Chip Opens TC with a PC
Posted: August 2nd, 2015 | Author: Tommy Lawlor | Filed under: Philadelphia Eagles | 277 Comments »Chip opened the 2015 Training Camp with a PC and he had plenty of interesting things to say. Before we go into Chip’s comments, we have to talk about something else. The hot topic of the day is the trade of Brandon Boykin, and some subsequent comments that Boykin made. Here are the comments from Boykin.
“The truth is Chip is uncomfortable around grown men of our culture. He can’t relate, and that makes him uncomfortable, he like to be in total control of everything. Players can excel when you naturally let them be who they are and in my experience that hasn’t been important to him. I’m forever grateful to Mr. Lurie, Howie, my teammates and fans of Philadelphia.”
Ouch. You can’t just shrug those comments off as sour grapes. This isn’t LeSean or DeSean leaving a huge salary and a great role in a dynamic offense. This isn’t someone who had character issues. Boykin is going to a better situation. He will have a chance to legitimately compete for a starting role in Pittsburgh. That’s huge for him as he heads into a contract year. Nickelback money can be good, but it is down from starting corner money.
I remember seeing Boykin at the 2012 Senior Bowl. He stood out to me there because he was hanging out with his family. Most players get with agents and/or handlers after practice. Boykin was there with his family. He was not your typical jock. When a guy like that is critical, you have to listen to him.
Chip was asked about Boykin’s comments. He didn’t know what to say. Chip mentioned that he and Boykin shook hands and hugged last night when they discussed the move. I’m guessing Chip had no idea that Boykin would say anything negative. Chip did admit that hearing the comments did bother him a little bit.
As far as the trade, Chip said the Steelers had been after Boykin for a while. This was their best offer and the Eagles felt it was too good to pass up. It is a 5th rounder for now, but can go up to a 4th rounder if Boykin plays 60 percent of the snaps this year. The Steelers have some issues at CB so Boykin can compete for a starting job. If he’s just the nickel, that could be okay as well. Last year the Steelers nickelback played 60 percent of the snaps. And Chip did admit the fact Boykin was in a contract year was a factor in the deal.
Chip stressed that a big reason for this is the Eagles sudden depth at CB. Byron Maxwell will be one starter. Nolan Carroll and Eric Rowe will compete for the other. For now, JaCorey Shepherd, E.J. Biggers and Jaylen Watkins will be the three guys battling for the nickel spot.
Chip went out of his way to praise Carroll. These don’t just feel like typical offseason fluff comments to me. It sounds like Chip and the staff are very high on Carroll right now. The team is also very happy with Shepherd and Rowe.
There were two other big nuggets from Chip today. Most important, Sam Bradford is 100 percent healthy. He is full go to do everything. There are no plans to ease him into the flow of things. He will practice just like all the other QBs. The team will monitor him and adjust that if Bradford’s knee gives him any issues.
Chip made it abundantly clear that ILB Mychal Kendricks will not be traded. “You can write that down in ink.” More than a few people were worried that the Boykin deal meant Kendricks would also be moved. That is not the case.
Both players are in their contract years, but there are differences. Boykin was a great role player. Kendricks is an impact starter. The Eagles may not keep him long term, but he has value this year. With Kiko Alonso and DeMeco Ryans both coming off injuries, Kendricks offers good insurance. And LB is the key part of the 3-4 defense. Playmaking LBs are critical. The Eagles are comfortable with having a rookie compete for the Nickelback job, but not with having a rookie trying to start at ILB (Jordan Hicks).
PE.com has the PC ready for you to watch.
* * * * *
I’ll write more about Boykin’s comments in another post.
I also need to write more about him as a DB.
And I also need to write about Kelly’s philosophy in regard to players size.
_
Just let this sink in:
This is the last weekend without pro or college football until February 2016.
Yes!
And Dallas will have football til January 3rd, but most will have their Golden State shirts on by Halloween.
I’m not going to be overly optimistic about that. Dallas still has the best quarterback in the division and the best offensive line in the entire league. That’s a recipe for success as long as their coaching staff doesn’t get stupid and stop pounding the ball to set up play action.
Boykin was asked to clarify today in Pittsburgh. He said something to the effect that Chip would just blow past dudes in the hallway without being personable, etc.
I don’t know if that was backtracking the statement at all, but I guess everybody would prefer to play for Pete Carroll.
https://twitter.com/geoffmoshercsn/status/627887759424946177
Thank you!
Geoff Mosher is the biggest HACK in the industry.
Hope he is happy for all the hits on his site at the Eagles expense.
The damage is already done and Mosher played a huge part IMO.
I don’t get your anger in this case. He was defending chip against being called a racist and the assumption that boykins comments are racially driven.
Do you think Mosher and D Gunn had members of the Boykin family held hostage until Boykin gave them the quotes they wanted to launch their evil scheme?
No, but I think Mosher will write anything for clickbait, even at the detriment of the team.
A reporter can run so many story lines about our team and I thought the headline he used was clearly in poor taste.
His headline read, “Brandon Boykin latest to make race related jab at Chip Kelly”
Are you kidding me?
Go ahead and defend that hack if you like, but I see he and Boykin have been backtracking ever since Mosher wrote that article.
The column writers rarely write the headline, There are copy editors who do that.
I think Mosher will write anything for clickbait, even at the detriment of the team.
I’m no fan of Mosher, who I agree is a hack, but I’m sorry.. it’s not a journalist’s job to worry about the “detriment of the team”. It’s his job to write about what happens and gives the most accurate, factually rigorous account he can. This isn’t Pravda.
When I read the remarks Boykin made about Chip “Blowing past dudes in the hallway without being personable” it made me think of something my GF mentioned recently about the Doctors she works with. They do the exact same thing. She said it’s like they’re in a trance thinking about a million little details all at once & seem completely unaware of their surroundings. More than one have acknowledged & apologized for it, & they almost never even realized they did this. I have absolutely no way of knowing obviously, but I’d bet it’s nearly the same thing with Chip. The only difference being it’s X & O’s & all other manner of Football thoughts completely consuming him. Just like with the Doc’s, it probably just makes him seem cold & distant. It’s a theory anyway.
I think this is a good theory. Chip does strike me as an extremely analytical guy, and not a “people person”.
Boykin was talking about his culture. It sounds an awful lot like every other member of the Entitled Generation’s culture. My relative who does hiring says it’s not unusual for a new 18-year-old kid to start questioning why they have to stock toy shelves, not the sporting goods. Or completely ignoring the customers standing at the Customer Service desk in order to talk about last night’s party.
Another change of topic. As SuM says on 24/7, a ‘hi’ or nod should be enough to acknowledge another employee you see all day every day.
Not to get political on you, but as someone who came of age just a little before this so-called “entitled generation” and has worked with/gone to school with quite a few of them (I’m 35), let’s pump the brakes on that talk a little. This generation is graduating into a crappy economy with tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of debt in many cases and a government that has run up an enormous fiscal debt they will have to pay back because the generations that preceded them wanted both a lot of spending and low taxes. They can be self-centered and overly sure of themselves like any young people but I don’t think it’s fair to talk like they’ve been completely spoiled.
I work in an industry where all we do is hire 16-18 yr olds and I can’t remember the last one who told me they actually washed a dish or did a chore growing up. The closest they’ve come is “my grandma washed dishes in my house “…Yeah that would’ve never flown in my house lol…
Tommy I’d like to know your thoughts on Chip Kelly and his DB size preference. It’s interesting to me that Chip didn’t think Boykin could be a starting outside CB because of his size at 5″10 but has no problems with Ja’Corey Shepard (5″11) or Evans (6″) playing outside. To be honest I don’t really understand the difference in an inch. Two inches makes some sense but I can’t see how one inch could prevent him from being an outside CB when he has some serious talent. Brent Grimes is 5″10 and is a perennial pro-bowler and Revis isn’t that much taller, what gives?
