0 comments Howard Bryant Says Chip Kelly May Be Racist In the Same Way George Washington Hated People from New England

I was surprised to learn this blog already had a "George Washington" tag. Of course the previous post had nothing to do with George Washington and was about a transgender basketball player. Here at BotB, we tackle the issues no one else will touch long before anyone is willing to address the issue. Today, possible editor-in-chief, but possibly not editor-in-chief so let's just keep wondering for another couple of years about it, of "The Undefeated" Howard Bryant says that Chip Kelly may not be racist. He just has the same cultural issue that George Washington faced during the Revolutionary War with the New Englanders. Bryant is clear in stating he's not wondering whether Kelly is racist or not, because that would be absurd, but the idea Kelly could have a problem with certain races is not absurd. Apparently that's different from being a racist by tying it into a broad cultural issue where Kelly suffers from the same non-racist semi-racist tendencies that the rest of society has.

FACED WITH A challenge far more grave than winning the NFC East, George Washington was named commander-in-chief of the Continental Army in June 1775.

"A challenge far more grave than winning the NFC East..."

Hey, George Washington never had to match wits with Chip Kelly, stop Odell Beckham Jr, shut down the Cowboys' running game or pretend to block so that Robert Griffin gets murdered by a pass rusher. Washington also never had to worry about his best general being lost for a year due to an ACL tear.

Before embarking on campaigns against the British, his first battle came in taking command of troops he hated. Washington reviled Massachusetts soldiers.

And just like how George Washington hated Massachusetts soldiers that he had no option but to work with, Chip Kelly deals with hating the players that he ultimately has a choice on whether to work with or not.

According to Edward G. Lengel's General George Washington: A Military Life, Washington "regarded the common soldiers of that colony as 'an exceeding dirty & nasty people.'"

Sadly, "Boston Strong" at one point wasn't an uplifting message of hope and unity, but a reference to the poor bathing habits of the Massachusetts colony. 

In 1776, author David McCullough likewise writes that Washington found New Englanders "to be men of a decidedly different sort than he had expected, and he was not at all pleased."

You may ask, "What does this have to do with Chip Kelly?" Don't worry, it will never be made entirely clear as to what George Washington not liking Massachusetts soldiers has to do with whether Chip Kelly is a racist or not. It seems Howard Bryant just got done reading a few books about the Revolutionary War and can't wait to share the knowledge he's learned. 

Reliance on a workforce has never required respecting or understanding it.

This is true. Most people who have a supervisor can agree they are relied on by their supervisor, but not respected or understood by this supervisor. While knowing reliance on a workforce never required respecting or understanding it, also know not relying on certain people in the workforce doesn't mean you don't respect or understand them. It just means you don't want them to work for you anymore. 

Steelers corner Brandon Boykin seemed to understand this about his former coach in Philadelphia, Chip Kelly. Boykin's belief that Kelly had difficulty relating to black players was met with the kind of disingenuous, passive-aggressive shock that explains why the topic of race often feels so intractable in this country.

It's not all disingenuous, passive-aggressive shock necessarily. It's more, "Oh okay, so this guy says Chip Kelly is a racist. I'm sure that could be true, but his opinion doesn't necessarily serve as concrete evidence his belief is correct." 

The public and the media machine largely dismissed Boykin's comments as preposterous, a predictable reflex whenever a black athlete suggests the white mainstream fails to understand the black experience.

I don't understand another person's experience in life, so I obviously don't understand "the black experience" which seems to be a collective experience of one group of people (a classification that I find to be oversimplifying things just a bit, but I get why it's done). To say "the white mainstream" fails to understand the black experience seems a little bit like Bryant is stating that just one group doesn't understand the black experience. I would bet that if an Asian group of people claimed to understand the black experience then Howard Bryant would think that's ridiculous. Yet here, he makes it "the white mainstream" as the group that fails to understand the black experience. This is a bit of finger-pointing at one specific group which is pretty lazy on Bryant's part.

Boykin then clarified his remarks, even though the Eagles provided all the necessary clarity in 2014 when they gave Riley Cooper a five-year, $25 million contract seven months after the receiver's use of a racist slur.

Again, I can't explain why the Eagles gave Riley Cooper this contract. Was it racism, was it the fact it wasn't a terrible contract for a 26 year old coming off a career year? I can't answer that and any attempt to answer this question is just speculation. 

Boykin, the thinking went, could not possibly be correct because, as a coach, Kelly leads dozens of highly paid black men, which is nearly as absurd as saying the manager of a nightclub cannot be sexist because the dancers he hires are women.

Any attempt to prove a point has to start with overstating your opposition's position. Bryant emphasizes "could not possibly" in an attempt to make it seem like Boykin's statements were taken as absolutely incorrect and not as potentially factual statements that simply lack any sort of evidentiary basis. Bryant overstates the thinking of those who don't immediately come to the conclusion Kelly is racist in order to prove that no one took Boykin's statement seriously. I'm not sure that was the case. The statement is taking seriously as an accusation, but an accusation that lacks concrete evidence, outside of Boykin's experience with Chip Kelly. Overstate the opposition's view in order to make yours seem more reasonable. That's the way to go.

So it would be unsurprising if Chip Kelly were a racist, or if he were simply uncomfortable with young black men. It would be equally unsurprising if neither of these things were true, 

But remember, we are working under the assumption that out of these two equally unsurprising things one of them is more likely true than the other. They are equal, except the assumption leans towards one conclusion over the other. I'm not sure that's the definition of "equal" or not.

but the anxious instinct to suggest Boykin was speaking irresponsibly ignores the fact that the tension he described between him and his white boss was unremarkable.

What? It was normal tension that results between a boss and an employee? But of course, it can't be normal tension because Boykin was being treated differently by Kelly. The assumption of being treated differently must stand. That's how it has to be if the equally unsurprising conclusions that Kelly is or is not racist leans in the direction Bryant feels it does. He has a conclusion he must reach. 

There aren't any employees in this country -- even among the white males who represent the default position of American leadership -- who haven't had at least one boss who didn't "get" them.

What if I told you that my employer doesn't "get" me because I'm a male? What if I told you that mostly females are hired by my employer and it only furthers my belief this is true? I'm sure Howard Bryant would think it's absolutely ridiculous that an employer would seem to favor one sex or another and dismiss my feelings. Because I'm among the default position of American leadership, so my irresponsible feelings are just the result of disliking being on an equal playing field with others and not a result of an actual true belief I have. The bottom line is people will believe a side of the Chip Kelly "is he racist or not?" story and then make up reasons why they believe it from there. It's how it goes and this includes Howard Bryant as one who does this. 

An "Is Kelly a racist or isn't he?" narrative is just the lazy masquerading as the profound, especially when Boykin never actually called Kelly a racist.

Bryant can decorate it however he wants with a discussion of George Washington, but "Is Kelly a racist or isn't he?" is essentially the conversation he is having in this column. 

The NFL already has a problem with black people, the ones who don't stay in their lane, the ones who talk. The problem is true of football, just as it is with Major League Baseball and dozens of other industries across America, including the media.

I have found major sports have a problem with any person who doesn't stay in their lane and who talks too much. I'm sure since Howard Bryant has worked in dozens of other industries across American (eye roll) he knows this to be true. I can say that other industries have a problem with any person who doesn't stay in his/her lane at work and gives their opinion more than it is wanted. I understand this is a part of Howard Bryant's experience, but rest assured, this is also the experience anyone who doesn't stay in their lane at work has as well. Sometimes in an effort to be treated more fairly, it's necessary to understand that the treatment you are receiving, even though it may not seem that way, is in many ways how others are treated as well. 

Every black person in America knows he must learn to navigate the white world to advance -- but that world needn't know very much or anything about him. It's the price of being a minority. Life isn't fair.

I can't argue with someone else's experience. Though again, I think Howard Bryant is going back to the "Is Kelly a racist or isn't he?" well and covering up for it by claiming systemic racism. Bryant is essentially making the argument Kelly is a racist because on a macro-level there is systemic racism. That's a whole other discussion that probably has very little to do with George Washington's feelings about the Massachusetts colony during the Revolutionary War. 

It is why the four most important teams in the history of baseball -- the Yankees, Red Sox, Cardinals and, yes, the Dodgers of Jackie Robinson lore -- have never hired a black manager.

To call these four teams the "most important teams in the history of baseball" seems to be confusing "important" with successful. It's how "fame" and "notoriety" seem to get confused at times as well. 

If these dynamics were not at work, neither the NFL nor MLB would have to force teams to interview minorities whenever a job comes open.

Yes, if the Dodgers, Yankees, Red Sox, and Cardinals would just hire a black manager sometime soon then MLB and NFL could do away with any type of initiative intended to help minorities get interviews as a team's head coach/manager.  

What coaches don't have a problem with is Boykin's talent. There are 32 NFL teams and almost zero white starting running backs or cornerbacks.

As I said before, the whole "Well, Kelly HAS to work with these minorities because there aren't any white running backs or cornerbacks" position for why Kelly may be racist doesn't always work well for me. Yes, Kelly could still be a racist and sign or trade for non-white running backs or cornerbacks, but the point still remains that Kelly coaches these players and looks for a certain type of non-white/white running back or cornerback for his team. Kelly is looking for a certain type of running back or cornerback for his system. He's notoriously picky about players who buy into his system.

