Now that Chip Kelly has been fired as coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, one man who may be breathing a sigh of relief is running back DeMarco Murray, who has been a free agency bust in the City of Brotherly Love this year amid constant rumors that he and Kelly had butted heads.
Speaking to Zach Berman of Philly.com, Murray was diplomatic in addressing Kelly’s dismissal.
“I think it’s a fresh start for everyone,” Murray said. “Obviously, you have a fresh breath of air. You have to make the most of the opportunity.”
“I thought we had a good relationship,” Murray said about his chemistry with Kelly. “Obviously, I was only here for a short amount of time. I think the relationship was constantly growing and growing, and I think it was headed in the right direction. I wasn’t here that long. I thought it was good.”
Clearly, Murray is playing the diplomat in hopes that he gets a second chance with the Eagles. If the headlines were any indication, his relationship with Kelly had gone so sour that he had been demoted to third-string running back behind Ryan Matthews and Darren Sproles. Moreover, a tweet from Ian Rapoport of NFL.com shows a bit more clarity about just how much Murray and Kelly didn’t trust one another.
Among the things DeMarco Murray told owner Jeffrey Lurie weeks ago was that he had no confidence in Chip Kelly as head coach, I'm told.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 30, 2015
That said, though Murray has posted just 633 yards and five touchdowns this year behind a much weaker offensive line than he had in Dallas, with whom he led the NFL in rushing last year playing behind strong protection, chances are he may not have run out of chances in Philly just yet.
Consider this. The Eagles inked him to a five-year, $42 million deal last spring, with $21 million guaranteed, so why cut him loose after one bad season in which it’s clear that the head coach had too much power, not to mention basically screwed the offensive line by cutting a known Pro Bowler in guard Evan Mathis? Rather, give him another year with the next head coach and then use both the draft and free agency to rebuild the offensive line and see how Murray fares in that circumstance, with a clean slate.
Be sure to stay tuned to Campus Sports for further updates on the Eagles and Murray’s future!
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*Featured Photo (above) credit to USA TODAY Sports
