Eagles' Sirianni Explains Lying About Final Play vs. Seahawks to Protect Brown, Hurts

Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni explained to reporters why he lied about the execution of the team's final play in order to protect quarterback Jalen Hurts and wide receiver AJ Brown following a loss to the Arizona Cardinals in Week 17.

"That's what a lot of coaches do and that's something I've always done and always thought when a coach did that for me was appreciative of," Sirianni said, per Reuben Frank of NBC Sports. "But also knew that coach was going to correct it after the fact."

The play in question came during Philadelphia's 20-17 defeat at the hands of the Seattle Seahawks on Dec. 18, as the Eagles struggled on their final drive. With 13 seconds remaining at the team's own 45-yard line while trailing by three points, Hurts attempted to throw a deep pass that was picked off by Seahawks safety Julian Love at Seattle's 17-yard line.

Many were perplexed by the decision, as the Eagles only needed a couple of first downs in order to get into field goal range. Sirianni initially told reporters that he was attempting to draw a pass interference penalty on the play, although Brown revealed to the media on Wednesday that he was just covering up for an off-script decision between Hurts and the Pro Bowl wideout.

"I have nothing but respect for him because not all coaches do that," Brown said, via Frank. "He takes up for us when it has nothing to do with him and he gets the blame."

Sirianni appreciated the honesty from Brown, although he explained that Hurts and the Eagles' top offensive playmakers have the freedom to improvise on the field.

"The only portion of accountability that I care about is what happens in this building," he said. "That was nice of A.J. to say that, he didn't have to say that, because all I really care about is that the accountability takes place here."

"He has total freedom to do what he needs to do to make a play," Sirianni added.

The Eagles will be hoping that the offense can get on track and fix late-game mistakes, as Philadelphia has now lost four of its past five games.