Washington disliked his workforce, but he needed it to win the war. Same goes for the NFL.

Great tie-in here. Because Washington can not choose his workforce, while Kelly has the ability to a greater extent to choose his workforce. That's what Kelly is doing and whether Kelly is choosing African-American players he can "control" or those who fit his system and personality is up for debate. Just know statements from ex-players that Kelly is sort of racist should be taken with the same grain of salt as evidence from ex-players that Kelly isn't racist. The conclusion you want to draw without further evidence one way or another is your own. Just don't draw your conclusion on this issue and act like the equally as unsurprising other conclusion is simply not just as likely. That's what Howard Bryant seems to be doing here. 

Kelly might have an issue, he might not, but the routine reflex to dismiss the obvious historical reality that people from different racial, cultural and class backgrounds might struggle to understand one another in the workplace is a much bigger problem than Chip Kelly ever could be.

So the conclusion is that people in a workplace won't always get along? Howard Bryant has to go so far back as to use George Washington as an example of this? Anyone who has a job knows this is true. It turns out that everyone who doesn't understand someone else in the workplace because of a different background may or may not be racist. It's funny, because I don't understand people who come from my same background either. It's almost like people are different from each other and every misunderstanding can't be placed into a little box with a convenient label.

5 comments MMQB Review: Peter Notices How Lithe and Penetrating a Lions Player Is Edition

Peter King thought a 64.3% completion percentage was less than a 63.1% completion percentage in last week's MMQB. He also described selfie-policeman J.J. Watt as the new star of "Hard Knocks" and has given Marcus Mariota the official "precocious" tag, which has to be a great feat for Mariota to achieve. Any time Peter uses a word in the wrong context to describe an NFL player then it has to be flattering. The world may implode if he ever states as a "factoid" that an NFL player is precocious. This week Peter talks about Tim Tebow because he's only responding to what everyone wants him to write about and obviously everyone wants to hear more about Tebow (Tebow has improved, we've heard this before...Peter only mentions it because "the people" want to hear about Tebow of course), probably pissed off J.J. Watt by taking a selfie, has many thoughts on Geno Smith getting punched in the face and the aftermath, and and now black lives mattering is inconveniencing Peter King on his cab ride home. Okay, Peter doesn't say this but after you hear the story you KNOW Peter was upset by being inconvenienced, but just doesn't mention it in MMQB for obvious reasons.

Prologue to a column, with a point about not taking preseason results seriously:
 
In the past 11 regular seasons, the Patriots are 136-40.
In the past 11 preseasons, the Patriots are 20-24.
(Iverson voice: “We talkin’ bout practice!”)

This type of thing continuously makes me laugh. Peter does training camp tours, speaks to players, and makes comments based on preseason games...then in MMQB he is basically like, "All of this probably doesn't mean very much." So it's all wasted time then? 

I asked Eagles coach Chip Kelly if he felt frustrated with the perception that he can’t get along with players, and isn’t a good communicator, even though those who’ve been around the Eagles for years will tell you the door to his office is mostly open, while Andy Reid’s office door was mostly closed.

What side of this issue does Peter King fall on? I can't tell by the way this sentence was structured. He's so vague in his description of Kelly's open door policy compared to Andy Reid's closed door policy.

“Yeah,” Kelly said with that smile the other day, after a training-camp practice in south Philly. “But there’s nothing you can do about it. I think we do a really good job with communicating with our players.

I'm shocked, SHOCKED, that Peter King falls on the side of the NFL coach who is a quote machine. I did not see this coming.

Then he quoted two people. He said Phil Jackson once said that if you want to be liked, don’t get into coaching. “Then there’s the Mike Schmidt quote,” Kelly said. 

Which one? 

I wish Chip Kelly had told Peter to do an internet search to find this quote, just like Peter would do to his readers. Alas, he did not.

“He said, ‘Philadelphia is the only town where you can experience the thrill of victory, then the agony of reading about it the next day,’” Kelly said. “It’s part of the territory and rightly so. These people [media people] are awesome. It’s an unbelievably competitive market. New York has two teams so they gotta go to the Giants and the Jets. Here, there’s one team.”

That makes sense. It's why every other city with one NFL team has a competitive market like Philadelphia does. Either that or Chip Kelly doesn't want to tell an entire city's media to "fuck off."

My favorite story here? It’s about badminton—Sam Bradford becoming the first quarterback in NFL to rehab a torn ACL by playing badminton. More about that in a few paragraphs.

I can't even begin to pretend to care enough about this to be sarcastic. "The first quarterback to rehab by playing badminton..."

There’s where I’ll start—in Philadelphia, the last stop on our East/South/Midwest tour. This stuff about Kelly and his relations with players reminds me of a coach who left Cleveland in 1995. Bill Belichick was a bad communicator. Ran Bernie Kosar out of town. Too dictatorial. Players hated him. Had one winning season and won one playoff game in five years. Finished a lousy tenure eight below .500. Left Cleveland and the perception around the league was he’d only be a coordinator the rest of his career. When Robert Kraft hired him in 2000 to coach the Patriots, Kraft got comments like, “Are you nuts? Belichick’s not a head coach.” In 15 seasons with the Patriots, Belichick has averaged 13 wins a year (including postseason wins).

Not saying Kelly will be Belichick.

But Peter is saying that they are somewhat similar and if Chip Kelly ends up being like Bill Belichick then he will mention that he totally called it.

When he traded nickel back Brandon Boykin to Pittsburgh last month (for a fifth-round pick in 2016 that becomes a fourth if Boykin plays 60 percent of the defensive snaps for the Steelers in 2015), Boykin decried the lack of communication with Kelly, later saying he did not mean Kelly was racist.

It’s fairly fruitless to ask a man to defend himself against charges that he is racist. 

It's difficult for me to find something that I agree with that Peter King has said, but I believe I can agree with this statement.

I simply think it’s an unfair question if people might think there’s something to it when there’s no supporting evidence to say there is. Think of it: He traded a white quarterback for a white quarterback in the offseason. He jettisoned two white veteran linemen with big pricetags—Todd Herremans and Evan Mathis. He dealt an African-American running back whose running style he didn’t like and who would soon be due a big contract for a white middle linebacker. He signed two African-American running backs in free -agency. His first five draft choices were black. His top six imports from other teams in veteran free agency were African-Americans (Byron Maxwell, Mathews and Murray were the big ones, with E.J. Biggers, Brad Jones and Walter Thurmond the complementary ones). In other words, next story please.

Those who argue Peter is wrong would state that Kelly HAS to sign an African American running back because there aren't white running backs and would also state just because he signs African American free agent only means he cares to win games, not that he isn't a racist. So he gets criticized for getting rid of African American players, who then call him a racist, but when Kelly chooses to sign African American players it's simply seen as him doing it because there aren't better options. I mean, I guess that makes sense, but it feels a bit like trying to have it both ways.

The next story here is Bradford. Four notable things as he tries to rebound from an ACL tear of the same left knee in 2013 and again in 2014:

He threw the ball well and with accuracy in the two hours I watched him, and those in camp say his arm’s looked very good.

It's not been Bradford's arm that is the question of late is it? So if Bradford had both legs amputated then I don't see (okay, I do see, but you get my exaggerated point) what this has to do with how well he throws the football with his arm. He tore his ACL twice, so the knees are the issue. Yes, the knees have to do with throwing the football, but whether Bradford is accurate throwing or not doesn't really answer questions about his knees' health. 

And the badminton thing. One of Bradford’s big rehab practices was playing badminton without a net, with a doctor and athletic rehab specialist he’d just met, Bill Knowles, from Wayne, Pa.

“There’s standard rehab, where you have a sheet of what you have to accomplish every day in terms of exercise and rehab. Bill Knowles’ deal is, ‘Let’s play games.’ One day he said, ‘Let’s play badminton.’ We warmed up playing badminton. And then every day we were out here playing badminton. No net. He would hit it high and make me change directions and run. He throws all these PE games at you. You don’t think about it being rehab until you look and see the positions your body’s been in, and you think, That’s pretty close to the positions and movements you’ve got to make as a quarterback. I’m sure people up in the offices are looking out and wondering what in the world are they doing playing badminton? But, you know, you spend a year and a half doing the same exercises, and you get so tired of doing the same thing over and over,

Jeff Fisher is totally kicking himself now for trading Bradford. Bradford played badminton during his rehab sessions! Fisher should have counted on Bradford to stay healthy for one more year and then had no real viable backup option if Bradford got injured again. If Fisher had known Bradford playing badminton during his rehab, then it would have changed everything.

Bradford spoke on the field post-practice. He’s always been a sort of flatline optimist, a que sera, sera type. Asked about having any fear of it happening a third time, he said, “None. If it happens again, it’s just meant to be.

Bradford has pocketed a lot of money already playing in the NFL. If he tears an ACL again, then he can just retire, sit on his huge pile of cash from his rookie year and get some sympathy for being too injured in order to continue his career. It almost beats continuing to play and possibly being seen as a disappointment, doesn't it?

“What I’ve seen in Sam is what I thought we were going to get when I traded for him,” Kelly said. “Extremely accurate—he makes really good decisions with the football.  He has as good an arm as there is in this league. He’s everything you want in a quarterback and he was before he was injured. He just has to stay healthy.”

