It Was Nick Sirianni's Idea That Solidified Eagles Offensive Line, Or Was It?

NEW ORLEANS – Moving Mekhi Becton from New York Jets tackle to Philadelphia Eagles guard wasn’t Philly line coach Jeff Stoutland’s idea. It wasn’t Becton’s idea.

Turns out, it was Nick Sirianni’s idea, though the Eagles head coach ducked credit with asked about it during Super Bowl LIX availability at the team hotel in downtown New Orleans on Tuesday.

“We all saw that Mekhi has a lot of talent and we knew that we were pretty set there at the tackle spots with Jordan (Mailata) and Lane (Johnson) and their contributions they’ve made and the players they’ve been for the duration of their careers.

“We had a battling spot there for guard and we talked about it as coaches. I talked about it with Howie (Roseman). Just every good idea comes from collaboration and communication with each other. I can’t say that, hey, that was my idea. Stout said that but we came together with that as a staff and with Howie and his staff as well.”

This is what Stout said during media night on Monday.

“I’m not going to lie to you, I never knew that (he could play guard),” said Stoutland. “At 6-7, if you go back and look through the history books of 6-7 guard production, you’re not going to find too many. It was during OTAs when Nick said to me, ‘Let’s just try him out for a couple of practices. See how he does.’ I was like, ‘Cool, let’s go.’ I saw the fluidity in his movement.”

Mekhi Becton after Eagles made it to Super Bowl LIX with 55-23 rout of Washington Commanders. | Ed Kracz/Eagles on SI

Becton’s reaction, per Stoutland?

“When I asked him, I was like, ‘Are you willing to give this a shot for a couple of practices?’” said the O-line coach. “He goes, ‘Sure. You mean, I could get a chance to play guard?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah.’ I was thinking he was going to lash out, get angry with me. But he was all in. It’s a credit to him and his growth mindset to want to give this a shot. And it all worked out.”

The Eagles always have one of the best offensive lines in football, and Becton made it even stronger when he won the right guard job after signing a one-year deal on April 29. He had done so much losing with the Jets, that he was ready for a full change not just with another team but why not a new position?

He appreciates winnig so much that after games - even during games - he is know to become emotional, which gives him an instant connection with his emotioanl head coach.

"I can’t tell you how many times at the end of games I’m overcome with emotion, and I love when other players are like that, too," said Sirianni. "Mekhi and I have had some really awesome embraces after games. I love about Mekhi that there’ve been games where he’s just been exhausted and his body is just tired, limping off the field after a score, but he has that smile on his face."

Becton may only be a one-year wonder in Philly because he is scheduled to become a free agent this offseason.

“Philadelphia is one of those hard-nosed cities, a real gritty city,” he said. “It felt like a home. That was another big reason I came here. … I don’t know what the future holds, man. I’m just thinking about Sunday.”

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