Rookie Matt Barkley is the healthiest quarterback on the Eagles’ roster, and may get the start Sunday.
Rookie healthiest quarterback option
Someday, there will be something else to write about other than the Eagles’ revolving door at quarterback.
Until that day, get ready for more what-ifs and what-could be before Chip Kelly’s first season in the NFL comes to a close. One day after an ineffective Mike Vick was pulled due to a lingering hamstring issue, Kelly announced that the quarterback was still hampered by the injury. Vick likely won’t be ready for Sunday’s game in Oakland.
“Mike didn’t seem like he was going to be ready this week,” said Kelly, who is waiting for MRI results before officially ruling him out. “He felt like when I talked to him the first time, he thought he was going to be back after the [first] Giants game. This is the first time I talked to him that he thought like maybe he might be out.”
Meanwhile, backup Nick Foles is still going through the league’s strict protocol on concussions. He finally took the ImPACT test, but the quarterback was still in the process of meeting with doctors for any kind of clearance. It seems unlikely he’ll be ready in six days, but Kelly isn’t ready to rule Foles out.
“I’m going to wait till I get all that information,” Kelly said.
That leaves rookie third-stringer Matt Barkley. While he did move the chains Sunday, Barkley (17-of-26 for 158 yards a pick) seems to make poor decisions when protection breaks down. Overall, he just hasn’t shown much in his two emergency appearances.
“I think he’s got a good understanding of what we’re doing,” Kelly said. “He puts the ball on people, gave the guys a chance to run after the catch. I think he’s got a bright future. It’s unfortunate for Matt both times he’s been in the game that’s been his chance to go in the game is because we’ve had an injury at that position, we’re down. This is kind of what we got to do at that point in time.”
NFL catching up with genius coach
Jason Avant made a comment after Sunday’s loss that he thought opposing coaches may have figured out what Chip Kelly is trying to do offensively. The innovative coach was the talk of the NFL after that blistering first half in Washington. Since then, the yardage totals and points — no touchdowns in his last 28 offensive possessions — have been steadily declining.
So, have defenses figured it out?
“No, I don’t think people have figured out,” Kelly said. “You can turn the tape on and watch six games of whoever you play, I can tell you what they’re going to do. I can tell you what Peyton Manning is going to do. You still have to stop them. They still have to execute. I think everybody kind of knows going into the game plan, you’re not going to surprise people eight games into the season.”
