Eagles head coach Chip Kelly said he gave Pro Bowl left guard Evan Mathis what he wanted which was to be released. Kelly just finished a news conference prior to starting a three-day mandatory mini-camp, which begins today.
Kelly said Mathis is a good football player but they had to work something out . “We weren’t coming to a conclusion”, Kelly said. “He didn’t want to be here. He and his agent had asked to be released numerous times. He moved on we moved on.”
“I think Allen Barbre is an outstanding football player. We’ll see what happens on the other side” Kelly said about Barbre got hurt last year but when he did play he was very good. Chip believes Barbre is comfortable playing either side.
Chip didn’t agree with what former Eagles tackle Tra Thomas had said about Mathis not being a good match with Pro Bowl left tackle Jason Peters on the left side of the line.
“We’re very comfortable with the guys we have on the roster right now”, when asked about the offensive linemen he has on the roster.”
He didn’t really sing the praises of Matt Tobin the way he did of Barbre. Kelly just said Tobin was behind last year because of a leg injury. The only positive he did say about Tobin was that he came back faster than we thought he was going to come back.
Depth is an issue for everybody in the league. He wasn’t concerned He thought he played well but he missed 8 games. We haven’t changed any plays.
“It’s June, whoever lines up today isn’t an indentation about who is going to be lining up at the start of the season”, Kelly said.
Kelly said he didn’t read or find out what exactly former Eagles and current Seahawks cornerback Cary Williams said about being fatigued and tired last year.
“Malcolm Jenkins said he felt the best of any time in his career,” Kelly said.
Way too much time spent on a Player no longer here in Evan Mathis
Very little about much else…
Mathis states that he asked for Release back in March so he could participate in Free-Agency and likely to get a decent to good Deal in the Marketplace
No waiting after Free-Agency, and the Draft were most Teams have thier Roster, Salary Cap and Roster Management Strategy’s well executed by now, there is little market for Mathis which means he loses big time $$$
On the Other hand, the Eagles and Kelly were not going to play the game with mAthis for another Off-Season which was him basically blowing off the “Voluntary OTA’s” and be ready for the Madatory
Chip Kelly did not want to release Mathis during the Voluntary Phase for it makes the Club look bad and raises flags with the Players Union
Bottom line, both sides are at fault, if the Eagles did not want Mathis any longer then they should have cut the chord months ago and could have pursued other options then just as Mathis could have…
Now Mathis takes a Salary hit and the Eagles go with UDFA Players for a Starters Position …
This is what happens when Ego’s are involved.. Mathis is his own man and marches to his own Drum which goes against the grain of the very structured and almost Military Style of Management and Coaching that is Chip Kelly..
I think Evan Mathis has gotten more play on this blog than mcnabb, Dawkins, Rollins and every other departed philly athlete combined…I swear so much panic over 1. A 34 year old guard and 2. a non-drafted third round guard from bumfuck state
Enough with Mathis already. He was a 31 y/o journeyman when we got him and was serviceable for a couple seasons here. Because a bunch of nerds at ProFootball Focus used a made-up algorithm that says he’s good, now he’s Tony Boselli. Time will tell, but an offensive guard should be one of the easier positions to replace.