Eagles Fans Shocked By Coach Nick Sirianni Apology: 'I'm Sorry!'

Philadelphia Eagles fans can be a difficult-to-please bunch, of course; coach Nick Sirianni knew that coming into this job. And yes, on Sunday that meant hoots and boos from the home crowd even as the Eagles slogged their way through an uninspired 20-16 victory over the lowly Cleveland Browns and their grossly overpaid "star'' Deshaun Watson.

Does the audience have the right to hoot and boo at a team that leader Lane Johnson has termed is "constipated''? Hey, it's your money, as long as you don't throw junk at the players or throw fists at other paying customers. (Seriously, everybody, quit doing that!)

Does a thin-skinned coach have the right to hoot right back at them? It's unwise to do so - and yet Nick Siranni opted to verbally joust with his fans - a bad, bad idea .

The coach's Sunday reaction to his action?

Related: Ridiculous! Latest Criticism of Eagles, Nick Sirianni Unprofessional

"We don't necessarily like it," Sirianni said of the booing. "It's not productive for anybody."

His Monday reaction? More measured. Even an apology of sorts. Sirianni is now saying he is "sorry for how my energy was directed at the end of the game.''

He added, "We have the best fans in the world.''

That remark, frankly, seems a bit too calculated - as was his Sunday presser at which he paraded his three children to the podium, an act that provided him a shield of sorts. (Yes, we are aware that Nick's brought a junior up there with him before. And we thought one kid was a "shield'' of sorts, too. So ... this was three shields.)

That was a blatant attempt to dilute the media anger. And a bad idea. An apology for (again) letting his emotions run amok on the sideline? Some Eagles fans are surely shocked by the back-down, but ... Yes, this is a better way.