The Philadelphia Eagles fired head coach Chip Kelly after three seasons on Tuesday. Early Thursday morning, New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick came out in defense on the former coach and the profession as a whole.
"I'd say it's really disappointing. I mean, Chip Kelly, to me, is a really good football coach. He does a great job and he's done a great job with that team," Belichick said during a news conference. "Pretty much everyone is one a one-year contract in this league. I don't know how you build a program in one year...Chip is a great coach. He'll end up somewhere and will do a great job there."
During the offseason, Kelly successfully fought for more control over personnel. He drastically reshaped the roster of a back-to-back 10-6 team and Philly now sits at 6-9. Yet Belichick said of his decision making, "I'd say a lot of the players that were on the Eagles, that are no longer on the Eagles, aren't really doing too much for anybody else either."
That's a bit hard to support. LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin are all having solid seasons for their respective teams, despite some injury woes. Evan Mathis is starting for the Denver Broncos. A lot of the jettisoned personnel are still productive.
Belichick was asked how closely he follows coaching changes around this time of the year. He said all the overhaul makes him appreciate his gig with the Patriots, calling it "the best situation in the league."
"But it is disappointing to look at coaches like Coach Schiano, or Coach Shanahan, or Coach Kelly, or guys like that," Belichick continued. "Look, I'm not there. I'm not really a part of those programs. I just know those guys are good coaches. They do a good job and I have a lot of respect for them."
Belichick has been calling the shots with New England for the past 16 years. He has 41 years of experience as an NFL coach.