I’ll write more about Boykin’s comments in another post.
I also need to write more about him as a DB.
And I also need to write about Kelly’s philosophy in regard to players size.
Funny thing, I didn’t read all the way through.
That’ll happen. I often do that when getting excited to post.
Who said anything about either of the 6th rnd CBs starting on the outside?
Not the fact that they will start but the fact that they have the opportunity to compete.
The dude out jumped megaton for a pick, didn’t he? Am I imagining that? I mean if you have rocket cleats who care how tall you are? Boykin is such a good dude, so dedicated. This isy least favorite move of the off season.
I’ll go one more step. It’s my least favorite Eagles move since letting go of trotter when he could still play and was maximized in jj’s defense. Boykin could flat out play and probably on the outside at a high level. Kelly has talked about knowing that there are times for exceptions from his rules. But he’s looking really dogmatic on this one.
But, but, he’s short and he can’t guard Dez Bryant. I mean, all we have to do is get someone 6′ and Dez will never score a TD on us again. Woo!
Ugh what a croc of shit. I wish Kelly would pull his own glory out of his asshole and look at things openly. I really don’t feel like they gave Boykin more than a day of seeing whether or not he could start on the outside. While we were being abused there last season (sometimes 3 times a game) it was a slap in the face to keep Boykin on the sideline.
At least for Boykin’s sake he’ll have an opportunity to prove his worth with a fresh start.
Every Head Coach wants his own team with his own “culture”. For example:
You only won 1 game in your first season! You drafted a 205 pound MLB and a 225 pound OLB. What’s a Cover 2? You have a black scout covering small Southern schools? When you won your first Super Bowl, there were only 5 players left from the old regime. Who do you think you are, Chuck Noll!
You drafted a skinny undersized 3rd round QB who can’t really throw the deep ball! Are you trying to say you can win with your “scheme” to spread the field with short passes? You only won 1 game in your first year! You and your dinky little passing game! What is it called, Bill Walsh? Oh yeah. The West Coast Offense. Sneer.
Who do you think you are, Chip Kelly? You only won 10 games in your first year. How dare you think you can break down and rebuild a football team? Only San Francisco or New Orleans are allowed to do that this year. etc. etc.
Chuck Noll and Bill Walsh are Hall of Fame coaches who proved that their approach worked.
Kelly has yet to do that. He might in the future, but he hasn’t yet. So stop trying to make comparisons like this.
Have to disagree about the Boykin comments, Tommy. Boykin was a stand-up guy throughout most of his time with this team, but between the comments about holding Chip accountable if he didn’t get a fair shot to start and now this, it was obvious that his frustrations about his role clouded his judgment these last few months. In the process, he just ended up greasing the skids for his exit.
The trade had nothing to do with race. If it did, why does Chip seem to value players such as DeMeco Ryans, Fletcher Cox, Jason Peters, DeMarco Murray, Byron Maxwell, and Jordan Matthews?
It has everything to do with the fact that Boykin simply was never a great fit as an outside corner in the Eagles defensive scheme.
Disappointed in BB about this – would have liked to see him show some more class on the way out.
I think he went out alright, he didn’t pull a Shady or a DeSean and express his feelings in a straight ignorant matter. He simply stated that he doesn’t think Kelly was comfortable of men of Black culture, didn’t call him a racist because those are two different things. That’s his perspective and you can’t fault him for it.
I think BB should be a little hurt with Chip Kelly pushing him out the door. Earlier this offseason Kelly said that Boykin would have the opportunity to compete for a starting CB job and that simply wasn’t the case all along. The real fact was that the minute Kelly got the best deal he would trade him. Kelly made those comments after the NFL draft when we had Shepard, Rowe, and Evans along with Maxwell and Biggers on the roster.
Yeah. He was a good dude & I believe he’s a high character person. But clearly he had an axe to grind. Unfortunately it seems like he let that get the better of him on the way out. Very disappointing.
Clearly the team pigeon-holing him as #justanickel bothered BB. Can’t blame him and what he said about Chip on the way out was imho fair. Does it show a bit a sour grapes? Sure, but most people would under the circumstances. Kelly and Davis promised him a shot at starting outside the last two seasons and we saw what came of that. He never got any opportunity, even when injuries led to the Eagles playing Jaylen Watkins on the outside in last season’s meaningless finale. Comparing this with Shady’s or even Tra’s comments seems silly to me.
Wow, Kiko starting with the 1’s over Kendricks. So much for earning your spot. I wonder what Mychal feels about that…
Remember last 2 training camps, there was a daily rotation of players in the starting positions while the media was watching.
But I can’t remember anyone starting with the 1’s when there was a clear starter from the previous year still there.
Even the rookies who are presumed starters (like Agholor) begin camp with the backups.
Well, I am expecting a rotation and I Am hoping this may be a situation of getting Kiko comfortable with both DeMeco and Kendricks, since Kendricks and DeMeco already have chemistry… But that is the optimist in me…
Yeah, I don’t think it’s set in stone or anything, but it just seemed odd that with the first snaps they downgraded a starter in favor of a newbie (coming off an injury, no less!)…
That’s the other factor, they started the 2 injured guys, trying to get them more reps to catch up?
Yeah you can’t really put too much stock into who is starting now. If you remember, Chip’s first year here he had Jackson and Shady run with the two’s or the three’s at some point just to give depth guys a look with the first team.
Personally I think it’s Kiko and Kendricks to start the season with Meco rotating and spelling them. Kendricks is too much of an impact player to have him on the bench. Meco is a strong leader and a solid LB but he’s not an impact player.
Obviously there’s a rotation, but the first snaps had always been given to the previous year’s starters. Just seems odd to me that he changed tack in this case.
True. It’s just not worth putting much stock into right now. Let’s say Sam Bradford all of a sudden regresses terribly from tomorrow until the end of camp while Sanchez excels and shows improvement, I would hope Chip Kelly would be wise to switch to Sanchez. *Cringes sharply*
It’s seriously not even worth mentioning the depth chart this early.. We could see Sanchez play with the #3s at some point in the next few days yet we know he won’t be the #3… I’m sure the next two weeks will be all jumbled up.. Depth chart will matter when we start getting ready for preseason
I think it’s as much of a stretch to give Ryans a spot. He lost a step (or half a one), I think, after his previous injury. Why assume he’s as good as ever coming off a torn achilles?
He lost half a step coming after his first injury.
He also lost a step after turning 30.
So, if we’re lucky, he’ll only be two steps worse by the second half of this year.
Kendricks and Alonso play different ILB positions. Kiko would call the plays and set up the defense while Kendricks is the primary blitzer/coverage ILB. I think they need to start him there right away to get familiar with playing both Ryans and Kendricks positions.
I’ll take it one step further and wonder how Kendricks feels about being a backup when he would be a three-down player for most NFL teams around the league.
I can see why the Eagles may not love Kendricks (somewhat flashy personality off the field, durability concerns, and a better scheme fit as a 4-3 OLB because his two biggest weaknesses, diagnosing plays and taking on blocks, are absolutely necessary skills for a 3-4 ILB), but he’s still proven himself to be a productive linebacker and has improved every year he’s been in the league.
I don’t think there’s bad blood between Chip/Davis and Kendricks right now, but it is still a fairly strong possibility that their relationship may deteriorate beyond the point of no return. Would be a shame if this happens, because MK and Kiko could be a special ILB pairing for years to come.
Maybe Kiko’s talent level is above and beyond what any of us know.
That is a strong possibility.
Chip has said, ” The best players will play”.
Then Meco should be on the bench. Period.
except that ryans is better than kendricks, carlos the dwarf.
At what?
