Sorry, Angelo, if Chip Kelly cared what you thought about him the way Andy Reid did, the Eagles would look like the same roster that went 10-6 last year and failed to make the playoffs. As far as being two games away from feeling the full wrath of the fans:
The reality is that an overwhelming majority of Eagles Nation believes “In Chip We Trust.”
They haven’t trusted you or your judgment for about 25 years.
By Theodore N. Beitchman
Angelo Cataldi must think Chip Kelly is Secretary of State and that Kelly’s ruminations about who will start in an exhibition game being played on a Saturday night are matters of:
National Security — like the Iran Nuclear deal!
How else to explain Cataldi ridiculous column — even for him — in tomorrow’s PhillyVoice.
Cataldi has never liked Kelly because Kelly doesn’t kiss his ass and appear on his show as often as slow-walking, slow-talking, slow-thinking Andy Reid did.
Cataldi is used to everybody showing up and kissing his ring, otherwise he badmouths from King of Prussia to Kirkwood, Delaware.
Here is what dumb-o Cataldi has written:
Kelly does not respect the fans of his football team. There is no other logical response after his insulting behavior last week when he refused to say whether Bradford would play Saturday night in the second game of the preseason.
Of course, we know now that Bradford did indeed to make his debut as an Eagle, but Kelly’s unwillingness to answer the question was not just unfair to the fans, it was stupid from his own perspective.
What exactly did the coach hope to gain? There is no such thing as a competitive advantage in the preseason; no one really cares who wins the game. There is also nothing to gain by teasing the paying customers who were already disappointed when the team’s new franchise quarterback was held out of the first exhibition game.
As someone who has spent the past quarter century talking to these people on my WIP radio show, I can say with confidence that what Kelly is doing – this obnoxious Bill Belichick act with the media – is a formula for disaster.
Here’s how it works with coaches and executives who don’t treat the fans with respect: Everything is just fine as long as the team wins. Fans can endure abuse extremely well when they’re celebrating success. But as soon as their team loses, the payback is brutal. Just ask Joe Banner or Jim Fregosi or Jim O’Brien or even Bob Clarke.
Two games. That is precisely how far Kelly is away from feeling the full wrath of a fan base he has been mistreating since he got here two and a half years ago. If the Eagles lose the opener at Atlanta (because Bradford is still rusty?) and then the first home game against Dallas, the honeymoon won’t just be over; divorce proceedings will begin.
Kelly’s obnoxious act is already challenging the patience of Eagles fans. I hear the undercurrent of discontent every day on my show. When he doesn’t answer questions, he is programming the customers to turn on him, to abandon their support with a vengeance unique to Philadelphia.
Chip Kelly is one of the smartest coaches this city has ever had – and one of the dumbest when it comes to the fans.
Sorry, Angelo, if Chip Kelly cared what you thought about him the way Andy Reid did the Eagles would look like the same roster that went 10-6 last year and failed to make the playoffs.
As far as being two games away from feeling the full wrath of the fans:
The reality is that an overwhelming majority of Eagles Nation believes “In Chip We Trust.”
They haven’t trusted you or your judgment for about 25 years.
