March 31, 2026
Kevin Ng/Imagn Images
Riq Woolen's edginess makes him a fit for the Eagles, says Nick Sirianni, but is that a good thing?
Eagles cornerback Riq Woolen, the team's biggest-name free agent signing so far, is known for playing with an edge.
The fifth-year pro is tough, physical, has super long arms that he uses to his advantage, and plays with an attitude that reflects his physical attributes.
Perhaps, sometimes, a little too much attitude.
Woolen led the Super Bowl champion Seahawks in penalties last season, and was fined three different times during the season and playoffs, most notably for a taunting penalty against the Rams in the NFC Championship, a game the Seahawks were trying to take control of before Woolen taunted the Rams sideline after a fourth-and-long pass breakup.
On the very next play, Matthew Stafford picked on Woolen with a 34-yard touchdown strike to Puka Nacua that took Seattle's 11-point lead in the third quarter down to four.
PUKA NACUA. WOW.
— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2026
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That's the dice roll that comes with Woolen – a big pass breakup one rep, a maddeningly immature penalty another, and then victim of a deep ball on another.
Those are some of the reasons that Woolen, despite his tremendous size and speed, only commanded a one-year deal in free agency, albeit one for up to $12 million.
During his annual breakfast media session at the owners meetings this week in Arizona, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni was asked about Woolen's competitive nature, history of personal fouls and how to balance Woolen's edginess with discipline.
"Yeah, you know, again, we’re edgy as a football team," Sirianni told the surrounding media (around the 10:40 mark of the video), accentuating "edgy" as a positive. "We like to show our excitement. Football is fun. It’s supposed to be fun. You can lose that sometimes in high-stressful situations we’re all in. But it’s fun.
"And I want those guys to show their emotion. I want them to show their excitement. I want them to show their personality, within the rules of the game, and that’s my job, is to be able to explain the job description for everybody and say, 'Hey this is what I want you to do but you gotta keep it in there, in the right area.' So that's just something you try to educate on and through everything."
OK, pause.
It's not surprising that Sirianni, known for being an emotional spark plug himself on the sideline, appreciates and embraces different personalities and wants his players to play with the emotions and attitude that drive them.
It's what makes him a players' coach who typically receives high marks from his players for his coaching style.
But the second part – the part about his job description being to set the acceptable standard – is the questionable part, because just last year alone there were costly emotional outbursts that raise questions about Sirianni's real ability to get his players reined in when necessary.
Just in 2025:
• DT Jalen Carter was ejected from the season opener before the game's first snap after he spit on Cowboys QB Dak Prescott (h/t Adam Schefter).
Here is Jalen Carter spitting on Dak Prescott: pic.twitter.com/4F5BjEDLHf
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 5, 2025
• Rookie WR Darius Cooper's taunting penalty against Commanders CB Jonathan Jones (ironically, now an Eagle) in the "resting starters" season finale wiped out a big gain near the goal line, only to have QB Tanner McKee throw a pick on the very next play as the Eagles lost. (h/t Crossing Broad).
— Crossing Broad (@CrossingBroad) January 4, 2026
• Sirianni – self-proclaimed lover of edge – and his star wide receiver, A.J. Brown, needed to be separated by Big Dom on the sideline during the Eagles' 23-19 home loss to an undermanned 49ers team in the first round of the playoffs.
Another look at the exchange between AJ Brown and HC Nick Sirianni on the sideline. pic.twitter.com/Syn0hr0MFK
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) January 11, 2026
Individually, these are isolated incidents, and every NFL has some of them. But there are more examples that show an overall lack of Eagles team discipline.
The Eagles finished 2025 with the NFL's eighth-most penalties – for the second straight season – and third-most penalty yards against. Only the Chicago Bears finished with more roughing the passer penalties than the Eagles, who tied with four other teams for second-most.
The only team with more taunting penalties in 2025 than the Eagles were ... the Seahawks, naturally. And the Eagles just took Seattle's most notorious taunter in Woolen.
So it's fair to question if Sirianni's messaging about showing personalities "within the rules" resonates inside the NovaCare Complex or if it's really even a message at all.
Could it just be lip service to the media?
Woolen's edge might fit in well with the Eagles, as Sirianni suggested, but is it reasonable to expect that Woolen will be more disciplined and more in control of his emotions in Philly than in Seattle?
"I will never have a problem with someone being too edgy," Sirianni said, which sounded good in the moment but less so when contextualized with the data.
"I love that," he added. "Because I know that a lot of times you can see that and be like, 'This guy loves football. This guy loves to compete.' And I'll always take a guy who loves football and loves to compete any day of the week, and we can handle some of the other stuff."
Can they?
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