Because he’s definitely not better at football.
yeah, the football part, he is a better football player. kendrick is more athletic.
kikos rookie year better than any year kendricks has had.
And Kendricks’ last two years are better than anything Meco’s done since the first Achilles tear.
idk about that
Luckily, I do know about that! Nothing Ryans has done for the Eagles has been on the level of what Kendricks did last season.
Athletically possibly true, but Ryans was the defensive “QB” on the field and the coaches clearly did not trust Kendricks with that. It was Casey Matthews out there in that role. He couldn’t cover anyone, but they decided they needed that ability on the field, so Kendricks’ inability to do that meant we had to watch Matthews once Ryans went down. I suspect that Ryans is much more fundamentally sound. The coaches may define “better” as not making as many mistakes just as much as making impressive-looking plays.
bingo
…Kiko was the defensive QB for the Bills. He wasn’t too terrible at that, from what I can remember.
youre right, its been better. Ryans has covered better and calls the defensive plays. thats why kendricks was crying when he got hurt. go learn u sumpin son
Ryans has covered better?
Hahahahahhahahaha.
Is this a Charlie Kelly gimmick account?
yeah ryans has covered better… ryans doesnt miss his assignments or make mistakes like kendricks does. step it up
Ryans doesn’t miss his assignments?!
Definitely a “Charlie’s football analysis” gimmick account.
dude, you dont know anything, the truth has been told to you, its up to you to grasp it!!! lmfao but keep on being delusional if thats what you choose. just at least N+KNOW you are being delusional
Hahahaha,
What’s the next bit?!
Are you going to talk about eating pigeon eggs?
Or eating fish from the river?
How about you take a break, and go back to stalking The Waitress?
says… carlos… the dwarf?? womp womp. Im a lawyer!!
Hahahaa, you don’t get a Freaks and Geeks reference and Mac and Dennis are letting you call yourself a lawyer?
Classic Charlie!
lawyers do lawyerin’ and you lawyer’d son!!
“We’re just rotating,” Kendricks said. “I don’t even know if there is a ‘one’ or a ‘two’ or a ‘three.’ “
Chip has not gotten rid of Kendricks yet, but I think it is clear he will at some point, either by trade or by letting him walk when his contract is up.
We’ve learned with Chip that what he says is largely short term, meaning he says whatever is necessary to shut down the next question on the topic or stop the questioner from continuing to probe and telling the questioner “he can write that down in ink” on Kendricks means very little.
Strictly from a money standpoint, they have Kiko stuck on scumbag wages for 2015, 16, and 17 because 2014’s NFI designation for Kiko hit the pause button on his contract. Hicks is on scumbag wages for 2015-18.
It is financially possible (although I don’t think they’ll do it because Chip’s mocking of Kendricks for taking his sweet as time coming back from that “day to day” calf strain last year was said for a reason), to extend Kendricks on a 4 year deal that is a JV version of the one Wagner just got, but allows the Eagles to bail on it after two seasons. Then they could slide $ Kiko’s way.
I agree it’s possible, especially the way you structured it (likely to have an out by the time Hicks is owed money*)
*there are so many unknowns re: Ryans (health, age), Alonso (health), and Hicks (NFL ability). Chip clearly values the insurance and veteran understanding that Kendricks provides. Which is why I don’t see anything happening before the off-season anyway, but quite possibly a team-friendly (time-wise) contract next spring.
The Eagles are very lucky to get 3 cheap seasons out of Kiko if they want.
And a very smart move from Eagles brass IMO, to position the team to devote money into making this team better.
Imagine if we were a dumb team that did not know how to exploit the cap as well as the Eagles do.
I am thankful we have more “scumbag wages” than the average teams, as it makes it easier for the Eagles to maneuver under the cap.
No dumpster fires starting here in Philly.
I don’t think the Eagles have been burdened by bad contracts given to old people in the entire time Lurie has owned the team. All credit to Banner / Howie / Chip on that.
Shit will hit the fan once Kiko realizes that he doesn’t want his next contract when he’s 27.
He’s kind of stuck. Players might want to get some language changed in the next CBA with the whole NFI designation costing them a year of credited service if they were injured working out.
If Mykal and Kiko stay healthy, they will look too good to not bring back kendricks, and yes, paying Kiko and Hicks rookie chump change allows us to pay Mykal and around the time we can get out of his new deal it will be time to give that money to extending Kiko or Hicks..
..
If Mykal doesn’t play 16 games, then I will worry about him not being brought back.. But for now the Mykal assumption is like saying last year was going to be Graham’s last year in philly.. Flawed thinking..: LOL @ people getting a little too carried away with height requirements.. Boykin wasn’t played outside because he wasn’t tall enough, he didn’t play outside because he wasn’t one of our best corners at pressing which is what we want outside corners to do..
..
Brand on Graham doesn’t meet the height requirement but he got paid, so to assume a good kid, good team mate, who is constantly improving and committed to this team won’t be brought back because he is 5’11 instead of 6’1 is crazy talk..
..
Kendricks, Curry, BG, all lack “measurements” but have a great shot at still bring key members of this defense two years from now, because you have to think chip is one shallow coach to think that there won’t be a few guys who are good enough to overlook being an inch or two short…
yeah I don’t really believe anything Chip says to the media
Only public comments of Kelly that you can absolutely bank are that he has minimum H-W-S requirements for various positions.
thats true. plus i don’t see why a smart guy like chip would give away anything to the media (most of the nil doesn’t, but you know what i mean)
EF1:
You have tip your cap to Kelly.
At least he’s frank about the minimums.
Consider Belichick . . . won’t give you the time of day. Ever.
absolutely. distract the media and fans by letting them figure out what you mean.
welcome to the NFL
Louis Riddick
@LRiddickESPN
2m2 minutes ago
Remember this name too: Denzel Rice. CB.Coastal Carolina. Undrafted rookie this year with #Eagles. Want to see him play. Caught my eye today
Kelly(or someone) mentioned him earlier as a player that flashed during mini-camps.
oh yeah, i heard him say the name rice, and i was thinking, who the F is rice?? lmfao
Chip may have the title of Head Coach and General Manager, but he functions like a Chief Executive Officer
And how many CEOs have a management style that’s personable? Think Steve Jobs and Apple for comparison. If you view Chip through the lens of CEO/visionary, his actions make a lot more sense. Put it this way, if you want to get a sense of the level of organization, planning, and detail that Chip functions at, try writing a business plan for a billion dollar corporation. He functions at that level – and don’t forget he makes $5+ million a year himself.
And to call a 25 year old of any race or culture a grown man in relation to adults in their 40s and 50s speaks to the very ignorance of youth. With that said, the CEOs that I’ve know that were lacking in people skills eventually added leaders with that skill set to counterbalance their abrasiveness.
So you’re comparing an asshole to an asshole?
A lot(most IMO) of very successful people are assholes.
Yea I know but Jobs as a comparison? Man Chip must have kicked everyones puppy in the Northeast to get that comparison.
I’m not familiar enough with Jobs’ personality to comment. I know there have been biopics on him but those things are always sensationalized.
Sometimes working for an asshole is the best situation if your prime motivation is doing your best possible work and you realize that this asshole is going to demand it from you.
Different things for different people. Although Chip doesn’t seem to like different minded people.
Check out some of his players’ opinions on Lombardi. There seemed to be a lot of hatred going around. But, they won.
For every mean CEO, there’s examples of those that aren’t and are still successful.
he is head coach and general manager and functions as if he is head coach and general manager.
Louis Riddick
@LRiddickESPN
4m4 minutes ago
Ryan Mathews is a better athlete w/ better natural run skills than D. Murray. Have always felt that. Compare side by side, it jumps out.
21 retweets
16 favorites
What exactly are “natural run skills”?
