Dick Vermeil On Eagles Practice: 'It's Very Impressive'
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Dick Vermeil, former Eagles coach and Super Bowl winning coach, took in Eagles practice this week. The legendary play-caller walked away from practice incredibly impressed by what he saw.
"I've coached a long time and I've been to a lot of practice fields," Vermeil said. "I don't think I've ever seen a better football practice."
LISTEN: Dick Vermeil on with WIP Afternoons
Vermeil characterized Chip Kelly's system as the most impressive he'd seen on the NFL level. Since Kelly's arrival, the Eagles have been characterized by tempo and the is on full display on the practice field as well.
"They run one play about every 15-20 seconds. They get as much done in two hours as I used to get in three," Vermeil said. "There's nobody not doing anything. They're all doing something."
Vermeil went on to add that he was impressed by Eagles quarterbacks Matt Barkley and Mark Sanchez. He did not stop there however. He also heaped praise on the guy at the top of the depth chart, Nick Foles.
"No one really wants to go out on a limb on [Foles] yet," Vermeil said. "I've never heard of anybody throwing 27 touchdown passes and two or three interceptions."
Vermeil added that Foles just needs to continue growing in Kelly's scheme to continue impressing people. "He proved he can make decisions and good decisions. He proved he can throw the ball accurately. I don't know what else he has left to prove other than that he can do it two years in a row."
The coach thinks if Foles is successful in duplicating his success, the Eagles could do something very special. "Someone asked me the other day how long is it going to take [the Eagles] to get to the Super Bowl," Vermeil said. "I said I think they can do it within three years. They got a quarterback, a left tackle, a running back and a wide receiver."
Vermeil did point out the one thing the Eagles do appear to be missing. "What they don't have is the obviously great pass rusher. Most Super Bowl teams have somebody that can really rush passer."
The former champion coach sees the weapons in Philadelphia. He sees the system and the players necessary to carrying that system to ultimate success. Time will tell how successful this Eagles regime will be, but Vermeil sees a bright future ahead.
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