The Philadelphia Eagles have officially been eliminated from playoff contention, and at least one NFL Hall of Famer believes it won’t be long before head coach Chip Kelly is out of a job.
During an appearance on Mike and Mike Tuesday morning, former NFL wide receiver and current analyst Cris Carter gave a harsh assessment of Kelly.
“Players don’t like him! They can’t say anything. They do not like Chip Kelly,” Carter said, via USA Today Sports. They don’t like playing in his system. Ultimately, the players are going to win out. When you can’t get players to come there. I kind of feel not this year, but next year, Chip Kelly is going to be back in college football.”
Kelly might end up coaching in college again, but I don’t think that will happen in the immediate future. If he wanted to return to college, he probably could have gone to USC. Instead, Kelly reportedly believes he will remain with the Eagles in 2016.
“The NFL is getting ready to do what it does to most college coaches: They’re chewing him up right now and eventually right back into college football,” Carter added.
Even if Philly decides to part ways with Kelly, there have already been indications that he could land another NFL head coaching gig. Most coaches aren’t fired after one season, so you’d have to assume Kelly would have at least two seasons with a new NFL team — if there ends up being one.
Do all of Kelly’s players like him? Absolutely not. They haven’t all expressed it quite as openly as this former Kelly running back, but there have been plenty of rumblings that Chip has lost his locker room. And let’s not forget about the report over the weekend claiming an Eagles player took himself out of a game because the team was about to be eliminated from playoff contention.
Carter may end up being right, but my gut tells me Kelly will have to fail with another NFL team for him to end up back in college.
