Philadelphia Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni made clear that the competition for the backup quarterback role remains wide open following a preseason loss to the New England Patriots.
Speaking with reporters after the game, Sirianni delivered a straightforward assessment that left little room for speculation about any immediate decision.
“It’s still a competition,” Sirianni told reporters.
The four-word statement underscored that film review and further discussions would determine the next steps, but no winner had been declared just yet. Both Andy Dalton and Tanner McKee had shown enough in his view to keep the battle alive.
Sirianni expressed strong belief in the pair. He said he was “really confident” in both players, praising the way they had continued to push one another.
Dalton had taken the majority of the second-team snaps throughout the offseason and started the preseason contest, a choice Sirianni attributed to experience rather than any final ranking.
“The reason Andy is going in first is because he’s not going to play as much as Tanner because he has more experience and he has more experience within this type of system, and Tanner needs to continue to play there,” Sirianni explained.
He noted visible progress from McKee and stressed the importance of providing both quarterbacks with meaningful chances in practice and, when possible, in games.
“I think you saw the improvements there from Tanner. We got to continue to give both of them opportunities within practice and potentially games. We’ll see how both games go. Obviously, I’m not there yet [for next week’s game]. But obviously, that was the plan today,” Sirianni added.
On the field, the performances offered contrasting pictures. Dalton completed three of ten passes for 44 yards without a touchdown. McKee, by contrast, went 16-of-22 for 173 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions, giving the younger passer a clear statistical edge on the night.
The previous week’s outing had been far less decisive for either player, making McKee’s efficiency against the Patriots a potential turning point in the evaluation process.
With one preseason game remaining against the Cincinnati Bengals, Sirianni indicated the competition would continue into the coming week of practices.
The coaching staff still planned to weigh every available snap before settling on a firm hierarchy behind starter Jalen Hurts.
For now, the message from the head coach remained consistent: both Dalton and McKee were still very much in the fight.
