Nick Sirianni has never been the kind of head coach to just sit in the passenger seat. Play-calling in Philly has always looked collaborative on paper, but everyone in the room knows whose hand is really on the wheel. Kevin Patullo may hold the title of offensive coordinator now, just like Kellen Moore did last season, but when the game is on the line, Sirianni doesn’t hesitate to grab the headset. He once compared it to his wife giving him driving directions: “Take a right here, take a left there.” The problem? Sirianni isn’t just giving directions – he’s taking the wheel. That’s the backdrop for his latest move.

The Eagles’ offensive line room has always been a little like a private country club. Big names, big contracts, and an unspoken rule – you don’t just walk into a starting spot unless you’re ready to fight for it. Tyler Steen? He’s the new guy who quietly bought his membership card with sweat and reps. On paper, the Eagles’ latest depth chart makes it look official – Steen is penciled in as the starting right guard. But Nick Sirianni isn’t exactly popping champagne over it. He refused to call it a locked‑in commitment. Instead, he leaned on the daily updates he gets from the strength staff.

“I talk to the strength staff every single day, give me a report on this,” Sirianni said. “And Tyler Steen seems to come back every single time, of how good he was doing in the weight room with his strength, with his agility, all those things. So I’m pleased with where he is right now, and I look forward to continuing with him later on.” That’s not a coach declaring the job done. That’s a coach keeping the leash short. Like a coach saying, ‘Good progress, but don’t get comfy.’

And with good reason – the Eagles are paying Steen $5.75 million over four years, with a $1.2 million signing bonus baked in. In 2025 alone, he’ll take home $1.2 million, including his workout bonus, while carrying a $1.56 million cap hit. So sure, the depth chart says ‘starter.’ But Sirianni? He’s making it clear – Tyler Steen still has to earn every snap.

For Steen, the hesitation is familiar. A third-round pick in 2023, he’s been circling this job for three years without ever locking it down. As a rookie, Cam Jurgens beat him out. In 2024, he sprained his ankle in camp, which let Mekhi Becton reinvent himself as a guard and steal the job. Even when Steen got on the field – like against the Giants and Bengals – he was still the understudy. That’s why this summer feels like his final audition. At 25, and with 450 snaps of experience under his belt, the leash is getting shorter. But for now, the depth chart says he’s the starter.

Depth chart says starter, Nick Sirianni says, ‘not so fast’

The depth chart itself paints a clearer picture. Steen sits at right guard, backed by Matt Pryor and rookie Trevor Keegan. Everyone else on that line? Stars. Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, Lane Johnson. All Pro-level players. Which is exactly why the right guard spot is under a microscope – because whoever wins it is instantly labeled the ‘weak link’ on the NFL’s best offensive line.

Steen knows the stakes. “Extremely eager,” he admitted at camp. “I mean, everybody wants to play. I want to play. I want to start. So, yeah, I’m pretty eager to do that.” It’s not just eagerness, though. He’s tried to change his body, dialing up his strength and mobility work in the offseason so he doesn’t walk into camp the same player who lost jobs before. And so far, Jeff Stoutland says he’s responding: “Today [30th July] was a big day for Tyler Steen, in my opinion. He did some things that I’ve been talking to him about, and he executed. He did a good job.”

But this is Philadelphia. It doesn’t matter that Mekhi Becton cried his way to redemption last year or that he’s now a Charger. It doesn’t matter that Steen has been taking every first-team rep through five practices. What matters is whether Sirianni, the head coach who can’t resist calling plays “here and there,” decides Steen is more than just a placeholder. Because in Philly, the depth chart might list him as the starter. But the only thing that really matters is Sirianni’s approval. And right now, that approval still stands at a ‘to be continued.’