Nick Sirianni took a springtime moment with the Philadelphia Eagles to poke fun at rookie No. 9 Makai Lemon’s restaurant mispronunciation, recalling how Lemon said he ordered gnocchi after visiting the saloon.
On a spring day when the Philadelphia Eagles are back at the Jefferson Health Training Complex in South Philly. the catch you see most often belongs to Jalen Hurts and the rest of the offense—but the one people are talking about is new No. 9 Makai Lemon, working his way through first-time sessions with the team.
During that adjustment period, Sirianni didn’t just talk football. He found a reason to laugh at Lemon’s off-field detour, too.
Sirianni recalled that “Vic. Makai said he went to the saloon.” From there. the details came out like a story that stuck—“He had the lobster. he had the pasta. he had the gnocchi.” The punchline followed immediately with Sirianni eager to tell Vic Fangio about the way Lemon said it. The moment is simple: Sirianni couldn’t wait to rib Fangio about how Lemon mispronounced gnocci.
It’s the kind of thing that would land even harder if Lemon were the stereotype the surname suggests. With the name Lemon. the idea of struggling to say a classic Italian dumpling word—especially for a “true-blue Pennsylvanian Italian” who has a “world-famous meatball recipe”—is exactly the sort of mismatch that makes the room light up.
Sirianni’s explanation kept it playful rather than harsh. Lemon may have kept himself close to USC, dining on “Taco-Taco and Rosso Oro’s” instead of looking farther afield for Michelin-star Italian food like Holbox.
But the ribbing isn’t just about restaurants. In the same breath. the spring storyline turns back toward the field: if Lemon can produce the kind of work he showed at the Memorial Coliseum. he won’t have to search for a good meal once he’s fully settled in Philadelphia—where James Beard winners like Kalaya can still put together a dish to go with a “Go Birds” for good measure.
Behind the jokes, the timing is clear. Lemon is learning the playbook. picking up the tendencies of teammates. and getting the lay of the land in a new city—and Sirianni is making sure the first lessons include at least one story that will travel with the group long after the menu discussion is done.
For now, the Eagles are watching a rookie adjust from the learning curve to the production curve. And every time the conversation drifts to what’s for dinner. it comes back to the same thing: Lemon’s new start in South Philly. complete with the kind of mispronunciation that made Sirianni grin and Fangio get dragged into it—over and over again.
Nick Sirianni Makai Lemon Philadelphia Eagles Jalen Hurts Vic Fangio Jefferson Health Training Complex spring practice gnocchi