hotel when we were against the Jets.”

The Chiefs are one of only seven remaining teams that practice at a college or another remote site. The Bills, Panthers, Jaguars, Rams, Steelers and Cowboys do as well. May not be a coincidence that four of seven teams that still go away for camp are coached by Reid or former Reid assistants.

The Eagles will never go back to Lehigh or another remote site because they have everything they need at the NovaCare Complex.

But by scheduling two sets of joint practices on the road, Sirianni can replicate some of the value.

"I'm looking forward to this opportunity to get closer as a football team while we're away,” he said. "It's not dorms, I know. We'll be in nice hotels. But I think it's a good opportunity for us to connect and be together.”

The Eagles fly to Cleveland on Wednesday. They’ll practice with the Browns on Thursday and Friday in Berea, Ohio, have meetings at the hotel on Saturday and then play the Browns on Sunday before flying home later in the day.

After one day at home, they’ll leave for Miami on Tuesday, practice against the Dolphins Wednesday and Thursday, have a day together at the hotel on Friday, and then play the Dolphins on Saturday before returning to Philly.

When all is said and done, they will have spent 10 of 11 days together, on the road.

This is the first time in franchise history the Eagles will have two sets of road joint practices in the same season. The Eagles and Cowboys are the only teams doing two joint practices away from home this summer.

Sirianni said he hoped to have one set at home and one on the road, but the scheduling didn’t work out.

But while bonding is a big part of these next two weeks, the Eagles wouldn’t be doing it if Sirianni didn’t feel like they had a lot of football value as well.

"The joint practices are giving you in-game experience, controlled-game experience for two days in a row at practice to work on things that you want to work on and the other team wants to work on and you don't get your quarterback hit,” he said. "It's not live to the ground, so it's a controlled experience.”

And that means don’t expect to see any starters on game-day in Cleveland or Miami.

"We are going to be in those joint practices and those will be two hard days of work, so if I feel like they have gotten enough in those joint practices and I feel like the work that we needed to get done … then I wouldn't play (the starters) in those games,” he said. "But I haven't made any of those decisions yet.”

Unless he has.

https://www.nbcsports.com/philadelphia/eagles/eagles-training-camp-2022-other-reason-nick-sirianni-loves-joint-practices