Five Big-Picture Takeaways From Eagles Week 16 Loss vs Redskins

4.) Chip Kelly Should Have Taken a Page Out of the Joe Banner Book of ‘Seeing the End Before it Arrives’ When it Came to Some of The Team’s Aging Veterans

Dec 26, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Washington Redskins running back Alfred Morris (46) rushes the ball against Philadelphia Eagles inside linebacker DeMeco Ryans (59) during the first quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

In their most crucial game of the season, the Eagles (amongst other things) looked old and under-matched at far too many areas on the field against a hungry Washington team. The once impenetrable Jason Peters was relegated to a veritable turnstile for the second straight week against a Redskins pass rush that got to Sam Bradford early and often. DeMeco Ryans could not recover in coverage against Washington’s play-action based passing attack and was among several Eagles defenders that tight end Jordan Reed put on his highlight reel. Even Darren Sproles felt like he was fighting father time when fielding punts against a mediocre Washington special teams unit.

While many will remember Joe Banner for allowing Brian Dawkins to hit free agency rather than allowing him to retire as an Eagle, one cannot fault him for being able to see the end before anyone else. One of the reasons the Eagles were able to sustain their level of success through the 2000s was that their roster never reached a point where deteriorating talents were playing primary roles. Banner was seen as ruthless at times when it came to cutting players loose, but the NFL is a young man’s game. There are only so many individuals capable of keeping their game at a level where age is not part of the equation. Father time always wins and Kelly failing to recognize this and make some of the difficult decisions as a personnel manager reared its ugly head against Washington.

There’s something to be said for having a substantial veteran presence on the roster. That being said, to have aging players at some of the most important positions: left tackle and inside linebacker, for example, is a recipe for disaster. There isn’t any amount of film one can watch to make up for a deficiency like what some of the elder statesmen on the Eagles have dealt with in recent weeks. Peters knows every pass-rushing trick in the book, but simply does not have the ability to counter them any more. Ryans has been diagnosing plays since he started playing football, but that does not give him the foot-speed to keep up with a player like Reed.

Especially given the workload Kelly puts on his players, one would hope he is finally starting to realize that there are certain areas on the field where experience and knowledge are not enough. Sports science is a tremendous innovation that can likely extend the careers of NFL players. Unfortunately, a smoothie does not make DeMeco Ryans 25 again. The sooner Kelly realizes that he will have to be more calculated in his personnel decisions, the sooner he can construct a roster that won’t be incapable of handling the young talent that the rest of the NFC East is building up. Ryans, Peters, and others will go down as great Eagles. 2015 will not change that. Kelly delaying that conversation another year would be a titanic mistake.