Bradford has been in the NFL for five years now and started 49 games. Staying healthy has been his issue since he got into the NFL and don't forget he missed all of his senior year at Oklahoma with an injury. So that means out of the last six seasons he's played football, he has missed all but 49 games.

We have some really great leaders here—Malcolm Jenkins, DeMeco Ryans and now Byron Maxwell, who came over from Seattle; he’s been outstanding. I think everyone was concerned when you add this many people. But the guys we’ve added have been awesome. I like what I see.”

Clearly, Chip Kelly doesn't know these players are not white or else he wouldn't be saying this about them.

“I’ve got to show you something,” said GM David Caldwell, putting practice tape on the screen in his office. It was from a night practice that would get mostly rained out in Jacksonville. “This is the kind of play that makes us feel pretty good about Blake Bortles.”

So the GM whose tenure with his current team will be judged on whether the quarterback he handpicked will be successful is talking up said quarterback? I can't believe this would occur. Sure, Bortles has improved from his first to his second year, but sometimes I wonder if Peter remembers that GM's have a vested interest in talking up certain players. Picking the wrong quarterback in the first round of the draft is how GM's get fired.

Split right, free-agent wideout Tony Washington lines up head-up on prize free-agent cornerback Davon House. At the snap, Washington burrows into the inside shoulder of House and runs upfield. At about 13 yards, he pivots and cuts to the post. Just as he cuts, and four strides before he turns to look for the ball, Bortles releases the ball. At the split second Washington turns his head to the quarterback, the ball explodes into his hands. He doesn’t have to move his hands. It’s just there.

“The ball just hit my hands,” Washington said. “I didn’t do anything but catch it.”

“That throw reminded me of a throw Aaron would make,” said House, the ex-Packer. “I saw that same throw in Green Bay. No defending it.”

Oh, so the guy who got burnt by the throw states that there was no way to defend this pass? What else is he going to say? "It was a shitty throw, but I'm incompetent and couldn't prevent the completion. By the way, I can't believe how much money I received in free agency from the Jaguars."

I'm just saying that the two people attesting to Bortles' greatness are the GM who drafted him and the cornerback who just got a big free agent contract and got burnt by an undrafted wide receiver. Vested interests in talking Bortles up can be seen everywhere.

I still say Bortles isn't going to be a franchise quarterback. I could be wrong. My opinion is just my opinion, but it's hard to look at the opinion of the Jaguars' GM and the cornerback who got burnt on a good throw in practice and see them as neutral observations of Bortles' ability.

I asked Bortles what he was thinking when he made the throw on the field. Exhilaration, maybe? Satisfaction? Or maybe that he finally was arriving at the place where good quarterbacks were?

“I thought, Good throw. Onto the next one now.”

Good answer.

Remember Blake, Peter is on the lookout for a gritty, white quarterback to fall in love with and endear himself to by using words like "precocious" and other language that indicates you play the quarterback position like a kid would. So this quarterback could be YOU and YOU could find Peter waiting on your porch in the offseason ready to talk about how life is going. Just keeping feeding Peter the answers he wants. That's what you need to do.

Since the two teams met in that memorable 2010 NFC title game at Soldier Field—Packers 21, Bears 14—the Bears have had three coaches (Lovie Smith, Marc Trestman, John Fox) and three general managers (Jerry Angelo, Phil Emery, Ryan Pace). Green Bay has had one coach, Mike McCarthy, and one GM, Ted Thompson.

Since that game, Jay Cutler has been involved in more melodrama than any quarterback in the NFL.

I think that Tim Tebow and Tom Brady would like to have a word with Peter about the accuracy of this statement.

The only drama Aaron Rodger has been involved? I can’t think of it, unless appearing on Page Six of the New York Post because he’s been seen canoodling with Olivia Munn around North America counts as drama.

UNLESS YOU WANT TO COUNT BEING SEEN AROUND THE UNITED STATES WITH A FAMOUS ACTRESS AND HAVING IT POINTED OUT BY TABLOIDS, CAMERAS AND NEWSPAPERS THAT YOU ARE DATING THIS FAMOUS ACTRESS AS "DRAMA" THEN PETER GUESSES THIS WOULD COUNT.

“We’re going to do things to help the quarterback,” GM Ryan Pace said at Bears camp in Bourbonnais. “We have a major commitment to the run, and that will take pressure off Jay. We have extreme confidence in the coaching staff, and we think Adam Gase can do a lot of things to help Jay.

Look, Pace is doing the right thing for his guy in propping up Cutler when the rest of the city wants him gone. I’d do the exact same thing.

Notice that David Caldwell showing Peter a great pass by Blake Bortles in practice isn't seen as Caldwell "propping up" Bortles after he had a fairly crappy rookie season. Notice that Chip Kelly talking about how Sam Bradford is looking good and is everything he thought he would be after Bradford has played in 49 games over his 5 NFL seasons isn't seen by Peter as "propping up" Bradford. When Ryan Pace talks positively about Jay Cutler, a quarterback who is working with the same offensive coordinator that Peyton Manning gave credit to for helping him in Denver, well this is just Ryan Pace "propping up" Cutler. Forget all that positive shit Peter wrote about Gase when he worked with Manning, forget Bortles hasn't even proven he can be a below-average starter, and forget that Bradford can't even get on the field on a consistent basis, it's Cutler who has positive words directed at him by his GM who is getting "propped up." Got it.

Say what you want, but if you were Pace, would you have fired Cutler and gone out and signed, say, Brian Hoyer? Or Ryan Fitzpatrick? No. You’d stick with Cutler and see if a third Chicago coaching staff could right the ship.

John Fox had success with Jake Delhomme and Tim Tebow, plus Adam Gase has worked with Peyton Manning. Sticking with Cutler and his contract is probably the only option the Bears had.

At Packers camp I became convinced that McCarthy decided to give up play-calling as much because he implicitly trusts Rodgers to be a coach on the field and trusts the knowledge of Tom Clements in the offensive system.

Yes Peter, I'm sure that Mike McCarthy trusts the best quarterback in the NFL to know the offensive system and be a coach on the field. Now he can focus on other issues the Packers team has because he doesn't have to call plays. Very intuitive of you to point this out.

Detroit: Better than I thought.

Pizza: More cheese than I imagined.

Meerkats: More self-sufficient than I believed them to be.

I like how Peter's own incorrect perception of the Lions is supposed to change his reader's perception of the Lions.

"Wait, Peter King thinks the Lions are better than he thought they were? This must be something he thought he thought he knew, but it turns out he didn't know it. I must adjust my expectations for the Lions as well!"

The irony of Suh leaving? And taking his incredible run defense and sacking (a team-high 8.5 sacks) with him to Miami? In the off-season, he tutored Reid, working out with the second-year Princeton kid, and all in Detroit camp say Reid came back this summer a different player.

He started stepping on opposing players and generally acting like an asshole on the field?

More stout. Stronger, with a better interior rushing presence. At 6-2 and 306 pounds, Reid looks more lithe and penetrating than he did last year.

Peter thinks Reid looks more lithe with his luscious rippling muscles glistening in the sun as the sweat pores down from his chin to his stomach, leaving little patches of sweat on the Lions workout gear he has on, his precocious smile providing all the sunlight that's needed on this beautiful day.

You have a few options when you make a mistake in life. You can own up to it and totally admit it and take your medicine; or you can do something less; or you can lie your way through it.

How many people have you killed, Peter? Or is it that mental health issues are a character flaw? Either way, losing your daughter for five minutes in a grocery store is like having your child disappear and presumed dead.

OR you can keep saying stupid and insensitive shit and nobody calls you on it because you apologized and ARE SO DEFINITELY SORRY...until you say the same type of insensitive thing again. At that point, the media guy at your company, the same guy who eviscerates at any opportunity media members for other organizations for the slightest misstep, will just state you have apologized and he no longer sees the big deal in an effort to toe the company line and not make a big deal out of your comments as he normally would do otherwise. That's an option too.

Cleveland GM Ray Farmer wishes he’d never texted an assistant coach in the upstairs coaches' booth with suggestions/prompts/ideas/whatever during games last year. 

But desperate times call for desperate measures, and he just thought he should throw in his thoughts about what the Browns were doing on offense during the games. 

I just want to know what he was texting down that the Browns offense should do. Perhaps the coaching staff should have texted back a suggestion that Farmer find the Browns a good quarterback for the offense.

I expected Farmer to either no-comment this when we spoke at Browns camp last week, or maybe say he stands by whatever vanilla statement he issued when the sanction came down. But he didn’t.

You know, "whatever vanilla statement" that was issued when the sanction came down. Peter doesn't have time to go back and find it, but he's sure the statement was vanilla. That much he doesn't think that he thinks. He thinks he knows what he thinks about Farmer's statement.

“My mom and dad taught me a long time ago to take responsibility for my actions,” Farmer said, a little uneasy talking about it, on the side of the team’s practice field in Berea, Ohio. “That’s what I have done. As the time gets closer, I continue to reflect on what I did, and the cost of it. I made a mistake, and this is my penalty, and I am going to serve it.”

Yeah, but Johnny Manziel is the one who makes mistakes and should know better than to make them. He should be held to a higher standard than the Browns GM.

I’m not sure this is the most noteworthy thing coming out of Browns camp. I’ll be writing some about other things I learned there.

