PHILADELPHIA — The Eagles are 4-8-1, and while their playoff hopes remain alive thanks to a struggling NFC East, the Birds have struggled for much of the year. Sunday’s upset win over the Saints stopped a four-game losing streak that laid bare some of the issues that have plagued the team all year long.
For those outside of the organization, it’s natural to look toward the future. Before their win, the Eagles were in line for a draft pick just outside the top five. There are some veteran players on the roster who might not be with the team next season, and their younger backups might be worth a look for the final few games.But inside the Eagles, center Jason Kelce said the focus hasn’t changed. For Kelce, the goal is to win every game. And while there are certain people in the organization whose jobs are to balance the present with the future, Kelce said messages trickle down to the players from those higher up based on various moves.Kelce, 33, goes into every season, every week, every game day with the goal of winning games. And if younger players getting their opportunities helps that happen, then good. But regular season games are not the time for player evaluation, he said.
“Well, obviously, I think everybody’s curious at all times to see what the young guys have in games,” Kelce said. “That’s something that whenever a guy gets an opportunity, you’re like, OK, let’s see what this guy does. These are the moments in the NFL, especially as an older player or as I’m sure the coaches and everybody else, or even fans, where you’re like, hey, I finally get to see this guy go out there and play, so obviously it’s an exciting time whenever somebody’s going out there for the first time.
“That being said, I think at all times in the NFL, the focus should be winning the football game. Nothing else takes precedence — no player evaluation, no amount of curiosity from anybody within the organization. Everything is focused, in my opinion, in this league about winning games. You see a lot of losing teams sustain losses for a number of years when they have bad cultures. They have cultures where you don’t try and win every week, where you’re trying to — What are we gonna do in the draft? What are we gonna do in free agency? What can we do over here? In football — this isn’t basketball — one draft pick isn’t gonna make us a Super Bowl champion. It might be a big start to a Super Bowl championship, but it’s always gonna be about the team. That’s the greatest thing about this sport, and culture and the way guys fight and the way guys go to prepare and the way guys go about their business is a huge reason for success in this league and in this sport.
“So nothing takes precedence over trying to win a football game. I don’t care who you’re trying to evaluate. I don’t care if you’ve lost every game. You’re 0-15 and it’s the last one you got. Everything is about winning in this league, and I know that that won’t appease a lot of people out there that always want to talk about getting draft positions or getting looks at certain guys to see what you got for the future, but again, the moment a team feels like you as an organization aren’t doing your job for me to go out there and win, all of a sudden you’ve shown who you are. You don’t care about me or this team. You care about the future. You care about this. That’s not what the focus is here, that’s not what the focus is on any winning organization’s team. So yeah, that’s my answer.”
Kelce is a team captain and tone-setter for the Eagles, and he knows remaining time in the NFL is limited. He wants to win.
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