Sanchez: ‘Stop Asking the Players About It’


Photo by Jeff Fusco

Photo by Jeff Fusco

It seems like former Eagles have a knack for making headlines on their way out the door.

After Brandon Boykin was traded last night, he made a few comments to Comcast Sportsnet regarding Chip Kelly, claiming Kelly was “uncomfortable around grown men of our culture.”

Boykin is not the first player to criticize Kelly, and some Eagles like Mark Sanchez are tired of answering the same old questions.

“[During stretching today], guys were like, ‘Sanchez, ain’t you Mexican? And [Sam] Bradford aren’t you Native American?'” Sanchez said. “And Kiko [Alonso] is Colombian. We’ve got black guys, white guys, Polynesian guys. Come on, that’s crazy, it’s not even worth talking about. Stop asking the players about it, it’s getting old.”

Ironically, Kelly told reporters to ask the players for their reaction during his press conference this morning.

Malcolm Jenkins claimed he and Kelly have butted heads a few times, but there is no animosity between the coach and his players.

“I feel like I have a very strong personality, and I’m very outspoken about the things I like and don’t like,” Jenkins said. “I know for a fact, Chip likes uniformity, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It’s not about personalities, it’s just about it being about the team.

“Sometimes that means you can’t have as much swagger as you want to, as far as the way you dress, but it’s also the mentality that no player is bigger than anybody else, and no player is bigger than the team.

“I haven’t always agreed with Chip, and I let him know that and I haven’t had a problem, so I’m looking forward to this 2015 team and the guys we have here.”

DeMeco Ryans does not share Boykin’s opinion.

“It’s one man’s opinion,” he said. “You know, all of us out here as men, we have opinions, so that’s Boykin’s opinion, that’s how he feels. I can’t say that for myself. I have a different opinion.

“At the end of the day, this is about us coming out here and doing our best to build a great team on the field so all of these questions take away from the work that we’ve done. I wish we could just nip [the comments] in the bud and be done with it.”

Jordan Matthews didn’t really want to address the questions about Kelly again, but he offered his opinion of the head coach.

“The way I grew up, he’s the authority, and as the authority, Coach Kelly is going to put a system in place and you respect authority,” Matthews said. “He’s a great leader, and I trust everything he’s doing. He put me in a position last year to come out here, make some plays and contribute, and I did exactly what they told me to do and I was able to [contribute].

“At the end of the day, the guys we have here on this team I know trust Coach Kelly, and we’re going to go out and put a product on the field for him and for the fans.”

After Boykin’s first practice with his new team, he clarified his comments, claiming he just never felt close with his coach, per Judy Battista: