The Eagles got off to a strong start as defending Super Bowl champs this year, taking down the Cowboys 24-20 on NFL opening night after the franchise's second championship banner was raised. Led by star quarterback Jalen Hurts and head coach Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia embarks upon the season attempting to repeat as champions. It's a mighty difficult task; only the Chiefs have managed to win back-to-back Super Bowls in the last 20 years.
In fact, across the history of football, repeat champions are a very exclusive club. Nine teams have won back-to-back titles since Super Bowl I in 1966. So it shouldn't come as any surprise that Sirianni reached out to ask for advice on how to defend his title— even if the person he asked coached a longtime divisional rival.
On Sunday, ahead of the Eagles' Week 2 Super Bowl rematch against Kansas City, Fox Sports' Jay Glazer reported Sirianni had reached out to Cowboys legend Jimmy Johnson for insight on how to repeat as champions. Johnson led Dallas to two consecutive Super Bowl wins in 1992 and 1993. Glazer further shared what advice Johnson had for Sirianni.
"Nick (Sirianni) actually told me that about three weeks ago he reached out to Jimmy (Johnson) on how to go back-to-back," Glazer shared on Fox NFL Sunday. "Obviously Jimmy won with the Cowboys back-to-back. And the No. 1 thing that Jimmy talked to him about is not getting complacent.
"He said, 'I would get harder on my coaches after we won so they got harder on the players.' That's the biggest thing. You've got to stay more connected to your coaches and your players. Nick told me last night, he said, 'I've taken that to heart. I've made sure I put an emphasis on staying super connected to everybody in this team.'"
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- Nick Sirianni spoke with Jimmy Johnson last month for advice about trying to repeat
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It is sound advice. The Eagles may have become champions last year but it's a whole new season now. And the toughest part about defending a title is that every team is going to play their hearts out to try and upset the champs. The last Eagles team to win a Super Bowl certainly found that out the hard way. After Philly won in 2017 they went 9-7 and lost in the divisional round of the playoffs.
It is tough to repeat as Super Bowl champions. Sirianni seems to recognize that and is searching for whatever edge he can find as the title defense begins in earnest.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Nick Sirianni Reached Out to Cowboys Legend for Advice on Defending Eagles' Title.