Hopefully Peter is writing about other things he learned at Browns camp. Otherwise, Browns fans could look to Peter for even less information than usual. Usually Browns just look to Peter for information on how their restricted free agents can be signed other NFL teams without the Browns matching the offer.

Last December, Kansas City safety Eric Berry was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma, a dangerous but treatable form of cancer.

Peter knows how Eric Berry feels because one time right before Christmas he had a vicious head cold that made it tough to get any work done.

Some words from Berry that you should hear:

Apparently Peter is under the impression that MMQB is an audio column and not a written column. Perhaps Peter has an audio version of MMQB that I'm not aware of where his readers can actually hear, not just read, the words that Eric Berry has to say. Otherwise, it's hard to hear written words.

The words from Berry are nice to hear and inspirational at times, but I can't be snarky about his situation so I will move on to tearing into Peter King. It's why we are all here anyway.

While I watched practice Thursday at the Eagles’ complex, there was this scene: Sam Bradford, his receiver covered in a seven-on-seven drill, tossed a ball harmlessly out of bounds, into the large bushes on the edge of the practice field. A few snaps later, Tim Tebow, the fourth-string quarterback battling Matt Barkley for the number three job, took a shotgun snap, looked at his options, saw none, and threw the ball into the exact same area of bushes.

TEBOW CAN THROW THE BALL AWAY AS EFFICIENTLY AS ANY OTHER QUARTERBACK! 

“There’s Tebow’s intended receiver,” said a fan I was standing next to on the sidelines of practice. “The bushes.” He and his buddies got a good laugh out of that one.

This is a great example of Tebow being bullied by fans. When will the fans stop bullying poor Tim Tebow? When will jokes about his inaccuracy stop being made, despite how funny they are? Hopefully never.

No comment on Bradford’s throwaway, of course. He’s an accurate passer and deserves the benefit of the doubt. But not so Tebow. He has been so inaccurate in his brief career (47.9 percent) that when he makes a throw like that, it’s: same old Tebow.

Let's all not forget that Tim Tebow was a first round pick and should be treated like other first round picks who are quarterbacks. Before feeling sorry for him, remember that this is the fourth team who has given Tebow an opportunity to prove he's worth spending a roster spot on.

In fact, it’s not the same Tebow.

And of course Peter is only bringing up a 3rd/4th string quarterback because that's what the people want to hear about. "The people" need more Tebow, so it's totally not Peter's doing that he keeps talking about him in MMQB.

On Sunday, in his first preseason test, Tebow was marginally good, completing six of 12 passes for 69 yards while being sacked three times. He was hurried on almost every dropback behind a makeshift—and struggling—offensive line.

Peter remembers to bring up that the Eagles' offensive line was struggling, while avoiding the whole part about Tebow being a first round pick going against the 3rd/4th string defenders from the opposing team.

But the bad thing for Tebow was he showed very happy feet at times, probably because of the intense pressure. He won’t make it, though, unless he can set his feet, look over his options and make a good throw. In the off-season, he got Tom House, noted mechanics-fixer, to help him with his footwork and his arm slot, and both looked better Thursday at practice.

Not to come off as anti-Tebow, but this is pressure from 3rd/4th string pass rushers coming at him, which is different when it comes to another NFL team's starting defense rushing him. I think Tebow will work best as a change-of-pace quarterback who can present issues for the defense, but that also entails pulling the regular quarterback in order to have special "Tebow packages" and I don't think any starting quarterback ever really likes this.

“Tim’s sequencing has really improved,” Kelly said. “Not just his throw motion, but how his arm is following his legs in the right order. I’m not too worried about his arm slot; you see a guy like Philip Rivers throw from different angles and be effective. Tim’s better at the overall throw now.”

"Tim's better at the overall throw now." I'm not sure what else needs to be said.

The debut of the new PAT rules—the extra point now is snapped from the 15-yard line, making it a 33-yard attempt; the two-point conversion is attempted from the 2-yard line—has been uneventful. Except for the two-point tries. Last year, 59 two-point conversions were attempted in 256 regular-season games. This preseason, 12 have been attempted in the first 17 games. Too early to sense a trend, but teams have made five of 12 (.417).

Not only is it too early to sense a trend, but teams will more likely go for two in the preseason so they can practice the plays they run in that area during the season. I would look for the percentage of two-point conversions to fall from the 71% of preseason games that have had a two-point conversion attempted.

Checking out the 33-yard PAT after the Hall of Fame game and the full preseason schedule this weekend:

PATs attempted: 57. PATs made: 55. Percentage: .965

So the PAT has been attempted at six times the rate of the two-point conversion, even in the preseason, and almost 97% of them have been made. I wasn't against the extra point being pushed back, but I also didn't think it would make the dramatic difference that Peter seems to believe it will make.

“What is it, a 4 percent less chance you’ll make the extra point?’ Chip Kelly said. “That’s not going to be enough to make a huge change, in my opinion, in what coaches do.” 

We’ll see. A couple of coaches I’ve spoken with for a story I’m working on concerning the PAT shift think there’s going to be more of a change than Kelly thinks.

Chip Kelly isn't such a genius when he disagrees with Peter King on one of Peter's pet project rule changes.

“They’ll have to get a tractor to move me outside to tackle. I’d rather get in a fist fight in a phone booth [at guard] any day. Those guys outside, there’s too much space. Too scary out there.”

—Chicago Pro Bowl guard Kyle Long, on off-season talk that the Bears may move him to tackle eventually because of his strength and athleticism.

Way to be a team player there, Kyle. Not that Long should necessarily be moved to tackle, but it sounds like Long wouldn't even be willing to consider a position change to tackle, even if it helped the team.

“I came home to find out that my boys received two trophies for nothing, participation trophies! While I am very proud of my boys for everything they do and will encourage them till the day I die, these trophies will be given back until they EARN a real trophy. I'm sorry I'm not sorry for believing that everything in life should be earned and I'm not about to raise two boys to be men by making them believe that they are entitled to something just because they tried their best.”

—Steelers linebacker James Harrison, in an Instagram post next to the two athletic trophies his sons received—and that he sent back.

Apparently the act of a parent sending a participation trophy back is enough to cause a several day discussion online about whether Harrison's actions are correct or not. Who cares? If he wants to send his son's trophies back, that's his choice. No need to legislate whether he is a good or bad parent.

Now that San Diego has signed Philip Rivers long-term, two of the three franchise quarterbacks from the 2004 draft class are tied up through the 2019 season—when Ben Roethlisberger will be 37 in Pittsburgh and Rivers 38 with the Chargers. Now it’s Eli Manning’s turn.

Manning wants to be the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL. I think every NFL quarterback wants to be the highest-paid quarterback in the NFL, so Eli's wishes are probably not news.

It’s fascinating to look at how similar the three quarterbacks have been, for the most part. Rivers’ numbers are down, slightly, because he didn’t start his first two years in San Diego, sitting behind Drew Brees. Manning has started an eye-popping 178 games in a row. Roethlisberger started early in Pittsburgh. But the fact that all three could have such similar numbers—look at the touchdowns here: all are between 251 and 259 in their regular-season careers—is amazing.

I'll spare you the chart, but the biggest difference is the QB rating and number of interceptions. Roethlisberger's QB rating is 93.9, Rivers 95.7, and Manning 82.4. Eli also has 54 more interceptions than Roethlisberger and 63 more interceptions than Rivers. So, they are similar, except Manning is a bit more of a turnover machine than Rivers and Roesthlisberger.

The guess here: Manning ends up very close to Roethlisberger. Super Bowl wins trump all. I’m sure Jerry Reese and the Giants will try to hold the line on anything north of Roethlisberger, because Aaron Rodgers is the gold standard at $22 million per year. But Tom Condon, Manning’s agent, surely will argue that because the Rodgers deal was signed two-and-a-third years ago, and the cap in 2015 has increased $20.8 million over 2013, the Rodgers deal can’t be held up as unbeatable.

I'm sure the Giants would counter with "Hey, Rodgers is the best quarterback in the NFL and we aren't paying Manning more than him."

Factoid of the Week That May Interest Only Me

Here is a little factoid that has never interested Peter. A "factoid" isn't a tiny fact, but a short statement with dubious accuracy. Fuck the dictionary though, Peter makes up his own definitions. 

So … our team at The MMQB had a good and informative trip on the road. We also had some fun. See our selfie-stick photo from the last day on the Eagles’ sideline? Videographer John DePetro (white T-shirt) took it, and you can see, from left, Robert Klemko, Kalyn Kahler, Emily Kaplan (front), me, and Jenny Vrentas.

J.J. Watt does not approve of this selfie. None of the THE MMQB team members were posing while showing off their arms in a sleeveless shirt nor were any of them grinding and working hard trying to make themselves better. That's the only time selfies can be taken according to the "J.J. Watt Book of How Everyone Should Act."

Our crack tour manager, Kalyn Kahler, loaded up the van with Chipotle, and we set off around 8:45 for Philly. One problem: Robert Klemko couldn’t handle the sour cream in his Chipotle something-or-other, and so about a half-hour out of town he started looking for food on his RoadAhead app. 

 What a country. Dinosaur Bar-B-Que, the famous Syracuse meathouse, was 15 minutes ahead, and Klemko put in an order.

WHAT A COUNTRY! There are restaurants throughout the United States that sell food to people who are willing to use currency, credit card or check to pay for this food. I mean, these restaurants are everywhere and you can even call ahead to get an order ready for pickup. WHAT A FUCKING COUNTRY!

Then Peter talks about "Super Troopers," naturally being over a decade late to the party. I don't really feel like going through his whole story about this right meow.

Blaine Gabbert's passer rating in Preseason Week 1 last year: 1.7. Blaine Gabbert's passer rating tonight: 125.6

— Matt Barrows (@mattbarrows) August 16, 2015

But again, let's not overreact to one preseason game. Here is an implied conclusion on how much Blaine Gabbert has improved though.

This one is a tough pill to swallow. Finally got the opportunity I always wanted since I entered this league. Took me 4 years to get there.

— Niles Paul (@Niles_Paul84) August 14, 2015

You swallowed a pill? Did this pill violate the drug agreement agreed to by the union and the NFL? Doesn't matter. You are suspended four games for violating the drug agreement, pending a review of this violation by Roger Goodell. If you would like to appeal Goodell's reviewed decision then you can appeal to Roger Goodell. If you would like to appeal this appeal then you can bring the case to the Supreme Court where Roger Goodell will decide whether to hear your appeal. If you would like to appeal this decision, then talk to God, who will then consult with Roger Goodell and Russell Wilson on what the decision should be. There is no appeal after this.

Ten Things I Think I Think

1. I think the upshot of the Philip Rivers contract extension—Chris Mortensen reported it as four years and $83.25 million, beginning in 2016; he will play out his final year of the current deal this year at $15 million—is that the Chargers, wherever they play in 2016 and beyond, will be quarterbacked by Rivers. He and his wife, who is pregnant with their eighth child, love San Diego

I read this initially as "He and his wife, who is pregnant with their eighth love child..." Because of course I read it that way.

2. I think Ray Rice will be in some team’s camp by Sept. 15. Just a hunch. The Browns have some interest, and depending on injuries in the preseason, other teams will too. I heard this in three places along my camp tour so far: Teams are concerned about the fallout for picking up a man who decked his fiancée in an elevator, but are as concerned or more concerned with the fact that the last time he was on the field, in 2013, he was a less-than-mediocre back.

So Peter is reporting that NFL teams don't really have a moral compass, they only will choose to sign a player based on how well he can perform on the field? No way. This probably explains why Greg Hardy has a job right now. I'm in shock that NFL teams judge players by how much they can help on the field and not based on what kind of person this player might be. What a twist that I didn't expect.

With thanks to several coaches/GMs on my camp tour, here's my veteran free-agent running back short list in order:

Chris Johnson. Turns 30 in September. Brings baggage. The 2,006-yard season seems 16 years away, not six. But the Cardinals may sign him this week. No one says he can't be a weapon with a good line in front of him.

Nope, I'm saying that Chris Johnson can't be a weapon with a good line in front of him. I don't believe he can be.

Knowshon Moreno will be a good candidate to be signed. The Dolphins still have some scant interest in bringing him back.

Oh man, calm down with the interest you have there Dolphins. "Scant" interest in Moreno. Good thing it's not "miniscule" interest in him. If Moreno came back and played well it would probably help the precocious Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill live up to the potential that I keep hearing he has.

Then Peter updates us on the situation in Los Angeles about which teams could end up relocating.....Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....

6. I think much has been made of Jet-turned-Bill linebacker IK Enemkpali breaking Geno Smith’s jaw Tuesday, and the subsequent fallout. Several points to make:

a. I was amazed, from the four coaches/players and one highly respected retired player I spoke with in the past few days that the blame for the incident in the eyes of the NFLers should be shared. I mean, almost equally shared. As one active quarterback told me, “You just do not go around owing teammates money—especially a teammate who doesn’t make much money.”

I think that's a good rule in general. You just don't go around owing anybody money. Just anyone. It can be a teammate, a friend, an acquaintance, the IRS, pretty much any/everyone.

c. From the respected retired player (not a Jet): “I can tell you there’d have been a huge problem in the locker rooms I was in if guys thought the quarterback owed money to a guy and didn’t pay—even if it was in dispute whether he owed him money or not. It wouldn’t matter what the reality was. Guys would be pissed.”

You know, if Geno Smith was a better leader then he wouldn't get punched in the face. Why aren't there more hot takes about this position? What are the odds this "respected retired player" is Brett Favre?

e. Has there ever been a more transparent slap at a player than Enemkpali’s apology about the incident when he got to Buffalo, when he apologized to everyone in the Jets’ building except for the one whose jaw he broke in two places? Enemkpali: “I want to apologize to the Jets organization, the fans, my teammates and the coaches. I apologize for what happened. It should have never happened. I should have walked away from the situation. It was never my intentions to hurt anybody.” Then he thanked the Bills for picking him up.

He owed money. You just can't owe people money.

7. I think you shouldn’t blame me for the football locker-room ethos that shifts the blame from the assaulter to the assaultee. I’m the messenger here. I’m just telling you what five people I respect said about the punching in the wake of it. In my opinion, there’s never a good-enough reason for punching another man in the face.

Of course Peter thinks this. I'm not in favor of punching people in the face, but few people have a clue what happened in the locker room and if Geno Smith was being a dipshit about this then he may deserve to be punched in the face. Maybe.

8. I think if you’re wondering about the sanction awaiting Enemkpali by the NFL, well, I wouldn’t count on him being in a Bills uniform for the first couple of weeks. After the punchout, NFL VP Troy Vincent sent a memo to all coaches and general managers reminding them of the prohibition on fighting on the field and off. 

Topics #7 and #8 are part of the same discussion, so they should be with Topic #6. I can't figure out why Peter insists on moving them to a different number of his outline, other than he doesn't really have 10 things he thinks he thinks for the week and needs to stretch it out a bit to cover up for this fact.

10. I think these are my non-football thoughts of the week:

c. Sign of the 2015 times: My wife and I were in a cab on our way home from dinner Friday night, on 56th Street in Manhattan. Traffic between Park and Lexington stopped dead. We waited a minute. We saw a guy get out of a car a few cars ahead of us and start walking. I figured if was a garbage truck or small accident—some New York thing. So we got out and started walking home. Turns out it was five young people, standing in the street, chanting, “Black lives matter!” In between chants, they were screaming at the frustrated drivers screaming at them to get out of the road.

Two things about this comment:

1. I firmly believe that Peter wanted to put this under his "Mr. Starwood Preferred Member Travel Note of the Week," but he often complains about traveling in that space and he doesn't want it to seem like he's complaining about people protesting and chanting "Black lives matter" in the street.

2. I think Peter King did complain and really wants to complain about these people holding up traffic, and more importantly, holding him and his wife up from getting to where they needed to go. I know he complained about it. I just know that was his initial reaction.

g. Coffeenerdness: Twenty-three Starbucks stops in 15 days on the road, as calculated by our videographer, John “Venti Iced Coffee With Skim” DePetro. There might be something wrong with us. (Or just me.)

This is just absolutely ridiculous. Just ridiculous. I can't help but wonder what Peter would do if he had to live on a normal person's budget and couldn't spend $5 each time he goes to Starbucks once or twice a day.

h. Beernerdness: Championship beer of the camp trip—Sweetwater Blue (Sweetwater Brewing Company, Atlanta). Heaven in a bottle.

That's not even one of Sweetwater's top-five beers. Peter and I are not alike at all as it pertains to beer. That's probably not a bad thing for me.

j. Thanks, Runners World, for making me seem much more fit than I really am. But I’m trying—which is more than I can say for the vast majority of my adult life.

This is just a little humblebrag by Peter so that his readers know he was in "Runners World" because he is a runner now. He is embarrassed to point it out, but of course he will anyway.

The Adieu Haiku

Tom Brady in court.
Court. Not a training camp field.
Such a dumb August.

But not as dumb as this Adieu Haiku is of course. Nothing can be. 

1 comments Marcus Hayes Wants Chip Kelly to Deny He's a Racist

You may have heard ex-Eagles players say that Chip Kelly is racist. Pretty much every bitter ex-Eagle who Kelly has let go this offseason has claimed some form of this accusation. I don't know if Chip Kelly is racist or not, but I do know the mere suggestion he is a racist doesn't mean he needs to call a press conference and dispute this notion. This is where Marcus Hayes and I differ. He thinks Kelly should address the notion he is racist. Kelly needs to disprove the negative, which is not always easy to do. There are other writers who actually care to do research, and try to find out the truth without just assuming Kelly is racist, that have written very clearly about what Kelly's problem with players truly may be. That's no good though. Marcus Hayes wants Kelly to deny the accusations. Prove you aren't racist, Chip! Start counting how many black friends you have. That always works.

AS IT TURNS OUT, it really is about creating a culture; an inclusive culture.

Unless it's on his terms, Chip Kelly doesn't seem interested in that.

Chip Kelly is interested in an inclusive culture. An inclusive culture of his choosing. It may be racist (who knows?), but he's interested in a culture of inclusion around his team...it just has to be the culture of inclusion that he chooses. 

Over the past five months, an astounding amount of energy has been spent trying to disprove the observations of three Eagles who, at the risk of their own ruin, said they believe Chip Kelly has a problem with black men.

I'm not going to preface every sentence I write with this, but I don't know if Chip Kelly is racist. I do know the words of three ex-Eagles may or may not prove this is true. A lot of energy goes into disproving observations of these ex-Eagles because Kelly is having to disprove a negative. Marcus Hayes, prove you aren't cheating on your wife. Two ladies in the office swear you are cheating with a lady from HR. 

Predictably, what each of them said was amplified by the sensitive nature of the subject. Predictably, there was a massive rush to disprove it, and thereby make everyone's life less prickly.

Rightly or wrongly, nobody wants to be called a racist. I write "rightly or wrongly" because even racists don't want to be called racist. It's always called something else by these people who I perceive as racist. Something that softens what they are.

First: Validly or not, at least some of Kelly's players feel marginalized.

Being marginalized because Chip Kelly doesn't think these players fit the culture isn't the same thing as being marginalized because Chip Kelly is a racist. Read Mike Freeman's column on Kelly. It's enlightening. 

Second: Kelly refuses to even acknowledge the issue.

Acknowledging the issue means it is an issue. A control freak like Chip Kelly wants to control the conversation and his having to speak on his racist/non-racist tendencies isn't controlling the conversation.

His responses: If they feel that way, too bad.

Marcus Hayes has to know that people in the position that Chip Kelly is in, as the head coach of an NFL team, can't respond to every criticism of him. Kelly can't stop people from speculating about him or criticizing him. He sees these accusations/insinuations as noise, so he ignores it as long as possible. 

Not a hint of culpability. Not a whiff of empathy.

Think about that.

Again, he doesn't think he's racist, so he's not going to have a hint of culpability or a whiff of empathy. What person would lean back and think, "You know, maybe I am a huge racist..." It takes a lot of introspection that Chip Kelly simply isn't going to engage in during or prior to an NFL season. 

If the CEO of any other high-profile, billion-dollar company repeatedly was linked to racism by three former outstanding employees, all of whom risked being blackballed; and if that employer dismissed it by saying the employees were angry they were displaced; know what you would have?
 
Donald Trump. 

You mean the guy running for President who is among the leaders for the Republican nomination right now? And also, nearly every CEO of a high-profile, billion-dollar company will have accusations of some form of ageism, sexism, racism, other -ism's directed at either him or his company. It comes with the territory. It doesn't mean these accusations are true and it doesn't mean these accusations are false. It happens to a CEO and his/her company at some point.

If three former players told reporters that coconut water in smoothies upset their stomachs, Kelly would examine the chemical composition of coconuts from each continent.

Examine himself for imperfections?

Apparently, that's a waste of time.

The same guy who stated that Chase Utley is more beloved in Philadelphia because he's white, thereby causing him to get away with more crappy play, as compared to Jimmy Rollins and how he is treated, wants Chip Kelly to do some real introspection and figure out who he is as a person. I'm sure Kelly does know his imperfections, but he also believes these imperfections make him the successful person that he is. Sometimes our greatest flaws have to be managed because these flaws are often a part of why we are successful. So Kelly sees his control freak tendencies as a good and bad thing. Others see racism and others don't. It doesn't mean Kelly needs to address accusations of racism.

Certainly, players in Pittsburgh and Buffalo will ask Brandon Boykin and LeSean McCoy questions about Kelly. Don't be surprised if guys in Seattle get an earful from Cary Williams, or if New England players are enlightened by Bradley Fletcher. 

Later in this column, Marcus Hayes will suggest that Boykin, McCoy and Cary Williams risked their professional career in coming out and stating they believe race plays a part in Chip Kelly getting rid of them. This may be true, but the fact all three of these players found new teams and didn't have trouble finding new teams, leads me to believe the risk to their careers is being exaggerated by Hayes. I don't believe a player will be blackballed for calling Chip Kelly racist. It's the NFL, where absent murder (and if the player is out of jail now...well...) a guy will get a chance to prove he can play football if he has skills.

McCoy, after his trade to the Bills in March, said Kelly rid himself of all of the best black players. Well, with the exception of left tackle Jason Peters, the best black player, that's true.

I choose to believe the Mike Freeman article is correct. It's not a race thing and there are certain players that Chip Kelly simply has trouble relating to. He prefers all control and that is hard to make work in the NFL. Maybe Kelly is slightly racist in the same way a lot of people are unintentionally racist or sexist, but I don't think it's an active plan by Kelly to rid the Eagles of black players.

Kelly's response: McCoy was stung by the trade.

Which, by the way, is something that seems absolutely true. Until the Bills dangled money at McCoy, he wasn't going to play for the Bills. McCoy was stung by the trade by all counts.

Former left tackle Tra Thomas, after a two-year stint on the coaching staff, said Kelly's locker room was populated by players who think Kelly might be racist. Well, after what McCoy and Boykin said, that, too, has been proved true.

Kelly's response: We gave Thomas a chance to coach.

This isn't exactly what Chip Kelly said. Marcus Hayes, again, prefers to exaggerate to prove his point. Kelly said,  

"I didn't really see it, but I heard about it," he said. "I was just disappointed. We gave Tra a great opportunity. He came in on a Bill Walsh minority internship program. Mr. [Jeffrey] Lurie was nice enough to keep him on for two years - one on offense, one on defense - [to] see if he could find a job in the NFL. So I hope Tra does find a job in the NFL. We don't have a job open."

That's still pretty cold, of course. Is this coldness due to racism or because Chip Kelly just has trouble relating to other humans? I think there is evidence both ways. 

Boykin sent a carefully worded text message to a black Comcast SportsNet reporter that read, in part: "[Kelly is] uncomfortable around grown men of our culture . . . [Kelly] can't relate and that makes him uncomfortable." Boykin stressed that he and his teammates in the locker room often discussed the atmosphere that Kelly created.

Kelly's response: Boykin was "disappointed" that he was traded.

Except you know, well, I will let Marcus Hayes acknowledge what Kelly said and then dismiss it immediately as not enough. Which, by the way, is how any comments by Chip Kelly would be dismissed if he did publicly comment on whether he was a racist or not. 

That answer changed last week, when Kelly said the repeated assertions did, in fact, bother him . . . but, really, Kelly seemed more annoyed than troubled.

And again, if Kelly spoke further about his feelings on whether he was racist, then he would come off as annoyed and the circle would go unbroken. 

He should be troubled.

He probably is annoyed. He's annoyed because he would prefer to focus on the upcoming season and doesn't consider himself to be a racist. So because he doesn't think he's racist, then these distractions around the team annoy him. 

McCoy, Boykin and Thomas also are former Eagles; a status that, in the Jeffrey Lurie era, carries privilege and inclusion matched by few other franchises.

Each jeopardized that birthright with these comments.

Each jeopardized this birthright except for the fact none of the three were coaching or playing for the Eagles at the time they made the comments. Boykin and McCoy had been traded to other teams, so they were safe to give their opinion at that point. 

So why make them?

The popular and lazy explanation is that they were bitter they were let go.

Another explanation is that this is truly how they perceive Chip Kelly, as a racist. This, of course, doesn't mean their perception is actually true. What may come off to some as racism comes off to another person as simply being a control freak and difficult to talk to. Maybe there is an explanation between "being bitter" and "Chip Kelly is a racist." This doesn't make for a column that gets pageviews of course.

That is illogical. Each had too much to lose.

Not really. Maybe Tra Thomas, but LeSean McCoy and Brandon Boykin really didn't have much to lose. It's not like they played for Chip Kelly at the present time and McCoy had even gotten a brand, new nice contract from the Bills. What would he have to lose by speaking his mind on Kelly? The argument these players had too much to lose would be true if they made these accusations while still affiliated with the Eagles. Then I could understand this argument.

The more sensible explanation: They simply spoke what they believed to be true.

Yes, but what they believe to be true isn't necessarily true. To continue with the Donald Trump comparison, Trump claims to believe what he says is true as well. It doesn't make the stupid-ass things Trump says true. It's possible the perception these Eagles have is caused by groupthink based on the perception that they have of Kelly. They have a right to feel that way, but it doesn't mean Chip Kelly needs to address the fact he isn't a racist. Besides, if Kelly said he wasn't racist, would Marcus Hayes be like, "Oh well, he addressed it. Now I believe him." I don't believe Hayes would say anything like that at all.

Probably not. I have no idea if Kelly is racist or not, but I do know there is evidence that Kelly is just the type of guy who is militant when it comes to "You are with me or you aren't" and that could be coming off as race-related. 

All three were dispatched, on the face of it, with good reason.

Marcus Hayes should now prove he isn't racist. 

McCoy ran both the football and his mouth with little discipline. Thomas was never more than an aspiring assistant with no coaching credentials. 

Well, that explains why Kelly said he gave Thomas a chance and didn't seem sad to see him go.

Boykin is shorter than the cornerback template Kelly wants.

Stop with the arguments rationally explaining why Chip Kelly traded Boykin. Why would a control freak coach choose to want players that fit a specific template he wants? That's not something that would happen. 

Several other players, coaches and scouts, both black and white, have been similarly dispatched.

None has echoed these sentiments; not yet, anyway.

Perhaps they believe Kelly treated them fairly.

Some players have said Kelly treated them fairly. Why doesn't Chip Kelly come out and state whether he treated these players fairly or not? WHAT'S HE AFRAID OF? 

Or, perhaps they understand this sort of talk can ruin them in the NFL.

