Kelly Knows The Eagles Have Room For Improvement
By Ed Benkin
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- On one hand, the Eagles did not play a complete game for the second week in a row. On the other hand, they won on the road in Indianapolis.
Is the glass half empty or half full?
The thought of the Eagles putting a complete four quarters together is a scary proposition for the rest of the NFL. Meanwhile, Chip Kelly knows his players will try to correct their mistakes as the season progresses.
"I think they're very honest in their assessments," said Kelly. "Nobody should be patting themselves on the back anywhere. We're fortunate to be 2-0. We've done a great job of coming back in both games, but there's a lot of work in every aspect of the game that we need to work on."
One of the players determined to improve is running back LeSean McCoy. While McCoy has had some moments of excitement over the first two games, he has yet to put together the type of performances Eagles fans witnessed in 2013.
"Rating his production from last year is meaningless," Kelly said. "We're not trying to win rushing titles. We're trying to win football games. I think he's always a very, very harsh critic of himself, which is a very admirable quality. I think it's one thing that pushes him."
The game ended on Monday when Cody Parkey connected on a 36-yard field goal. Parkey had missed a kick earlier in the game, but Kelly didn't see any reason to offer any words of encouragement to his kicker.
"I would have just said kick it straight," said Kelly. "There's not much I'm going to say to a guy in that situation. He knew he missed it. Everybody in the stadium knew he missed it, but he just seems to carry himself in a certain way that you don't have to worry about him."
The Eagles will now turn their attention to Sunday's showdown with Washington. The status of former Eagle DeSean Jackson remains up in the air after the wide receiver suffered a shoulder injury on Sunday. Kelly will no doubt be asked during the week about what it will be like to go against the receiver he released in the off-season, but the head coach pointed out that Jackson is one of several talented receivers on the Washington offense.
"They have a bunch of really good receivers," Kelly said. "With DeSean and Pierre Garcon and (Andre) Roberts and (Ryan) Grant, the young kid out of Tulane is another good receiver. It's going to be a big challenge for us."
The Eagles are awaiting for a result on an MRI for Mychal Kendricks' calf. The linebacker left the game in the second half on Monday.
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