I always thought the most important skill for a running back is finding a crease and getting through it. (Jimmy Johnson, describing Emmitt Smith, called it being “nifty” in the hole.)
And given two otherwise equally athletic RBs, or even one who’s not quite as athletic as another, give me the guy who can find daylight.
The anti-Bryce Brown, in other words.
So is Mathews better than Murray at picking out the holes and getting through them? Is that Riddick’s point?
I’d guess a combination of vision in seeing the hole and then explosiveness to hit it quickly.
Or maybe these comments help explain why Riddick is working for ESPN instead of an NFL team.
Touche!!!
Vision. Absolutely the biggest asset for a runner.
I think I’d call it envisioning. Knowing where the hole will open based on how the bodies are moving
Wasn’t that Shady’s special talent………….that led him into a twitter war vs. a baby momma?
You are on fire in this thread, Mike. Love it 😀
Like how Mathews looks “natural” in running to the training table every 3rd game?
It’s actually not uncommon to hear people say that Ryan Mathews is actually more talented runner then Murray. I heard that a few different times from respected people.. Ryan Mathews has been good but he has underachieved with injuries and some bad fumbles..he has yet to realize his full potential, if our coaches can get that out of him, he is going to impress…
Two reactions to the Boykin trade.
First . . . Kelly — by his own admission — was ready to move on from Boykin by the 2015 NFL draft. Maybe even as early as the day after the 2014 season ended.
So, while Kelly may like what he has at CB right now, moving on from Boykin was going to happen as soon as another team offered something better than a 6th Rd pick. If no offer was made, Boykin apparently would still be here.
Second . . . Boykin said to DGunn last night that he perceived Kelly to be “uncomfortable” around black players.
Then today, Boykin, presumably by way of elaboration, said that he — and other players, black players, I guess — would like Kelly to interact with them more. (Media Mike has the link.)
The second, elaborative remark makes sense only if Boykin (and other black players) see Kelly “interact[ing]” with white players in a different way then he does with black players inside the building — ’cause on the field, Kelly is “MR. HUGS ALL AROUND,” without regard to player, position, number, or race.
Whatever’s going on, Boykin and other players — the context created by his comments suggests other black players — have talked about “Cold Shoulder Chip.”
Probably not the best thing in the world. But not the end of the world.
Boykin clarified it wasn’t about race but interactions in general.
I’d read his “clarification.” (Thought I noted that in my comment.)
But the context of Boykin’s original and follow-up remarks, as I tried to suggest at least, seem to be that “Cold Shoulder Chip” is a perception among black players.
I’m reading the two comments together, given that Boykin’s comment this morning was intended to explain his statement last night.
I wonder how warm Evan Mathis feels Chip’s shoulder is.
Is that was Boykin was talking about?
Possibly. Mosher mentioned in a tweet that he has heard similar experiences from people with a wide range of backgrounds and ethnicities. It isn’t a race thing, it is a personality thing.
EN:
See your point, now.
Could very well be that Kelly’s just an asshole in the hallway and at the urinal, because he’s in his own world — always thinking about something other than the person in front of him or next to him.
Belichickian, to be sure, would be the theory, right?
I spent 4 years working for an attorney highly placed in the Justice Department who later came to (and remains in) national prominence.
The guy would pass you in the hall and treat you as invisible. It became a running joke.
The only time he’d talk to you is if you could advance his political aspirations. Otherwise, you were dead to him — though he fully demanded excellence from you in your professional conduct.
What’s Eric like?
The Evan situation only has to do with one thing. $$$
You are inferring black. He never stated that
EN . . .
What do you think Boykin meant when he used the term “grown men of our culture”?
Do you think Boykin meant pro-football players, generally — particularly those on the Eagles?
Or African-American pro-football players on the Ealges?
I think the latter, given the “culture” reference. Makes no sense to me otherwise.
I don’t really see the argument for the former.
What you said bellow is exactly what I meant.
It looks like Entitled Generation culture more than anything else, because nobody has a culture based entirely on skin colour. Even if they think they do. eg. Would you say Stanford grad Richard Sherman shares the same “culture” as the druggie rappers?
I remember an African-American man who made a trip to France a number of years ago and was deeply shocked to discover that no black person he met in France could speak any language but French. Or the woman who went to Ghana expecting to be received with open arms because of her colour, only to discover that most Ghanians saw her as just another rich tourist. Anyway, using skin-colour to self-segregate seems just as foolish as any other reason to play the race card. Of course, I live in the Metro area considered by the U.N. to be the 2nd most “multi-cultural” city in the world. Vancouver, B.C.
Rant over. ;~)
Did Boykin say other players have the same opinion?
BC:
That was my impression from the Judy Batista tweet, retweeted by Mosher.
(It’s in a comment nearby by Media Mike.)
I think the last sentence of your post is the key.
As long as the team wins, Chip being abrasive or rubbing certain players the wrong way is not going to be a huge issue. It’s only something that could flare up into a bigger deal if they start to lose.
Sheil Kapadia wrote that Jerome Couplin and Chris Maragos lined up as the 2nd-team safeties. Wolff was on the 3rd team. He didn’t say who he was paired with.
Reynolds perhaps?
I’d think Prosinski would be ahead of Reynolds assuming Watkins is getting CB reps.
Makes sense.
Wonder what salty things Wolff will have to say when he gets cut.
*pain tolerance
http://fe867b.medialib.glogster.com/media/b0/b0df7649e119c2bd9461089a497b2f8769975f596f52f8c645b38f08bf669b27/wolves2.jpg
Given the way he’s been ripped by the coaching staff combined with the Eagles docs misdiagnosing his knee injury to begin with? shudder
Maragos lining up with the two’s worries me. He showed no sense whatsoever for the ball in the air last pre-season. He might be a missile once he sees the play, but it was consistently after the pass was completed.
I think this is more an indictment on Wolff than anything else.
True, but I’d rather have Wolff starting than Maragos any day. Wolff’s shown flashes of being competent, if not great. Sure, his nagging knee issues have put him in Kelly’s dog house, but do you honestly believe that Maragos would be better out there? Prosinksy? Both of these guys are on the team only for their ST ability and would be disasters if asked to start. I love having top notch ST, but I sometimes wonder if we sacrifice capable depth in their favor.
Don’t know what to make of Boykin’s parting shot. Kelly has said and proven by his actions that “Everyone is expendable,” and most folks take that as code for “be on your A game at all times.” But with Kelly, he literally means everyone, and he will discard talent for cap room, which will not sit well with most players conditioned to believe that their ability will govern their fate. Kelly said that Boykin expressed shock when he learned of the trade, so perhaps Boykin thought he had job security because he was a baller on the field.
Why search for hidden agendas? CK made it plain that he wants tall corners for his system. CK has signed tall corners; CK has drafted tall corners. When you are a vertically challenged CB who wants to start, you had to know this day was coming. Where is the bravado about being 5’9″, always having to prove yourself against taller opponents, going to grab a starting CB role on your new team, and show the Eagles that they made a mistake?
Interesting tweet:
https://twitter.com/smartfootball/status/627898897294323712
That and a bum hammy seemed to have plummeted him down the draft board.
Seems like a really good player. Shocked he went that low. After I watched him I was thinking more like a high 4th. However his tackling was pretty terrible.
Pish posh on tackling says Asante Samuel.
Sorry. Couldn’t resist. From a Poppins quotes site. (You can find anything on the Internets).
Mary Poppins:” Close your mouth, please, Michael. We are not a codfish”.
The most significant information I received today was that all 89 players are a full go, and as I predicted Sam is 100% and ready to make an impact at the Starting QB position.
Having the best backup in the NFL in Sanchez should put us over the top, as far as winning more than ten games IMO.
Brandon Boykin showed us his character was not as advertized, as the words he chose were in poor taste and won’t soon be forgotten.
