Chip: Confused by Boykin comments; Kendricks is staying
Chip Kelly said that he was surprised by comments Brandon Boykin made to CSNPhilly that the Eagles coach was "uncomfortable around grown men of our culture." Boykin was traded to the Steelers on Saturday for a conditional fifth round draft pick.
While Boykin wasn't specific or available to expand on his comments, he seemed to imply what a few other ex-Eagles have said about Kelly: He has trouble relating to black players. Kelly said that he didn't think that was the case.
"When he left here last night [he] shook my hand, gave me a hug," Kelly said. "Didn't say anything. ... I like Brandon. I really don't know."
Boykin was unhappy in that he felt he never got a decent opportunity to start at outside cornerback. The Eagles prefer their outside corners to be long, and the 5-foot-10 Boykin thrived inside in the slot. Aside from the occasional comment about his unhappiness, Boykin appeared to do everything the Eagles asked.
"The truth is Chip is uncomfortable around grown men of our culture," Boykin said in a text message to Comcast. "He can't relate, and that makes him uncomfortable. He likes total control of everything, and he don't like to be uncomfortable. Players excel when you let them naturally be who they are, and in my experience that hasn't been important to him, but you guys have heard this before me."
Boykin clarified his comments to reporters when he made his first appearance at Steelers training camp in Latrobe, Pa. He said that he didn't think that Kelly was a racist, but that he and other players wished they ineracted with their coach more and that he related to them, per NFL Network.
Boykin is just the latest former Eagle to complain about Kelly after he left, and to imply that he at least doesn't relate to black players. LeSean McCoy said that Kelly didn't respect stars and that he "got rid of all the good black players." Former coaching intern Tra Thomas said that some players thought there was a "hint of racism" in how Kelly ran the team.
Cary Williams also questioned Kelly's practice methods and said that the Eagles were out-coached down the stretch last season. Kelly said he wasn't worried about outside perception.
"Talk to our players. Those are the guys I'm concerned with," Kelly said. "I have great confidence in those guys in that locker room."
Kelly said that the Steelers "actively pursued" Boykin and tried to trade for him at the draft and last week, but the Eagles turned them down. The Eagles drafted three defensive backs and Kelly said the depth at the position made Boykin expendable. The fifth round pick becomes a fourth if Boykin plays 60 percent of the snaps this season, Kelly said.
Kelly mentioned rookie JaCorey Shepherd, E.J. Biggers and Jaylen Watkins as possible candidates to replace Boykin in the slot. "We're really, really impressed with him," Kelly said of Shepherd.
Kelly said that he had also received trade offers for cornerback Nolan Carroll, who is expected to start at the corner spot opposite Byron Maxwell.
As for linebacker Mychal Kendricks, another player that might not fit Kelly's size-specific parameters, Kelly said that he wasn't going to be traded.
"You can write that down in ink," Kelly said.
