Nick Foles: ‘I Want To Be Here’


It didn’t take Nick Foles long to get over the fact that Chip Kelly had chosen Michael Vick as his starter.

“Maybe less than a tenth of a second, I was ready to go,” Foles said. “I’m ready to go back to work, so I wasn’t moping around about it. Had practice today. Was excited to go out there and work.”

The second-year quarterback obviously has to feel some sense of disappointment. As a rookie, he got a chance to play, starting six games and appearing in seven. Now, he’s unsure what the future holds.

“The competitor in me, you always want to be the one on the field playing, but at the same time, I love Mike and we’ve gone about it the right way,” Foles said. “We’ve kept a great friendship and we’ve pushed each other. And I’m proud of him. I’ll do anything I can to help him become the best quarterback possible. I’m excited for him. Nothing changes in my preparation. I’m still gonna prepare the same way.”

Kelly has emphasized from the moment he got the job that teams need two quarterbacks to be successful. That’s especially the case here, given Vick’s injury history. In all likelihood, Foles will be called on to take the field at some point in 2013.

But what about beyond that? Not only did the Eagles bring Vick back on a one-year deal during the offseason, they also spent a fourth-round pick on Matt Barkley. Given some of the shaky QB situations around the league, perhaps Foles would have better luck elsewhere?

“I want to be here,” he said, when asked about the possibility of a trade. “I want to be here with my team. I want to be here. I’ve been with these guys. I feel like we have a really good thing going and I love this team. I love the coaches and everything about it, the city. So I want to be here. I want to be in Philadelphia.”

Does he think he’ll eventually have a chance to be the starter here?

“You never know what happens,” Foles said. “I’m gonna continue to work towards that. That’s my goal. I’m not just gonna sit here and want to sit here. I’m gonna continue to want to get better and hopefully someday, something will happen and I’ll be in that situation.”

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