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Just like that, end of the Kelly era

And just like that, the Chip Kelly era is over.

Three years of tempo. Three years of growth mindset v. fixed mindset. Three years of sports science and smoothies and loud music at practice. And one playoff appearance.

After 39 years in this business, not a lot surprises me anymore. But this did.

It was less than a month ago that I confidently wrote that Kelly would be back in 2016. The Eagles had just been embarrassed twice in a span of five days by the Bucs and the Lions.

They had given up 45 points in each of those games and had fallen to 4-7

But as I wrote then, when Jeffrey Lurie gave Kelly control over personnel last January, when he bought into Kelly's good-to-great plan, he did so with his eyes wide open.

He knew the risks and knew some of those risks might fail.

"Sometimes, I'm influenced by the notion that it's very difficult to get from good to great,'' Lurie said last March. "And you've got to take some serious looks at yourself when you want to try to take that step.

"It's a gamble to try to go from good to great, because you could go from good to mediocre with changes. But I decided it was important enough to adopt the vision and philosophy of integrating the scouting with the coaching on a daily basis.''

In September, right before the start of the season, Lurie called Kelly a "culture-builder.'' Said that Kelly was "everything that I think we all thought (he was) when we interviewed him, and more.''

As recently as late November, league executives who knew Lurie told me he still was bullish on his coach, even if he didn't expect his team to lose seven of its first 11 games.

Obviously, he had a change of heart between then and Tuesday night when he gave Kelly his walking papers

Obviously, Lurie lost faith in Kelly's good-to-great plan. Saw too many of the players he acquired, like running back DeMarco Murray and Kiko Alonso, lay eggs. Saw too many ugly, fundamentally-flawed losses.

Saw other players, including locker room leaders like safety Malcolm Jenkins, start to question what Kelly was doing.

There's clearly a lot we still don't know yet. A lot we will find out Wednesday at noon when Lurie addresses the media and Eagles Nation.

What was the final straw? Why do it Tuesday night rather than wait until next week after Sunday's final game against the Giants?

Did Kelly force the issue? Did Lurie ask him to relinquish power over personnel and he refused?

And where do they go from here? Lurie made a smart move in elevating Tom Donahoe to senior director of player personnel after also firing Kelly's top personnel lieutenant, Ed Marynowitz.

Donahoe was the former GM of the Bills and director of football operations for the Steelers. He's one of the best personnel people I know.

Now, the search for the franchise's third coach in four years begins. Is Lurie looking for youth or experience? A college guy again (highly unlikely after this) or an NFL coordinator?

We will find out soon enough.

Wow. Just wow.