Ah yes, a conspiracy. Of course. So now the assumption is that the others feel the way Boykin, Thomas and McCoy feel, but they are too afraid to say it out loud? Once the idea Chip Kelly is a virulent racist has been proven, I guess the idea others are afraid to speak up isn't a bad assumption. Chip Kelly is racist and more players would like to say this, but they are afraid to. This is something that is pure speculation being passed off as an argument supporting Hayes' point of view.

As far as we know, most of this angst stems from the Riley Cooper and DeSean Jackson incidents and the way Kelly, Lurie and Howie Roseman handled them.

Cooper, a white receiver, was caught on video directing the N-word toward a black security guard in an alcohol-fueled rage during a country music concert in the summer of 2013, Kelly's first season. Cooper took a brief leave from training camp, then rejoined the team.

This move was always going to bring up questions. Letting Cooper stick around after he did this was a questionable decision. I'm not in the Eagles locker room, but I can't imagine there still aren't some long-term repercussions from keeping Cooper around. 

Jackson, a black receiver, enjoyed a career season in 2013 . . . then was cut a few months later. He also was subjected to a smear campaign that, to any sensible observer, was engineered (clumsily) by the team. Meanwhile, Cooper's fine 2013 season earned him a lucrative extension.

I have to admit, I don't know what was up with the whole "DeSean Jackson is involved with a gang" campaign that got him out of Philadelphia. Lost in this is that Jackson also had a lucrative contract with the Eagles and if for whatever reason he isn't buying into Chip Kelly's ideas...

Beyond Boykin's implication that Kelly is not totally colorblind, it should have been equally disturbing that Boykin, in his clarification statements, said that Kelly routinely ignored players:

"There would be times where he just wouldn't talk to people. You would walk down the hallway and he wouldn't talk to you."

Oh my God, no! Chip Kelly wasn't cordial? Forget being a racist or not being a racist, being cordial is expected of a man in Chip Kelly's position. 

This seems bizarrely dysfunctional, at the very least. But it might explain, if not validate, what McCoy and Thomas saw and felt.

Did Kelly only not talk to players who weren't white or he didn't speak to every player on occasion when he ran into them in the hallway? If Kelly only didn't speak to players who weren't white, then the players are validated. If he didn't speak to all players, then this anecdotal evidence doesn't support their contention. 

Consider, too, the "grown men" phrase Boykin used. Boykin was careful to delineate between Kelly's dominion over his college players at Oregon, a powerless group with virtually no recourse against Kelly's whim; vs. "grown men" in the NFL whose futures Kelly has less power to determine.

Marcus Hayes is having it both ways now...or at least he wants to. Marcus wants to say other players don't speak up or the players who did speak up did so despite the fact it could hurt their career. But then when Marcus wants to prove his point about Boykin using the language "grown men" he points out that Kelly has less power to determine the future of an NFL player than he used to. So which is it? Are some players not speaking up for fear Kelly will destroy them if they do or does Kelly not hold this much power over NFL players? 

Fairly or not, he has been painted by three men as a leader who, at best, is insensitive to his environment; at most, as a leader who unfairly leads.

Fairly or not, it's just assumed Chip Kelly is a racist, so he must immediately address and confront any ideas that he is in fact a racist. 

This is stunning, because Kelly's willingness to implement his innovations have cast him as a genius. Moreover, Kelly preaches culture over scheme.

So his preaching of culture is what could have led to him getting rid of these players. They didn't fit his strict culture specifications and so they were gone. Fair? Possibly not. Racist? Possibly, but it's an assumption I would feel better making if there wasn't also evidence given (anonymously) from Eagles players that Kelly is just very, very rigid in what he wants and is dictatorial. You fit in with what he's trying to do or you don't. He comes from college football where coaches are allowed to do that. In the NFL, personality from player is embraced. A dictatorial style is seen as not fitting what these NFL players want. Hence, Chip Kelly is being called a racist, rather than these players admitting to themselves that they simply didn't fit what Kelly wanted. I'm not saying this is true, but it is as much of a possibility as Chip Kelly being racist is a possibility. 

Still, he refuses to adjust, and that allows a malignant culture to fester in his own building.

Actually, that could have been the point of Kelly releasing some of these players. He didn't want a malignant culture to fester, so he traded these players. Right or wrong, he doesn't allow a malignant culture to fester in his building, so he gets rid of players who he doesn't see as a "fit."

3 comments You May Not Believe This, But Skip Bayless Makes Tim Tebow's Return to the NFL about Skip Bayless

You may not have heard, but Tim Tebow has signed with the Philadelphia Eagles. This news did go under the radar, so I understand how a lot of people may have missed it. Naturally, since he is the chief waver of pom-poms for Tebow's NFL career, Skip Bayless has some thoughts on Tebow's return. Even more naturally, Skip Bayless makes Tebow's return to the NFL just a little bit about himself and his interactions with Tebow. Skip's point is that Tim Tebow could play well as an Eagles player next year. He has to make the team first, of course. Tebow COULD play well (or "fly high"...vomit) as an Eagle, but he also could play the same way he played as a Jet and Patriot. Skip thinks other head coaches haven't utilized what Tebow does best, which is analyze football games (seriously, he was pretty good last year). I have nothing against Tebow as a person, but as a football player what he does best (which I'm still not sure what that would be) requires an offense be so limited that I'm not sure it's worth having Tebow around. But, maybe he can be useful in certain situations. It always annoys me (and the starting quarterback) when the backup gets put in the game for certain offensive packages. If Tebow is used as a goal line QB, then I could see him succeeding. Anyway, Skip says Chip Kelly is the best coach for Tebow, which just so happens to be something he also said about Bill Belichick when Tebow signed with the Patriots.

Funny how the smartest coach in football couldn't figure out a way to use Tebow, but now Skip decides that Chip Kelly is the new smartest coach in football. I almost root against Tebow just to hear Skip Bayless and his next excuse for why Tebow didn't succeed in the NFL.

Before college football's national championship game in January, Tim Tebow joined us on the "First Take" set in Dallas to discuss Ohio State vs. Oregon and the NFL playoffs.

I imagine this was one of the highlights of Skip's career, next to repeatedly calling Troy Aikman a homosexual and never really having solid proof this statement is true.

I thought about asking Tebow why he thought the NFL had rejected him for a second straight season, but that seemed like old news about an old wound. Tebow was an ESPN analyst now and we treated him like one.

Except Skip clearly didn't want to treat Tebow like an ESPN analyst, because he was more obsessed with proving Tebow could play in the NFL than Tebow was.

Backstage after the show, I felt a tap on the shoulder and turned to see Tebow.

Here is exclusive video of Skip's reaction when Tebow spoke with him. 

I don't know him well - in fact, the few times I've been around him in groups, I've sensed a coolness

Yes, Tebow has always come off as just really super-rad.

and wondered if Tebow shared the view of my on-air debate partner Stephen A. Smith.

And here we go. Skip Bayless believes that his words have an effect on pro athletes. It's one of the most self-centered beliefs that I can recall any human being actually holding. Skip gives himself credit for when LeBron plays well, when a team responds to play well after criticism from Skip and now he believes all NFL teams did not sign Tim Tebow because Skip advocated for Tebow too hard. This is a real thing that Skip believes. He's the type of person who gives feedback when it's requested and then assumes his counsel and only his counsel was heeded if changes are made. The fact NFL front offices, LeBron James or any sports figure could give two shits about what Skip has to say or believes never crosses his mind at any point.

"You helped ruin Tebow's chances in the NFL," Stephen A. often has said on our show. "You supported him so hard [against an onslaught of on-air ctitics] you helped create a lot of the hype that did him in."

This is a real thing that Skip and Stephen A. Smith think? Smith really thinks that Skip Bayless and his opinion on Tebow created so much of the hype around Tebow that NFL teams couldn't see past the hype to fairly evaluate him? Really? This isn't a joke? The Eagles are Tebow's fourth NFL team. At this point he's been on the roster of 12.5% of the NFL teams and been coached by head coaches who have combined been to eight Super Bowls, but it's the hype of Tebow by Skip Bayless that caused them to unfairly evaluate Tebow? This is madness.

Also, what are "ctitics"?

Stephen A. always adds, "That, and the fact he just can't throw."

It was more 98% the fact Tebow couldn't throw and 2% everything else around Tebow that couldn't be ignored because he just can't throw.

But now, backstage in Dallas, Tebow surprised me by saying: "Why didn't you ask me about wanting to continue my playing career?"

Not that Tebow wanted to keep his playing career in the forefront of people's minds even while he was collecting a paycheck from ESPN to not play football. Eyes on the prize.

The truth was I didn't want to further shame him or set him up to seem delusional.

Of course Skip Bayless plays favorite. Would Skip ever worry about asking any other pro athlete a question that would shame him or make the athlete look bad when on "First Take"? Of course not. But this is Skip Bayless and this is ESPN, so of course in the process of "Embracing Debate" it's fine for Skip to also play favorites and antagonize certain professional athletes Skip doesn't like and coddle other athletes that Skip likes better.

But I stammered back something about wishing I'd known and I would've asked.

Simply starstruck.

I must admit I felt sorry for Tebow, who just couldn't come to grips with the end of his football life.

