Five Big-Picture Takeaways from Eagles Week 13 Win vs Patriots

Dec 6, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly (L) talks with back judge Dale Shaw (R) during the second quarter against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stew Milne-USA TODAY Sports

5.) Chip Kelly Has NOT Lost the Locker Room

Had the Eagles indeed thrown in the proverbial towel on 2015 and started to tune Chip Kelly out, they would have gotten blasted off the field in Foxborough. When the Patriots took a 14-0 lead, it was perfectly reasonable to feel as if this would be the result. It does not matter how many injuries New England was dealing with: a team that has given up on their coach does not overcome a two-touchdown deficit, on the road, against a team coming off a loss with the best quarterback in the world standing on the other sideline. There’s no argument to be had against that.

It’s quite possible that there are a handful of Eagles that don’t necessarily care for Kelly’s approach. That being said, there are enough high-character individuals that have bought into what Chip is preaching to keep the team together through a brutally tough stretch and shut out the noise. After the game, various members of the team noted this being one of the most crucial elements to playing for this team in particular. The negativity surrounding them in the long stretch since their most recent loss was venomous. Kelly’s name was attached to every job opening imaginable and there were rumblings over what type of grasp he had as a coach.

I will readily admit that I was starting to believe that there was no way that Kelly could turn things around this season. Having witnessed what it looks like when a coach ‘loses a locker room’, the similarities between weeks 11 & 12 of the 2015 season to what took place in 2012 during Andy Reid’s last season were convincing. From everything gathered after the game, it sounds as if Kelly made an impassioned attempt to connect with his team and convince them that they belonged on the field with champions and had a performance like Sunday’s in them. For at least one week, his team answered the call.

Dealing with men has been a topic of discussion in regards to Kelly since his arrival. NFL players are professionals and are not necessarily incentivized to sign off on every move their head coach makes. There were probably several Eagles players that were scratching their heads over Kelly’s decision to stick with Miles Austin as a starter for as long as he did. If a team does not have faith in a coach making basic, simple decisions it can dash his credibility. It seems as if Kelly made a lot of adjustments leading up to Sunday that people had been discussing for weeks prior. It’s not too late in the 2015 season for Kelly to re-affirm his status within the Eagles locker room. It’s hard not to be impressed with how his team responded against a great team on the road Sunday. The question going forward: Can Kelly continue to learn and adjust on the fly? If so, this could be a scary team to deal with towards the end of the season.