Will Chip Kelly's Power Play Backfire?
PHILADELPHIA, PA (CBS) — When the Eagles made the announcement on Dec. 31 that they were parting ways with Tom Gamble, Vice President of Player Personnel, it sent a shockwave through the NFL and the Eagles' fanbase. Howie Roseman, then Eagles GM, issued the terse statement: "We thank Tom for his service over the past two seasons and wish him and his family the best as they move forward. I appreciate all Tom has done for our scouting department and our team."
Two days later, the ax fell on Roseman, when he was "elevated" to Executive Vice President of Football Operations responsible for directing contract negotiations, salary cap management, and NFL strategic matters, while overseeing the team's medical staff, equipment staff and more. All personnel matters were taken away from Roseman. Chip Kelly was then named "overseer" of everything in the Eagles' kingdom in a sense, as head of the player personnel department and in charge of hiring a new personnel executive, Eagles' chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie announced.
There had been reported internal friction brewing supposedly between Roseman and the Kelly faction, which included Gamble. The Eagles gave no explanation why Gamble was fired. But Kelly, allegedly, had been growing disenchanted with the fact the Eagles have not supplied him with the pieces he needs to run the kind of offense—and team—that he wants.
Roseman wasn't exactly going to fire Kelly, who's become the face of the franchise. So Roseman went after an easier target, the affable Gamble, who is highly respected in NFL circles. Answering solely to Roseman may not have sat well with Kelly.
Anyway you look at the Eagles "restructuring," it was a demotion for Roseman, who has been with the Eagles for 16 years in a variety of roles—and general manager since 2010. Roseman had been pining for years to be considered a "football guy." The twist is, once he arrived there, the very guy who he courted cross country may have had to do with his demise as a "football guy" and not a "numbers guy."
It looks like Kelly won his power play, despite the Lurie statement released on Friday (and copied below) announcing the structural changes.
But can Kelly do the job?
A few sources within the NFL have their doubts.
What no one doubts, inside or outside the Eagles' NovaCare Complex, is that Kelly is a very good coach. No one questions his X's-and-O's ability. No one questions the seismic cultural shift Kelly has made in a short time with the Eagles. The underlying question is whether or not Kelly is a good talent evaluator when it comes to the NFL level. Apparently, the Eagles most recent draft and the selection of Marcus Smith in the first round were Kelly decisions.
So there are obvious misgivings that Kelly can build an NFL team. One source said Kelly would be great looking at players coming out of St. Joseph's Prep, Archbishop Wood or La Salle High Schools. That's because most of Kelly's coaching career has been based and forged on his ability to project how high school talent translates to the major college level. It's why you'll often hear Kelly say "when he was in high school," during press conferences describing a player's background. Kelly has little background when it comes to evaluating talent on the next level from college football to the NFL.
One NFL source said "Kelly can coach Martians to be a winning football team, the guy is that good," but explained that "Kelly's arrogance" may have gotten the better of him in this case. That Kelly could eventually pay a price if he thinks he can oversee "everything," including evaluating "NFL-ready" talent, which could be a rare chink in the Kelly gold statuette that the Eagles, their rabid fan base and some in the NFL still view him as.
"I am very confident about where we are headed as a team and as an organization. I look forward to continue working with Jeffrey and Howie as well as the personnel department," said Kelly in a released statement through the Eagles on Friday. "This is not a one-man operation. It will truly take a team effort to acquire and develop the best football players and then put the best team on the field each week. It will take all of us working together."
Added Roseman, "Philadelphia is my home and the Eagles are my family. My number one goal is to help bring a championship to this city and that will never change. I believe this will solidify the trust we have all placed in Coach Kelly."
Now it is up to Kelly, who once admitted back in July that he fell asleep during the NFL Combine: "I think the draft is integral obviously with putting together your team but literally from the day the Super Bowl ends until the draft, at the ending of May, or the beginning of June or maybe push it to July at some point in time; that's all everybody talks about. I felt the same way in college. You devote everything to the signing day. Well, how many of those guys on the signing day are actually going to contribute? You may have one or two of your rookies that have an impact on your team but the rest of them it's a part of having them develop.
"It's just that was the only ... he asked me what was surprising me and I just think the hype that surrounds the draft in general. The fact that people would watch the Combine; there's times at the Combine where I fall asleep. So I don't know why people watch it on television. They are running 40 yard dashes.
"I just think the hype was the point I was talking about, and it's like anything else, I don't care who it is, as I said, you guys are in the newspaper business. If someone is a rookie coming into the newspaper thing, I don't think you all just start applauding and saying, 'Oh my God, the savior is here and our paper is safe because we just signed a kid out of Northwestern because the kid has really good prose.' But in football it seems to be the biggest deal in the world and if a guy is not an All Pro in his first year but he was drafted in the first five picks, obviously he's a bust. But I don't think that's the case."
He better pay more attention—because now, it is "Chip Kelly's Eagles."
Eagles Chairman and CEO Jeffrey Lurie Expanded Statement:
"Today, we made an important announcement and one upon which I would like to offer further perspective. In the normal process of evaluating the end of the season, I meet with key executives for thorough discussions and evaluations of all aspects of football operations. During those lengthy meetings this week, we discussed a comprehensive approach on how to seamlessly integrate the personnel and coaching departments in order to maximize every facet of the process.
"Working with Chip, Howie and Don we came up with what we believe will be a more thorough and thoughtful model that would best be overseen by Chip. It's most important that we find players that match what our coaches are seeking.
"This new approach goes even further than we have in the past starting with Day One of the scouting process. This is part of an all-encompassing vision that takes you from the scouting process all the way to on-field performance.
"Howie, Chip and Don are all united in their desire to win. Together, we decided this approach was the best course of action for the Philadelphia Eagles.
"You have heard me say many times that I want strong leaders who feel free to express their opinions. And that is what happened here. Chip will now lead this process going forward with the continued full support of Howie, Don and myself.
"Chip will not be doing this work by himself, obviously. He has been charged with recruiting and hiring a new personnel executive that will report directly to him and together we will move forward with this new, highly integrated approach.
"When I said – after the Giants game – that Howie was returning as general manager next season, I meant that. But after carefully listening and reflecting on the lengthy discussions that I had with our senior team, I changed my mind.
"I have a very good relationship with Chip that continues to grow stronger and stronger. When we spoke, he was thoughtful, thorough and professional. There were no demands, no threats- quite the contrary- he was passionate, engaged and articulated a dynamic and clear vision on how this fully integrated approach will work. We look forward to seeing it come to life over time.
"Let me also stress that Howie will continue to play a vital role in our operation. He has been elevated to the role of Executive Vice President of Football Operations and received a contract extension.
"In closing, we have looked hard at where we are today and what we want to become. We are all united in our desire to win for this city."
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