One thing everyone knows about Philadelphia Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio is that he is an open book and will tackle any subject.
During his press conference, he was open about how silly coaching titles like "pass game coordinator" are and even criticized the Philadelphia Phillies for firing their manager earlier in the season. One question he did not address with the media was Eagles edge rusher Nolan Smith's arrest.
"Coach addressed it today," Fangio said via Sports Illustrated's John McMullen. "I didn't find out about it until this morning, so we'll address it at some point."
Vic Fangio didn't address Nolan Smith's arrest
Smith was arrested for reckless driving and speeding after being accused of driving at 135 mph in a 70-mph zone. He did make bond and has a court date set for the incident.
Fangio made the right call, and I'm not talking about the incident since it's a new development, and more information could come out. The Eagles would probably prefer to address it all with Smith behind closed doors and not in public.
Going into the 2026 season, Fangio has high hopes for his edge rushers as he's looking for guys like Smith and Hunt to step up in a big way and show progress. Newly acquired edge rusher Jonathan Greenard is already established, but this comes down to what the Eagles can get from their young guys for the future.
Smith will face more pressure than ever, as he has the fifth year of his rookie contract picked up despite missing time in 2025 due to injury. Now, with the off-field incident he's dealing with, that's only going to intensify the situation on the field and the urgency to play well.
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Fangio is staying focused on the Eagles' on-field play and hoping to get this defense back to being a top-five unit, as it was in 2024 when they won the Super Bowl.
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