Well, that came totally out of nowhere. Just 22 days ago we heard all the reports that Chip Kelly was going to be back in Philadelphia for 2016.
So much for that narrative; it was fun while it lasted.
The Eagles fired him late Tuesday night.
All the premier college football head coaching openings are filled, so Kelly is running out of options if he doesn’t want to take a sabbatical right now. Eagles Owner Jeffrey Luriei s obviously willing to pay a guy $15 million, or whatever the buyout is, not to work for him.
That division is so horribly awful that Philly was still right there in the thick of it until just recently. All those teams are horrendous, so it was there for the taking all along. Here’s what the NFL on CBS talking heads had to say today.
CBS’ Jason La Canfora on Philadelphia’s Chip Kelly:
So what else went wrong? Well, Kelly was losing people throughout the building, sources said, even outside of football operations. His autocratic tendencies got the best of him. His allies were few and far between. The idea that DeMarco Murray somehow led this charge is preposterous, I’m told, but in fact Lurie had begun having serious reservations a few weeks ago, when he began reaching out to confidants about how to proceed and began doing research on the pool of potential candidates elsewhere.
He started to doubt whether Kelly The Innovative Coach was quite smart enough to overcome Kelly The Personnel Demagogue. Everything having to be Kelly’s way — moving events around to fit his schedule, things having to accommodate him — grew troublesome.
Lurie didn’t go into his meeting with Kelly with the intention of firing him, I’m told. More, it was to take his temperature and continue to feel him out and gather information that would lead to his ultimate decision on what to do with his organization in 2016. Obviously, things went sideways and what Kelly had to say didn’t mesh with the owner’s vision, and Lurie became convinced that for as radical as a Week 17 firing might be perceived, it was time to do it.
The fact that Kelly didn’t seem inclined to scratch and claw to remain in his perch, sources said, did him no favors as well.
Here’s exactly what La Canfora reported on December 7th. It’s amazing how fast things can change; and so drastically.
“Chip Kelly, I’m told, very much plans to stay in Philadelphia in 2016. And ownership has no plans to ask him to leave despite their recent slide. Coaches and execs there, they figure it’s a foregone conclusion he’s back. And the college options are dwindling anyway.”
Paul M. Banks owns, operates and sometimes writes The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with FOX Sports Engage Network. The website is also featured on News Now.
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