Honestly Skip, I think most people feel sorry for you because you seem to lead a very empty life that mostly revolves around gaining attention for yourself through whatever means possible. Tebow comes off as a much more fulfilled person in his life than Skip comes off as being. Skip is a child who grabs pigtails to gain attention, while Tebow is good at being an analyst and could easily have a career in broadcasting.

At that point, I had no idea Tebow had faithfully returned for 18 straight months (at least twice a month) to Los Angeles to work with throwing guru Tom House, who has refined the mechanics of Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Carson Palmer and many big-league pitchers.

Bottom line from Skip's point of view: Tom House will turn Tim Tebow into Tom Brady. 

Nolan Ryan credited House (who pitched for eight big-league seasons) with helping extend his career when House was pitching coach for the Texas Rangers.

And the difference in Tebow and Nolan Ryan is that Nolan Ryan was already a great pitcher when he started working with Tom House. Tebow...not so much a great quarterback.

He told me Monday he has never seen anything like the commitment Tebow made to improving his passing "when he didn't even have a team or the prospect of being on a team. He just kept busting [his tail] and busting it and busting it."

Hard work is great and hard work is how Tim Tebow got to the NFL. Sometimes hard work isn't enough though.

That same week in Dallas, an NFL insider told me about a conversation he had with Eagles coach (and former Oregon coach) Chip Kelly, who insisted he didn't pick a quarterback for his system - but that he could play to the strengths of (and win with) any quarterback.

I have nothing against Chip Kelly and his wisdom, but this is insanity. I've lived through the Jimmy Clausen era in Carolina. I feel very, very certain Chip Kelly couldn't win with Jimmy Clausen as his starting quarterback.

Typical Chip, I thought. He doesn't just think he's the smartest man in every room he's in, but in every stadium, no matter the opposing coach or staff.

Kelly succeeding with Tebow may be the ultimate test that he can win with any quarterback. Okay, maybe not the ultimate test, but a pretty big test to prove he can win with any quarterback.

If conventional NFL wisdom says, "That won't work," Kelly sniffs

Apparently Skip thinks that Chip Kelly does a lot of cocaine.

and says, "Watch this."

But in January, Kelly had been given total control of Eagles' personnel moves. Little did I know how that was about to impact Tebow's NFL future.

It's a good thing that Skip had stopped talking about Tim Tebow in December, because otherwise all of the hype Skip gave Tebow would have affected Tebow's chances of making it in the NFL. Skip has the power to affect Tebow's chances of signing with an NFL team of course.

When Kelly heard Tebow, only 27, still wanted to play and continued to work fanatically on his throwing after two years out of the NFL, Kelly invited him to Philly for a tryout.

This, remember, was before Kelly dumbfounded the NFL in mid-March by trading Nick Foles (27 touchdown passes to only two interceptions in 2013) for an immobile Sam Bradford, the former No. 1 overall pick who has constantly battled injuries through his University of Oklahoma career and his five pro seasons

Clearly the only takeaway from this is that Chip Kelly trading Nick Foles so that he could clear room to sign Tim Tebow a month later. That's the only logical conclusion that can be drawn. Skip had to be very careful not to hype Tebow too much or else cause Kelly to change his mind and sign a different quarterback instead. Because, you know, the hype would drive Kelly's mind crazy to where his opinion of Tebow would be affected by Skip Bayless. Again, this is a real thing that can happen.

Speaking of jokes, a week before the Bradford deal, many Eagles fans considered this trade inexplicably laughable: LeSean McCoy to Buffalo for former Oregon linebacker Kiko Alonso. Kelly had acquired so many Oregon players that the Eagles might as well be renamed the Philadelphia Ducks.

Kelly was a sitting duck for criticism,

This is just terrible writing. I don't want to say Skip should stick to doing television instead of writing for ESPN, so I think Skip should stick to just going the hell away.

The head-shaking turned to belly-laughing on Monday, March 16, when Kelly brought Tebow to Philly for a workout. Kelly was impressed enough he wanted to sign Tebow immediately, but first wanted to maintain leverage in completing a trade for third-string QB Matt Barkley, hopefully to Miami.

Kelly was so impressed that he was going to trade every player on the Eagles roster to ensure Tebow would have a roster spot, but later decided against this.

Tebow's last NFL stop just might be the jumpstart his career needs. Finally, he's playing for a coach who actually wants to utilize what he does best.

Which is what Skip said when Tebow went to the Patriots. How soon he forgets.

That could've been Josh McDaniels, who drafted Tebow 25th overall - then got fired midway through Tebow's rookie year in Denver.

Because Skip is a journalistic clown and only serves to troll others without providing any useful information, he of course leaves out the little fact that Tebow's offensive coordinator when he was briefly with the Patriots was........................Josh McDaniels. So Josh McDaniels could have utilized what Tebow does best with Denver, yet he didn't do this when he coached Tebow in New England. Weird how that works isn't it? The excuses keep coming. Skip keeps saying, "This is the guy who can utilize Tebow best," as if the problem is coaching and not Tebow. Yet, McDaniels had a chance to utilize Tebow in New England and it didn't work out. Tebow even had the advantage of being coached by Bill Belichick while working with Josh McDaniels. We know how that ended.

So Skip always blames the coaching for not utilizing Tebow correctly, but because he has no regard for facts, he doesn't realize how ridiculous he sounds. Skip doesn't deal in reality, I think that's the main issue he has.

It quickly became clear to Tebow that the Jets were more interested in using him as an occasional gimmick to win only New York's back-page tabloid headlines from the Giants.

Of course, the Jets had no interest in winning games. They only wanted to win the headline game. This is how Skip Bayless believes the NFL world works. Skip Bayless gets paid a lot of money to comment on professional sports by the way.

A brittle Bradford, a shaky Sanchez: Is it possible Kelly will give Tebow a legit shot at competing for the starting job? Several NFL sources have predicted to me he will.

Those NFL sources are probably as real as the "facts" that Skip spits out on "First Take" everyday.

Wouldn't Chip Kelly like nothing more than to say "Watch this" to his buddy Belichick?

No. Chip Kelly wants to win fucking football games, not get into a childish pissing contest with another NFL coach to see who can take the most mediocre quarterback and win games with him. Does Skip really believe the sports world works like this? He believes the Jets just want more headlines than the Giants, Chip Kelly would sign a quarterback to show Belichick he can succeed with that quarterback or his own comments about Tebow affects the evaluation of NFL teams? Skip Bayless is better served being an idiot caller on sports talk radio if these are real beliefs he has.

In Kelly's two seasons in Philly, his offense led the NFL in read-option plays with 514. Next was Russell Wilson's Seattle with only 235. In 2011, often running the read option, Tebow took over a 1-4 Denver team and turned it into the NFL's top rushing attack. Tebow runs the option with gut instinct and rare will, and now he'll be playing the ride-and-decide game with the NFL's reigning rushing champ, new Eagle DeMarco Murray.

He'll be playing the ride-and-decide game with Murray for the 10 games that Murray is actually healthy during the 2015 season.

Tebow took that 1-4 team to a divisional title and home playoff win over Pittsburgh.

I don't know how long this is going to be mentioned. Yes, the Broncos were 8-8 and beat the Steelers in overtime on a slant where the safety (the same backup safety I believe that replaced Ryan Clark, who couldn't play in the game due to his sickle cell disease...obviously God wanted Clark to have sickle cell so Tebow could win a playoff game) took a bad angle and Demaryius Thomas took the pass to the house. Funny how Skip doesn't mention what happened in the next playoff game on the road against the Patriots. This always seems to be left out. Tebow was 9-26 for 136 yards in a 45-10 loss. Heck, he didn't even complete 50% of his passes in the epic, never-to-be-forgotten win over the Steelers.

He has always thrown a pretty good deep ball, always a Kelly staple. Hmmm.

I don't know if this is true or not.

All I said before the draft was: If you take him at the bottom of the first round and let him run the read option and throw off its run fakes, he will win games in the NFL. Did he ever.

Yes, but then Tebow didn't win games in the NFL. I've always enjoyed how Skip has completely ignored the failures Tebow has had in the NFL and chalked it up to simply bad coaching. Of course it is bad coaching. Let's just focus on the times Tebow was good and ignore the bad.

He began losing confidence with the Jets, and though House worked briefly with Tebow before he went to camp with the Patriots and raved Tebow was throwing "beautifully," Tebow crumbled under the pressure of sharing a camp field with Brady. He pressed. He choked. He regressed. He gave Belichick (and coordinator McDaniels) no choice but to cut him.

So the lesson to learn is that as long as Tebow doesn't have an NFL-quality starter in front him, then he can be an NFL starter? Just surround him with shitty quarterbacks and Tebow can compete.

Now, no doubt, those who do not believe in Kelly are thinking, "Tebow will get him fired."

Yeah, Chip Kelly isn't going to let Tebow get him fired. Rest assured about that. Tebow will be gone long before Kelly gets fired for hanging on to Tebow for too long.

All I know for sure is, that day in Dallas when Tebow was on our show, I should've asked him about his playing career.

It is all about you, Skip. But think about it. If you had asked Tebow about his playing career it would have only contributed to the hype and then Tebow would not have gotten a chance to play in the NFL again. NFL teams hang on your every word, so they would have gotten lost in the hype of Tebow and only paid attention to the fact that three really good coaches have already given Tebow the boot.