Kelly staying course with 1-3 Eagles

Chip Kelly watched the same four games Eagles fans watched - he has viewed them all several times, actually - and his perspective of the team's 1-3 start to the season would make him an outlier on talk radio one day after the Eagles' 23-20 loss to Washington.

Kelly sees a team that could be in first place if only for a few more plays. He sees players who are better than their weekly production. He does not see much reason for panic. Or at least that's what he says publicly.

"We've lost three games by 15 points, so you hit two kicks, and we're sitting here 3-1 and everyone's happy," Kelly said Monday. "It's razor-thin, so you don't throw the baby out with the bath water and say, 'OK, we're going to change our offense, change our defense, and change everything we're doing with our approach.' We need to settle down, take a deep breath, and when we have an opportunity to make a play, make a play."

That's one way of looking at it. But even if the Eagles are a few kicks away from a better record, it doesn't mean they're a few kicks away from being a better team.

Kelly keeps referring to "execution" problems, to the point that it's almost becoming weekly programming. He insists the Eagles have the personnel to win games. He's not yet at the level of the late Tampa Bay coach John McKay, who responded when asked about his team's execution: "I'm in favor of it."

The Eagles coach said he does not have an answer for why the execution problems keep coming up in the third year of his coaching regime. He just hopes to figure it out by this Sunday's home game against New Orleans. Kelly said one big play can "spark" the other players.

Kelly said the problem is his defense, it's his offense. And he said he has seen evidence that this offensive group can execute - it just doesn't do it enough.

"I've seen us move the ball," Kelly said. "I saw us move the ball three out of four drives against in the second half against [Washington]. I saw us move the ball in the second half against the Atlanta. I saw us move the ball against the Jets. I have confidence in this group. We have to do it on a more consistent basis."

Kelly said the Eagles simply need to keep practicing and trust the players on the team. He added that "we know we have the right players" and that the miscues have not been limited to a single player or position.

"If it was one guy, it would be an easy switch," Kelly said. "They're guys we know are good football players."

In the Washington game, Kelly identified a few key plays that swayed the game from a win to a loss. The Eagles had a second-quarter touchdown pass to Zach Ertz that was nullified when Nelson Agholor lined up incorrectly. "It happens," Kelly said of Agholor's error.

Kicker Caleb Sturgis missed an extra point and a field goal - both from 33 yards - and those points would have given the Eagles a win. Kelly will stick with Sturgis this Sunday.

When the Eagles tried running down the clock late in the fourth quarter, they could not convert a third down. When they tried to stop Washington, they could not hold the Redskins on third down.

This exercise can be applied each week. The margin for error is small in the NFL, and the Eagles are learning that. But it's what Kelly is clinging to with the team at 1-3.

"It's just one play here or there," Kelly said, "and it's a different story."

zberman@phillynews.com

@ZBerm