PHILADELPHIA − It was easy to get distracted from the issues that are still plaguing the Eagles after the shenanigans with head coach Nick Sirianni taunting a group of fans towards the end of their 20-16 win over the Cleveland Browns.

For the record, Sirianni apologized for his behavior Monday.

"What I was really doing was, I was trying to bring energy (Sunday), energy and enthusiasm," Sirianni said. "I’m sorry and disappointed on how my energy was directed at the end of the game. My energy should be all in on coaching, motivating and celebrating with our guys. And so, I gotta have better wisdom and discernment of when to use that energy.

"That wasn’t the time."

Ok, back to the game.

Three key Eagles starters suffered injuries during the game, with the most serious to left tackle Jordan Mailata, who had to be carted off the field with a hamstring injury. Sirianni, who's usually vague on injuries, said Monday that Mailata "is going to be out a couple of weeks."

It could be longer, and that could mean a stint on injured reserve. Mailata was spotted on the field after the game walking slowly with crutches and a sleeve on his left leg.

That puts the Eagles at a big disadvantage against the Giants, their opponent this Sunday. The Giants lead the NFL with 26 sacks, and defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence is second among players with 7. Edge rusher Azeez Ojulari had 2 sacks Sunday night while starting his first game of the season in place of Kayvon Thibodeaux, who's on injured reserve.

The Giants, of course, also have star edge rusher Brian Burns, who has 3 sacks.

One solution would be for the Eagles to move right guard Mekhi Becton to left tackle, and then have Tyler Steen come in to play right guard. The other would be to leave Becton at right guard and use Fred Johnson at left tackle.

"Everything is on the table," Sirianni said. "We’re early on in the process. We’ll figure that out as the week goes."

Becton's natural position is left tackle, and he was drafted there in the first round in 2020 by the Jets. Of course, Becton didn't live up to that first-round status with the Jets, who let him leave as a free agent to sign a one-year deal worth $2.75 million with the Eagles.

Becton, who's listed as 6-foot-7, 363 pounds, has played well at right guard. So moving him to left tackle and putting in Steen to mostly face Lawrence would weaken two positions.

Using Fred Johnson, therefore, would weaken one position, while the Eagles can use Becton to help protect quarterback Jalen Hurts up the middle, and open holes for Saquon Barkley. Right tackle Lane Johnson, a perennial Pro Bowl player, can neutralize the Giants rusher on his side, whether it's Burns or Ojulari.

Neither option is ideal, but leaving Becton at right guard is less of a disruption.

As for the other injuries, Sirianni said the team was still gathering more information on CB Darius Slay (knee) and TE Dallas Goedert (hamstring).

Here are four more overreactions:

Is Nick Sirianni really overruling defensive coordinator Vic Fangio?

It's one thing when Sirianni says he occasionally overrules offensive coordinator Kellen Moore from time to time. Sirianni admitted that he did Sunday on a 3rd-and-1 call from the Browns' 31 just before halftime. Instead of running the ball for a first down, Hurts tried to pass, and was sacked.

The subsequent 57-yard field goal attempt was blocked by the Browns' Myles Garrett and returned for a touchdown.

But Sirianni also said he overruled defensive coordinator Vic Fangio on an undisclosed defensive call that Sirianni said didn't work.

Sirianni has a background as an offensive coach, so he certainly has the background to change a play. That's not the case on defense. Fangio has been coaching for more than 40 years, and has been either an NFL head coach or defensive coordinator for 24 years dating back to 1995.

On Monday, Sirianni was asked if he really overruled Fangio, or if he was taking the fall for a defensive call that didn't work.

"I think it’s very common in the NFL for when the head coach gets on and says, ‘attack,’ ‘concede,’ or ‘come on, let’s get after these guys,'" Sirianni said. "That’s where that comes from.

"And then, there’s … personal philosophies that I have of how to play certain situations that you talk through. So it wouldn’t be fair for me to have the philosophies that I have, and push that on my coaches, and then not take accountability for it when the play doesn’t work."

If that really happened, Fangio can't be too happy about that.

An Eagles sack party or bad Browns offensive line?

The Eagles had 5 sacks Sunday after having 6 through the first 4 games. The Browns came into the game having allowed − by a wide margin − a league-high 26 sacks. Bryce Huff had a half-sack, his first of the season after signing a three-year deal worth as much as $51.1 million.

Defensive tackle Jalen Carter, who had 6 last season as a rookie, got his first. And rookie nickel corner Cooper DeJean, starting for the first time, split a sack while coming on a blitz.

So the Eagles pass-rushing problems are solved, right?

Let's not get carried away. The Browns were down to their third-string center and were missing both starting tackles. A truer test will come against an improved Giants offensive line.

Speaking of Cooper DeJean, why didn't he start sooner?

That's a question a lot of Eagles fans have after DeJean played 91% of the snaps Sunday as the nickel. In addition to the half-sack, DeJean had 6 tackles and a QB hit. He was much more effective than veteran Avonte Maddox, who started the first four games at nickel.

DeJean was the Eagles' second-round draft pick last spring. But he missed three weeks in training camp because of a hamstring injury. Perhaps the Eagles brought him along too slowly upon his return, especially after Maddox was burned repeatedly by the Buccaneers on Sept. 29.

DeJean should not come out of the lineup now.

"I thought Coop had a really good game," Sirianni said. "There are things that he has to improve on that were on the tape, and that he’s going to be working hard to do. I thought his youth and his energy really showed up on that field."

Shout out to Brandon Graham for his 200th game

Edge rusher Brandon Graham is still going strong even though he's 36 years old. By playing Sunday, Graham became the sixth active player to play in 200 games. The Eagles drafted him in the first round in 2010.

Graham leads Eagles edge rushers by playing 49% of the snaps this season. Graham had a key 3rd-and-1 stop in the third quarter, when he threw wide receiver Cedric Tillman for a 5-yard loss on an end-around. That set up a 52-yard field goal that Dustin Hopkins missed, keeping the game tied at 10-10.

"I was calling myself the knockout punch at the end," Graham said after the game. "You’re sitting around, waiting. You’re encouraging, but you ain’t playing too much. But then you come in when you need it, and you go make a play. I was just happy to be of service to the team, and help during a key moment in the game."

Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on X @Mfranknfl, on Threads and Instagram @martinfrank1.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: 5 Eagles overreactions vs Browns: How to replace injured Jordan Mailata