If I learned anything in life, it’s that you never burn a bridge, as life has a funny way of repeating itself, like history and there may come a day when Boykin regrets those words, as it seems he already has.
IMO, he was a very good player who’s only knock was not being the prototypical size in the Eagles defensive scheme, which led to this trade.
Other factors as Tommy has mentioned regarding Boykin being in a contract year, also played a huge part in this decision.
I love Chip “The GM” almost as much as Chip the HC, as it takes a certain level of intellect to decide what is best for the Eagles and I am pleasantly surprised in how he has gone about making this team better, from an overall perspective.
I feel Chip is trying to build something unique and special for the city of Philadelphia and we as fans of this team should be honored and thankful we have an Owner who could relate to Chips vision.
Better days are coming for Eagles fans and after the games are played we will all know how good or bad these decisions were, as the media is just itching to slam the Eagles if they fail.
I am choosing the most optimistic approach as I can handle being wrong.
It’s disgusting to see people turn on ex-players so fast once they’re off the team. Suddenly Boykin is a scumbag because he voiced his opinion about Chip.
It’s disgusting to see ex-players turn on their former employers so fast after they’re off the team. There is such a thing as “no comment”.
But sometimes the shit just seems, everybody only wants to discuss me
So this must mean I’m disgusting, but its just me I’m just obscene
Is that Lord Byron or from some rap song?
I’d you’d like to equate Mr. Mathers to Lord Byron; I’d love to read your paper on the topic.
Not my field but I’m sure out there there’s some literature or music doctoral candidate that has done a thesis comparing the grammatical/lyrical structure of famous poets and rap artists.
1. There was nothing negative said about Chip.
2. Freedom of speech
3. At least he was honest instead of someone like Maclin.
Freedom of speech is with respect to the law. That doesn’t mean common sense standards don’t apply. Be a professional.
Common sense says that he did his job by answering the media.
There is no obligation for players to talk to the media except in formal press availabilities arranged by their current club. His comments today to the Pittsburgh media may fall under that umbrella. His comments to Derrick Gunn last night did not.
and common sense says we have the right to have an opinion about what he says. step it up
There was something said negative of chip doe.
no one is attacking free speech they are attacking what he was free to say.
boykin hugs and smiles in chips face and talks shit behind it, whats to respect about that? ill tell you.. nothing.
You and I must have read different things then.
http://www.bleedinggreennation.com/2015/8/2/9086951/brandon-boykin-comments-chip-kelly-steelers-trade-conditional-pick-training-camp
More clarity if you haven’t seen it yet.
clarify what doe? “It did, it really [surprised me]. When he left here last night, he shook my hand and gave me a hug, he didn’t say anything.”
Please point out all the shit Boykin talked about Chip. I’m just too dumb to see it.
did u not read boykins comments? step it up insomniac
Yeah okay when your done go read CSN’s article by your favorite media pundit Geofff Mosher.
Here’s even more clarity.
http://www.csnphilly.com/football-philadelphia-eagles/brandon-boykin-chip-kelly-uncomfortable-around-grown-men-our-culture
Lets ignore the other statement made by Boykin to fit your narrative.
No, because he implied Chip was a racist, if you read Moshers article.
I guess you support Shady and Djax as they both casted parting low blows to a higher degree.
If you read my comment, I did say Boykin was a good player, and I was as shocked as Chip was to read what he said.
Brandon Boykin said Chip Kelly is “uncomfortable around grown men of our culture.” , and I think we can all agree he meant black men.
Also, I never called him a scumbag, but since you brought it up, that was a scumbag move.
could be true. but who cares, chip will get players he likes and keep it moving
One way or another, this season is going to be definitional for the Chip Kelly era.
Define definitional.
Hah.
What I mean is that I think that five years from now, we will look back at 2015 as the turning point season in the CK regime. If the moves he made this offseason pay off in a good or great season, it will be seen as the point at which his tenure became an unqualified success. If they fail, it will be seen as the beginning of the end of his time in Philadelphia.
The most interesting note is that DeMarco Murray didn’t take any snaps in 7-on-7s or 11-on-11s. They said all 89 players were full go, so it’s not an injury unless he tweaked something in warmups.
Thankfully all of the writers seemed to think it wasn’t a big deal.
Disaster if it is a big deal. Hoping it’s nothing 🙂
If they had any inclination something was up, you know the click-bait would be all over the hook.
GR:
Who’s player No. 90?
If so, where is he?
Was Boykin. He just got traded so they’re down to 89 for now.
Wow . . . I’m on another planet.
Of course.
Any projections as to who new #90 will be?
Haven’t seen anything. I was trying to remember who the last guy out was before they signed Monangai but I’m drawing a blank.
For the sake of our sanity over the next month let’s hope it’s not Josey.
They waived/injured RB Matthew Tucker with a non-football injury. That opened up the spot for Monangai. Tucker cleared waivers and reverted to the Eagles Reserved-NFI list.
AC – I think his first name starts with Kam or something??
OD:
That would, indeed, be other-worldly.
I heard from a guy who knows a guy, it’s Mariota.
Unknown. I’d guess somebody who tried out at the rookie minicamp.
*sigh*…figures the first bit of real football news we get is a rehash of this crap again. Oh well…
Yay! Football is back! SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
Some random thoughts on this whole thing:
1. Brandon Boykin is not accusing Chip of racism. I hope we’d all be in agreement on that. He clarified what he meant, and it makes a sort of sense.
2. Brandon Boykin is not a “salty” asshole. he was asked a question, and answered to the best of his ability. This is not a jackson or McCoy situation. He’s gone, but we don’t have to turn on him now. And by the same token, he was a really good player. He doesn’t all of a sudden suck because he left.
3. The team is worse at nickel without him. By how much remains to be seen. But the team is not OVERALL worse by terribly much, because nickel corner is a subpackage position. This isn’t a major blow to the team.
4. The team would be worse starting Boykin outside, given our scheme. Not given our coordinator, but our scheme: man/press. Jamming receivers at the line and playing man. it requires physicality. Seattle, or any other team that plays a similar scheme (a very successful scheme, mind you) would be worse as well if they tried to start a 5’8″, 185lb guy at that position. There is no way this team is better THIS YEAR with Boykin starting on the outside. He would be completely outmuscled by the receivers in our division and our conference.
5. If he’s never going to start outside here, and with good reason, then he’s never going to make starter money. It would behoove him to leave, no matter what kind of nickel CB contract we threw at him, to leave in the offseason. No matter what, his time here was done.
6. Given that his time here was done, the Eagles got good value for a player with only a year left on his rookie contract.
7. Boykin has a chance to earn a starter role in a different system, most likely a zone-based system, and thus earn a lot more money.
All the racism shit, all the “Chip sucks” shit, everything, it’s all a bunch of shit. There are some pretty hard, incontrovertible facts here. The Eagles made something out of nothing (2016 nothing), took an incremental hit overall as a team. And Boykin has the shot he always wanted.
I simply fail to see why this is all so mysterious and difficult to people to comprehend about any part of this situation. Does it suck to lose a player like Boykin? Sure. Was it the right move? Well, unless you’re convinced this is our SB year, then yes, long term, it was. And everyone’s better off as a result.
I agree with everything except that I think when current Philly reporters try to bait him with the “racism” nonsense, then his best course of action is a simple no comment.
Agreed, but one small quibble with #4…………. does Billy Davis have any idea how to play anybody in the right spot with whatever scheme he knows or doesn’t know how to run?
But that has less to do with Boykin than it does with me looking for free chances to rip Billy Davis.
You raise a good point: I’m not saying Davis is a genius, by any stretch. But I agree with him that starting Boykin on the outside isn’t a good idea. Last year, though, it probably couldn’t have been worse than what we were getting out of Fletcher. Even though Boykin couldn’t press b/c of size, at least he’d have some pursuit ability and athleticism. And he’d be not Fletcher.
