Eagles Coach Nick Sirianni Challenged Draft Prospects to Rock-Paper-Scissors Match

Matt Kryger/IndyStar

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni is gearing up for his first draft with Philadelphia, and he's been deploying some unusual tactics during the team's pre-draft interviews.

Sirianni said Wednesday he likes to play rock-paper-scissors with various draft prospects during their Zoom interviews, noting the game is a tool to gauge a player's competitiveness.

"I played a couple of them in rock-paper-scissors, easy of that. Let's see how competitive you are," Sirianni said. "When you compete with someone that's competitive, they're gonna go at you no matter what game you're playing."

Perhaps Sirianni's unconventional methods can improve Philadelphia's draft record in 2021. The Eagles selected TCU wide receiver Jalen Reagor one slot ahead of Vikings star Justin Jefferson in round one of the 2020 NFL draft, and they chose wideout JJ Arcega-Whiteside six picks before D.K. Metcalf in the second round of the 2019 draft. After back-to-back draft misses, a friendly game of rock-paper-scissors could be a valuable tool.

Philadelphia finished four in the NFC East at 4–11–1 last season, which marked Doug Pederson's final year with the franchise. If the Eagles struggle again in 2021, maybe Sirianni will pivot to Connect 4 or Tic-Tac-Toe before next year's draft.