Report: Banner, Browns First To Interview Kelly

Joe Banner’s new team will be first in line to interview Oregon coach Chip Kelly, according to reports.

League sources tell Mary Kay Cabot of The Plain Dealer that the Browns plan on talking to Kelly on Friday, one day after the Ducks take on Kansas State in the Fiesta Bowl.

The Kelly-Browns connection has been mentioned all week. Two high-ranking NFL executives told Adam Caplan that Kelly is Cleveland’s clear-cut No. 1 choice.

The whole situation is going to get interesting. Banner obviously did not leave the Eagles last year under good terms, despite the picture painted by the organization at the time. Now we have a situation where Banner and Jeffrey Lurie – two men who likely value the same qualities in head coaches – could be vying for the same candidate.

One other Kelly note to point out. Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network reports that Kelly is not seeking total control of football operations. That’s a good thing. Kelly has never coached in the NFL before. As we’ve discussed before, teams will have to decide whether they are hiring Kelly because they think his offense could work, or whether they believe he has strong leadership qualities and is a great football mind.

Whoever hires Kelly will be banking on the idea that he can figure things out at the professional level, just like he did in college.

EAGLES MAKE ROSTER MOVES

Meanwhile, the Eagles have signed former second-round pick Everette Brown. The 6-1, 256-pound defensive end had six sacks in two seasons with the Panthers (2009-2010), starting three games and appearing in 18. He played in three games with the Chargers last year. Brown had a good college career at Florida State.

The Eagles also brought back cornerback Trevard Lindley, originally a fourth-round pick in 2010. He appeared in 11 games as a rookie.

Follow Sheil Kapadia on Twitter and e-mail him at skapadia@phillymag.com.
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