Where Davis is not stupid is in trying to warp the whole secondary around Boykin, just because he’s good. He’s not Dawkins-level good, where you build a defense around him. He’s not so good that you abandon what you’re trying to do with a physical, man D. That’s the part that a lot of people fail to recognize then they bitch about Boykin leaving and then point to our defensive failures last year as if the two are connected.
Completely agree.
Now let me go back to rooting in a 1-15 year for Jacksonville, a fist fight between Billy Davis and Chip on the sidelines in January, and Gus Bradley coordinating this D in 2016!
Part of that fantasy should include someone, anyone, punching Bruce Arians in the head.
Nothing stopping you from running on the field to do that yourself on December 20th!
Well, security.
They should take a South American soccer approach to fan violence toward hated enemies and just not do anything to stop it.
Shouldn’t all fantasies include that?
The Texans Head Coach and I must respectfuly disagree.
Bill O’Brien applauded Arizona coach Bruce Arians’ decision to hire Jen Welter as a training camp intern this summer to work with the Cardinals’ linebackers. She’s the first female coach in NFL history.
“First of all, I have a ton of respect for Bruce Arians,” O’Brien said. “I think he is a hell of a football coach. He has become a friend of mine since I became a head coach in the league. It is kind of like he said: If someone regardless of gender, can prove that they can be out here coaching and helping the players get better, then who cares? Who cares if it is a male or female? It is about making the players better. (If) we interview four or five people and two of them are women and that woman is the best interview and we think she can be the best at getting players better, then we would do the same thing. I think it’s a heck of an opportunity for her.”
So he stops being a poor loser and cry baby because he let a woman intern for the summer?
His peers think he is a good coach. The whining is a separate issue.
But no one commented on his quality as a coach, except you, only his punchworthiness. You then disagreed with the statement, and provided a quote about interning a woman as supporting evidence.
Thank you for keeping the discussion on point; this is 100% about his punchworthiness. His approach towards incorporating women into NFL jobs doesn’t factor into that. His stupid little hat does.
Good coach. Kudos to him for being the 1st to hire a woman. Doesn’t make him less of a crybaby 🙂
Exactly.
id rather see Azzinaro and Arians fight
Not completely sold on #4. Would Boykin be great playing man-press? Probably not, but I’m not convinced he would be worse than the rookies currently on the team, Jaylen Watkins, or Nolan Carroll for that matter. Carroll got a chance to start in a man-press system in Miami and was never more than below average. Suddenly we’re supposed to believe he’s better than Cary, Fletcher, Boykin, or anyone else not named Maxwell that’s played on the team for the last few seasons? Man-press doesn’t play to BB’s strengths, but he’s not so small that he’d be horrible at it. Mark McMillan managed to be ‘alright’ playing a lot of man press and he was significantly smaller than BB.
There you go ruining a bunch of well-entrenched arguing positions with reason, logic, and perspective. And just before I had a chance to read all the feces flinging.
Well said Iaeagle. There may be some wrinkles regarding scheme/position switching that we may yet see. So, I reserve judgement as to whether we are weaker with Boykin gone. Still, I loved the guy as an Eagle and respect him as a player; i.e. I wish him all the best with the Steelers.
I think the racism thing at this point is more of a problem for public perception and therefore perception by players outside of the team.
Chip’s players don’t have to like Chip. There have been many many successful coaches who were hated by their players. At the end of the day that aspect of things is fairly irrelevant to on the field success. Andy Reid was a great coach and his players thought of him as a father figure. He never one the Superbowl though.
As far as the loss to the team, I think its huge. Pitt plays press man. It will be very interesting to see how it pans out. Do they play him outside? Do they press less? Do they press all of the time? It will be interesting to see this play out.
Went over to a couple Steelers sites and they are moving to more of a tampa-2 look. BB’s skills should fit right in.
I don’t think it’s racism. It’s more of a culture shock if you’re not from Chip’s tenure at UO. I find it surprising that Chip can’t relate to some players. He had some knuckleheads at UO and players of all sorts of backgrounds/behaviors.
I wasn’t really saying one way or the other what it is because at this point its hard to say. Boykin says he isn’t racist so that is good. Not saying hi to guys in the hall is a strange and inadequate explanation of his comments though.
Is Chip just kind of a tyrannical ass, that would leave some bewildered, having to claim racism as an explanation? Does he favor white guys? I really don’t know and honestly think it would be nuts for him to have those feelings. Of course my ability to predict his thoughts could not be worse.
My concern is less about the reality of his thoughts but more of the perception. Why did Frank Gore really choose Indy? It just raises flags man…
I think you might have hit the nail on the head. There’s an enormous difference coaching college kids and professional athletes.
I think this is it, and might be what Boykin meant with his “grown men of our culture” comment. Professional athletes /= college kids and more than one great college coach has failed in the pros because he didn’t appreciate the difference. Let’s hope Chip doesn’t become the latest to do so.
it’s interesting chip hasn’t really explored this given he’s a guy that will question everything.
Went over to a couple Steelers sites and they are moving to more of a tampa-2 look. BB’s skills should fit right in.
That’s interesting. I think with his athletic ability he could be the next Rande Barber in that scheme. Hope he is.
I hope so too. Really liked his game, but I can see how it doesn’t fit here except at nickel. Best of an unfortunate situation. Remember that this goes both ways; we got Hugh Douglas from a similar situation with the Jets switching to a 3/4 back in the day. I think the most important thing here is that there aren’t always good guys and bad guys.
I actually mostly agree with this, with the exceptions of (1) not being terribly excited about the team being wedded to a man-press system given that they don’t have the players to run it effectively, and (2) thinking it was a good idea to jettison Boykin. To me, value-wise one year of very good nickel back play >>>>>> a 5th round pick.
On man/press, I think they do actually have the players now. They sort of did before but the players were disappointments. Where did those players go? To the Seahawks and Pats, two other teams running man-press. Boykin was never that player, and it wasn’t like they could easily make a shift to zone to accommodate Boykin. He’s good. He’s not so good you redo your whole defensive plan.
As for the worth of the player versus the pick, hell, I’d love to have Boykin here right now. And if this was a Super Bowl or bust year, why not? It’s not that, though, so I prefer the pick over the 1 year rental. The team does too. Not that your preference is invalid, I just disagree with it, given our current situation.
Will there be another fantasy football league run by some of the guys from this site?
As the “Boykin Incident” fades away . . .
Focus is on:
1. Sam Bradford — really wanna call him “The Dutchman”?
2. JaCorey Sheppard — a taller, better Mark McMillian?
3. Matt Tobin — is Belichick right?
4. The golf cart — never want to see it move.
What did Belichick say about Tobin?
He meant D3FB a.k.a Belichick. D3FB loves Tobin.
But he’s no JR Sweezy
Tobins more natural at LG anyways.
So in 12 months I can have both in my life.
Re: Media Access at Training Camp
Are all the practices open to the media?
Of just some?
From what I’ve read previous seasons, most are open to the media, but they are restricted on just how much access they get as well. I know for a fact that certain practices are closed, so I guess your answer would be ‘most’.
Thx, J.
I think the restrictions begin leading up to the preseason games
At 1st i took its as boykin meant football culture… but if he meant black culture, man he is ignorant.
Let’s be honest about one thing, people. If it hadn’t been for Shady flat out accusing Chip of being a racist, no one would have even noticed BB’s comment. Feel like the media and some fans are making a mountain out of a molehill.
Or people would have assumed the our meant Reid era players culture since they are the ones getting cut.
You do have a point, but if he meant it about black players then he deserves all the hate he receives.
I’ll put my hate in check for the moment, but I think some folks are way to defensive about what Boykin said about our coach.
And his statement he made after doesn’t make sense either.
I am already over it and wanna see who steps up in his stead.
“men of our culture” would have sent up red flags no matter what.
Kendricks is gone the first time Chip feels like he has enough “big” linebackers, which I’m sure Kendricks knows too.
Chip preaches ‘best player plays’. What he fails to mention is that ‘best player who meets our size criteria’ plays 😛
In his mind, meeting the size criteria is part of defining who is “best”.
True, but I find it a failure when you do it to the point where you ignore what the players do on your own team in the same system. I actually think it’s wise to limit yourself when it comes to bringing in new players, but he’s wasting talent currently on the team because they don’t ‘fit’. Something he swore he wouldn’t do when hired.
I think it’s way too early to making accusations about Chip and his Football acumen.
He took a 4-12 team to ten wins, back to back.
We can visit this question mid season and perhaps one of us will be singing a different song then.
I trust Chip has made and will continue to make good decisions to make the team better as a whole.
More of an observation than an accusation. Andy Reid was horrible at time management. At some point, it became accepted fact as opposed to accusation. It was frustrating as all get out because he never improved. In Chip’s case, he’s shown that he’s great at x’s and o’s. I’m thrilled with how well the team has played overall the last two seasons. That doesn’t mean that I don’t notice and ultimately worry about the issues/weaknesses that I perceive. The good news is this shouldn’t be an issue in a year or so as everyone on the team will be a ‘Chip’ player who he had a hand in selecting and meets his requirements for size. Unlike Andy, this shouldn’t torment us forever 🙂
I hate to say it but that is turning out to be a trait of his that is a great detriment to this team, in my opinion.
No, I have to vehemently disagree with your comment.
Maybe if we have a losing season, I could see your point, but it’s way too early to making such statements IMO.
Which seems kind of silly to me. Bradley Fletcher having prototype size for a CB in this scheme is of little use if he’s giving up 200 yards a game to the guy he’s trying to cover.
Boykin may lack ideal size to play outside CB in this scheme, but I can understand why he’d be frustrated with a coach who preaches “best player plays” and then doesn’t give him a chance when he’s productive in the role he’s asked to play and the guy above him on the depth chart is allowed to go out and stink it up week after week.
Boykin can be as fast as he wants, and ball hawk all he wants, but he’s not dislodging a 6’4″, 220 lb receiver off his route. It’s simply not happening. I agree that the other guys sucked, but Boykin isn’t going to be effective at that position any more than Donnie Jones, another great player, would be.
He may not have been an ideal fit for the role. But there are at least three issues there:
1)He didn’t have to be ideal, he had to be better than Bradley Fletcher. And it would have been almost impossible for him not to be. How could he have been worse? Fletcher was giving up multiple 50+ yard completions every game.
2)It’s not like every receiver they were going up against was Dez Bryant and needs a physically imposing guy to jam him. Who would you rather have going up against DJax or Odell Beckham, Bradley Fletcher with his 4.5 speed and his stiff hips and his lack of acceleration, or Boykin? I know my answer. Even if you try to jam those guys at the line on every play (which is stupid, see below), Boykin at least has a chance to recover when he misses. If Fletcher doesn’t get his hands on the guy and disrupt the route, it’s 6 points.
3)Relying on man press as your primary scheme is stupid unless you have players good enough to do so. You know why it worked for Seattle and New England last year? Because they had Richard Sherman and Darrelle Revis at CB and Earl Thomas and Devin McCourty at S respectively. We had Cary Williams, Fletcher, and Nate Allen. When you have players of that caliber in your secondary, you should be playing a less demanding scheme.
I can’t believe you’re actually trying to argue that the coaching staff who oversaw one of the worst pass defenses in the league and whose inability to even slow down anything approaching a decent opposing passing game cost this team a trip to the playoffs last year actually did a good job and were right to deny Boykin at least a chance to play outside. It boggles my mind.
“I can’t believe you’re actually trying to argue that the coaching staff who oversaw one of the worst pass defenses in the league and whose inability to even slow down anything approaching a decent opposing passing game cost this team a trip to the playoffs last year actually did a good job and were right to deny Boykin at least a chance to play outside. It boggles my mind.”
This.
We didn’t have just one of the worst pass defenses in the league, it was one of the worst in memory for the Eagles. Trying to defend trotting Fletcher out there every week just to see him get roasted is a really tough thing to defend.
I don’t think it’s as easy to flip flop between man and press schemes as you think. You don’t change the basis of your entire defense that quickly. Same as you don’t change your alignment up front once you commit to it. And once you swap Boykin outside, who plays inside? This year we have solid alternatives, or at least more bodies capable. Last year, we really didn’t.
Also, guess who saw Boykin play outside? The coaching staff, in practice. Guess who didn’t? You. I’m not saying that the coaching staff were geniuses last year. If nothing else, they should have played Carroll in there more.
But please just let’s agree to disagree on Boykin. He’s not fucking Dawkins, and the failure to play him outside is NOT the primary reason we didn’t make the playoffs last year. There were a lot of failures on D last year, and not every decision the front office makes is not a good one. But sorry, you’re blowing this whole Boykin thing WAY out of proportion to his actual value to the team, this year and last.
I never claimed they would have made the playoffs last year if they’d put Boykin outside. I said that it made no sense for them to not at least try something different (which could have been Carroll or Watkins too) when Fletcher was getting toasted to a crisp in game after game. It’s quite possible plans B, C, and D all would have failed as well, but when plan A has already failed you have to be stupid or stubborn to stick with it.
As for man press vs zone – there are defenses that mix up their coverages. There’s nothing in the rule book that says you’re only allowed to play one scheme. And when you have starting cornerbacks as lousy as Flecther and Williams, man press might not be the best choice. A good coach does not send Matt Cassel or Geno Smith out there and expect him to execute a Brady or Manning game plan and the same logic applies to defensive players.
You sure? because I just tatooed a portrait of Kendricks on my back. Dammit, Chip already burned me on my Foles: GOAT 2013-3014 sleeve.
No biggie. Some slight changes and you can turn that tattoo into a picture of Drake…
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CLU7uz6WUAE-POa.png
Dear Meek,
Please don’t mistake Kendricks for Drake and have your boys run up on him.
hahaahaha
isnt malcolm jenkins in the last year of is contract? Should we look to re-up wit him?
signed through next season. This is year 2 of 3.
tru!! damn feels like hes been here longer lol
All Alonso does is make plays. 4 INTs + 1 FF in his only NFL season. Going back to college it’s obvious that wasn’t a fluke. Last year Kendricks forced 3 fumbles, the year before he was a playmaking machine (especially later on in the year as he progressed).
I know Ryans if our mufasa, but I also think a LB duo like Kendricks/Alonso but not only be potentially the best in the league, but also crucial for what the defense is trying to do. Because let’s face it, Ryans doesn’t force anything even when he was younger. Great run stuffer between the tackles and maybe our best defensive leader since Dawkins, but I’d much rather prefer having two game-changing young beasts on the field all the time. And not just for one year
Mufasa got pushed off a cliff. Are you telling us that we need to push Demeco off a cliff for Kendricks?
So, Kendricks = Scar??
Think most fans think he’s Simba.
If you believe what Bedard wrote in his SI article, Chip wants his OLBs to be primary run defenders. Between those guys and the DL clogging the lanes, the ILBs are free to make plays – either as pass rusher, first to ball-carrier, or short coverage reads. DBs, particularly the safeties, offer varied looks since they can both cover slot WRs & TEs. The whole “stay-in-base” desire expressed by a few different writers and coaches,
Hopefully Graham looks good as a starter, and MS2 shows even basic signs of life. Would give Chip much more breathing room to let Mufasa go and trust his young guys (plus show MK the $)
Uhhhhh, I’m pretty sure you can write anything and everything he says off as being sour grapes and/or his being a lazy thug.
