Eagles' Jalen Hurts addresses infamous 'straightjacket' comment directed at coach Nick Sirianni
As the Philadelphia Eagles prepare to travel to New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX, the team's star quarterback is clearing the air. During last week's postgame media availability, Jalen Hurts made a seemingly offhanded comment about Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni.
Hurts said Nick Sirianni "let me out of my straitjacket" when asked about his strong performance during the NFC Championship game victory over the Washington Commanders and his overall experience playing for Sirianni.
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"He's done a great job. He's done a great job. He let me out me out of my straightjacket a little bit today," Hurts told reporters.
But on Friday, Hurts insisted that comment was merely a joke. "I was just joking around after the game," Hurts told reporters.
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During his media availability on Tuesday, Sirianni fielded questions about the "straightjacket" comment.
"I think he was having fun after the game We've been winning a couple different ways this year. ... But I know this, and he's said this plenty of times, he doesn't care how we win, I don't care how we win, as long as we win. And we do everything we can do to be able to win," Sirianni said on Jan. 28 during the press conference.
"And as we've talked a lot, there have been different circumstances of how games have [gone] and where we've been at late in games. But we found a way to win and rattle off 15 out of 16. So, again, thought he was having fun with that after the game. And loved how he went out there and executed and prepared for this game."
Throughout much of the 2023 season, Hurts and Sirianni reportedly navigated through a somewhat tense relationship. Last August, a report from ESPN cited a source with direct knowledge who described the last season's dynamic between the coach and quarterback as "fractured."
After starting the 2023 campaign with a 10-1 record, the Eagles went on to win just one of their final six games. Philadelphia subsequently suffered a 32-9 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild-card round. The early playoff exit came on the heels of the Eagles appearance in the Super Bowl the prior season.
However, the end of the 2024 regular season and the postseason have been vastly different for Philly. Sirianni, Hurts, and the Eagles were presented with the George Halas Trophy last Sunday after the team won the conference title and clinched a spot in Super Bowl LIX.
The Kansas City Chiefs and Eagles will meet in the big game on Feb. 9 at Caesars Superdome. Super Bowl LIX kicks off at 6:30 p.m. ET with Kevin Burkhardt doing play-by-play and Tom Brady as the color commentator in his first Super Bowl as a broadcaster. Tubi will stream Super Bowl LIX on its platform live in 4K. Viewers will be able to watch the game when they sign up via email registration.
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