Eagles coach Nick Sirianni explains decision to release Devin White originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
Nick Sirianni didn’t have any deep insights into why things didn’t work out with Devin White.
He just wasn’t good enough.
“You know, it goes back to Nakobe (Dean) and Zach (Baun) getting that spot, winning that spot,” he said as the Eagles reconvened following their bye week.
“That’s not an easy situation. I can’t say enough good things about Devin and how he handled that really hard situation. Sometimes guys have roles on special teams, etc. And just in this particular case, this is where we were and just how it played out.”
The Eagles released White on Tuesday, seven months after they signed him with the intention of making him a starting inside linebacker.
But despite receiving most of the 1st-team reps throughout training camp, White wound up losing the starting spot to Dean, the 3rd-year 3rd-round pick from Georgia. Because he doesn’t play special teams, White was inactive the first three weeks of the season. Then he was listed as “out” prior to the Bucs game for what the Eagles described as a “personal matter.”
White wound up never playing a snap for the Eagles, and he’s currently an unrestricted free agent, free to sign with any other team.
Yeah, again, we go through our process as far as how we practice and get a lot from how you practice. And so I’m confident in our evaluation of players as far as how we go about our business practicing preseason games, etc. Just with every player in general.
When he was benched, White said he would stay ready and fill any role he was asked to fill. That only lasted three weeks.
“At the end of the day, it’s not my call,” he said back on Sept. 13. “I’ll just do what’s asked of me and just stay ready. Whether I go out there the last two minutes of the game or the first play of the game, I’ve just got to be ready and just be able to give this team all I have.
“Because that’s what I came here to do. … I don’t cry, don’t mope around. I just come to work and be a pro about everything.”
Sirianni said rookie 5th-round pick Jeremiah Trotter Jr. will become the backup MIKE linebacker. Trotter has only played three defensive snaps the first four games of the season, all in the Tampa game.
Other backup linebackers on the roster are veteran Oren Burks, the long-time Packer, and Ben VanSumeren, a 2nd-year undrafted pro. Neither Burks nor VanSumeren has played a defensive snap this year (although VanSumeren has played one on offense).
Sirianni said releasing White was in part a product of the way the defensive coaches feel about Trotter, Burks and VanSumeren.
“I think it just gives you a perspective of what we feel about the rest of that room and the guys that we have in that room and how they’ve been how they’ve been executing, how they’ve been playing and look forward to continuing to grow with those guys,” he said.
“I’m really excited about the guys in the room and the way they’re they’re progressing. I think (Bobby) King, our linebacker coach, is a great fundamental teacher. I just continually see them improving their fundamentals in different aspects of block destruction and blitzing.
“And so just excited about the room that we have and the depth that we have there. … Excited about the development and the growth opportunity that we have in that room.”
As for White, he joins guys like Frank Gore, Joe Flacco, Myles Jack, Tim Tebow, Marquise Goodwin, Raheem Mostert, Paul Worrilow, DeVante Parker, Marlin Jackson and Danny Amendola who were Eagles – or sort-of Eagles – but never played a snap in an Eagles uniform.
“Ever since Devin got here, I just thought he was a really great pro,” Sirianni said.
“He handled everything with class. I know that was a hard situation for him to be in. A guy that started a lot of games in this league and been successful in this league and I can’t say enough good things about Devin the person and just how he handled a disappointing situation for him.”
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