Just look at the BGN comment section for the initial comments!
But yeah, I think Boykin’s subsequent comments clarified a lot of the issues this offseason, including Shady’s comments.
Chip Kelly has spent roughly 10 of his 53 years outside of New Hampshire. 5 of those years were in Eugene, Oregon.
The fact that he doesn’t understand how to interact with adult black men on a personal level doesn’t make him a racist, or a bad person.
It makes him a 53 year old man who has spent roughly 10 years of his life outside of New Hampshire.
My new theory on Kendricks is that Kelly is keeping him around to tackle Dallas’ scat backs, who will be booed out of Dallas concurrent with Kendrick’s free agency. Dallas is believing its own hype that breaking tackles as DeMarco did is not necessary when you have ‘America’s OL.’
Yeah, I think dalass is a team that is in for a rude awakening.
They made it seem that any RB could have led the league in rushing behind that O line.
C’mon man, I can’t until week two, where we crush dem boyz.
Smh…..
Not mad at the comments, more eloquent way to express oneself then McCoy or Jackson. I can understand what Boykin is talking about and I can understand based on the demeanor of some of the guys that are gone, Kelly might prefer certain player personalities. That’s ok too.
Kelly might prefer certain player personalities. That’s ok too.
It’s okay as far as bringing new guys in. It’s not okay as far as failing to get the most out of talent that’s already on the roster, and/or giving them away for nothing or lesser value.
Why not?
Jackson, McCoy and Boykin does not fit from a optimal stand point in how Kelly wants his team to be, why should he slow things down, just to accommodate them?
Because in the NFL, talent matters a lot, more than it does in college, and Jackson, McCoy, and Boykin are talented players, whereas with the exception of McCoy the guys who’ve replaced them either aren’t (Cooper) or haven’t proven themselves to be (Shepherd et. al.). If you can replace a talented player who’s a pain in the ass with an equally talented player who’s also a team guy who fits the culture, great. But if you can’t (and I think the only case you can argue Kelly has succeeded in doing so to this point is McCoy), you may have to bite your lip and get along with the guy who’s a headache in the locker room until you can.
We replaced Jackson with Maclin, not Cooper.
Boykin was more about getting something from a player than nothing.
For Boykin to play outside, he would need to play in a cover 2 type scheme. Why should we change the whole secondary scheme to accommodate 1 player?
We replaced Jackson with Maclin, not Cooper.
Incorrect. If he hadn’t cut Jackson, the starting wideouts would have been Jackson and Maclin, not Maclin and Cooper.
Why should we change the whole secondary scheme to accommodate 1 player?
We shouldn’t. We shouldn’t have been playing a scheme (man press) that didn’t fit any of our personnel, not just Boykin.
Well DRC and NA was man CBs as well, just as Williams and Fletcher.
When Kelly took over, we had zero CBs worth a dam (Boykin had yet to show anything), so why shouldnt Kelly just say he wants to play man press and then target those types of CBs?
The fact that Boykin became good, shouldnt mean he suddenly changes his whole scheme.
The thing I have a problem is that Kelly (or Davis) wanted to play a certain scheme, and insisted on that scheme even though the players necessary to play it correctly weren’t available. When there approach ran into trouble in the second half of last season, they refused to show any sort of flexibility until it was too late and just left Fletcher out there to get torched week after week. It was shades of AR leaving Winston Justice to try to block Osi Umeniyora in that Giants game a few years back.
First of, we had 0 guys worth playing any scheme when Kelly started.
Second, you do not change the whole coverage scheme in the last 6 games (remember, it changes blitzes, LBs, safeties)
Found an interesting quote by Brandon Boykin that I absolutely agree with:
”Of course, when you’re in the organization, you’re not going to voice your opinion, but I’ve always been a guy of honesty. I felt like honesty wasn’t there all the time.” – Brandon Boykin
see http://sports.yahoo.com/news/brandon-boykin-eager-fresh-start-steelers-004629602–nfl.html for the full article.
This was the greatest source of divide I could see between BB and Kelly. Kelly’s insistence that the ‘best player plays’ and that ‘nickel is a starting position’ simply do not jive with his actions. Boykin not only never got a reasonable chance to start outside, even in a meaningless game where the backup was injured, Kelly and Davis turned to a completely raw rookie instead of allowing Boykin an opportunity to prove he actually could play outside.
Those commenting that if BB’s comments are about race, then he’s a knucklehead have a point. I believe that this shows that BB has a point as well.
Those commenting that if BB’s comments are about race, then he’s a knucklehead have a point.
Those saying that BB’s comments are about race are incorrect. Boykin came out and explicitly and forcefully denied that that was what he meant by his previous comments when interviewed by Pittsburgh media upon his arrival at Steelers camp.
As D3FB pointed out to me, ‘men of our culture’ certainly raises red flags. BB has clarified since that initial quote, but I understand why people still believe he actually was indicating race.
Yeah, I understand why that might have been the initial assumption, but given that Boykin has since denied that that’s what he meant in so many words, and that there’s a perfectly reasonable alternative interpretation of what he originally said (professional locker room culture vs. collegiate locker room culture) at this point I don’t think it’s reasonable to persist in the “he’s calling Kelly racist” interpretation. Especially not that white players (e.g. Mathis) have had similar things to say on their way out the door.
Yeah, I agree. Actually, I believe the wanting Chip and the coaching staff to be honest with him is a huge issue. Every off-season we would hear from Eagles camp, “Boykin’s going to get the opportunity to start outside.” Then practice and games would roll around and it was obvious it was lip service. I know it would infuriate me if I were in a similar situation. Can’t speak for BB, but I’d have rather been told flat out, “We love your skills, but you don’t meet our height demands. It’s not going to happen.”
Exactly. Those were his first quotes and then his agent corralled him and he dialed things back.
Lets put this racism bs to rest. Boykin clearly said it wasn’t about race. It was about Chip refusing to build camaraderie with players. Some pre-collage coaches do more than just coaching for their players. This might be the norm for some guys that were let go by us and being entitled to it pretty much made a that rift between the players + Chip. Boykin is one of Andy’s guys and his first taste of NFL coaching was Andy a,k,a the players coach. Lets face it though, if you can’t adapt to your new workplace/boss then you’re likely being replaced anyway.
Chip is ruthless. The team is just a machine that he wants to keep building in his own way and getting results out of. Am I surprised that there’s backlash from how they’re treated by a total authoritarian? Nope but you shouldn’t be either.
“With Kiko Alonso and DeMeco Ryans both coming off injuries, Kendricks offers good insurance.” Kendricks is the insurance? Man, am I off base with my thinking. Demeco, being older and injured, I thought is being kept around as insurance. I expected Kendricks to be a starter and not ‘insurance’.
…..
People seem to be all excited that CK said Kendricks will not be traded. Yippee. Ok. so Kendricks will be here, this year. Next year is a different story. Let’s not make too much of CK saying Kendricks won’t be traded. I hope it’s not the case because I like Kendricks. This could be his last year though….
I hope that Kiko and Kendricks prove an inseparable duo and that DeMeco is being paid this year to teach more than anything.
Amen. I hope that duo is around a long time. Not many teams have the luxury of a DeMeco on their team.
the comments from Boykin are disturbing on some levels. I certainly don’t know the whole story but there’s smoke here leading to a fire. There has to be issues with how CK is handling the players. As detailed of a coach CK is, I expect him to fix this as he adjusts to the NFL and the players.
I think you might be right – Chip always looks for the advantage, and better interpersonal might give him one – but I also think it might not matter. When Coughlin was winning, no one cared that he was a red-faced screamer. It doesn’t seem to hurt the Pats recruiting that Belichek is an asshole. If Chip wins, he doesn’t need to be friendly.