Malcolm Jenkins’ concerns about the way the Eagles create accountability have been heard — and discounted.
Eagles coach Chip Kelly has no plans to change the way the Eagles correct mistakes while watching game film, after Jenkins raised issue with it earlier this week.
Jenkins suggested that by doing it by position groups rather than as a team, there’s less accountability. And because the Eagles are 4-7, words like “accountability” can create quite a reaction.
“Why don’t I do that?” Kelly said, via Paul Domowitch of the Philadelphia Daily News. “Because my right guard doesn’t really care what our free safety does. So it’s not really efficient for Matt Tobin to listen what the instruction is going on with the free safety.
“When you want to get detailed in terms of making corrections, it needs to be done in the position group. Because those guys are paying attention to what goes on at their position. In this sport, more than any other sport, it’s very not related. What goes on for an offensive lineman is totally different than what goes on for a defensive back.”
Kelly didn’t agree with the assertion that being called out in front of a large group of people helped reduce future mistakes, and said his method wasn’t that different from the way Andy Reid did things.
“I think everybody should worry about their job and doing their job rather than saying, ‘I’m not doing this, but how come this guy’s not doing this?’ That’s when you get into finger-pointing. That’s not conducive to being successful,” Kelly said. “I think everybody needs instruction, everybody needs help. And I think the more you can get specific with the individual player the better. To be in a group setting and say I think the left tackle made a mistake here and I want everybody in the room to know that, that doesn’t help the right corner. The right corner is going to say, ‘I’m worried about playing press-man. Why am I listening to what’s going on with the pass rush?”’
Of course, Kelly has a number of theories on doing football differently, some of which are more embraced than others. But when you’re losing, every aspect of the organization is going to be scrutinized a little more closely.