Jason Kelce bullish on team; Miles Sanders demands 'respect I deserve'

PHILADELPHIA − Yes, things are good with Jason Kelce.

The longtime Eagles’ center is 34 years old, he’s still at the top of his game after coming off his fifth Pro Bowl season.

And Kelce likes everything about this team, which explains why he hasn’t retired despite contemplating it for each of the last four offseasons.

“He says this is going to be his last year. We’ll see about that,” right tackle Lane Johnson said.

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Kelce is keeping those plans in bubble wrap, a fitting metaphor for the plastic wrap he wore over this Guardian Cap helmet. It’s an experimental helmet the NFL is requiring offensive and defensive linemen, tight ends and linebackers to use in training camp in order to cut down on head injuries.

“Going full bubble boy for practice, gotta protect the ole noggin,” Kelce wrote on social media Friday morning.

Later, Kelce said he is all for anything that better protects the players from head injuries, adding that the helmets are supposed to add 20% more protection.

“I figure the bubble wrap gave me another 2 or 3%,” he added. “I’m just adding some more protective layers.”

But Kelce isn’t putting bubble wrap on the lofty expectations many have for the Eagles this season after they overcame a slow start in 2021 to finish 9-8 before losing in the first round of the playoffs.

The Eagles have since added wide receiver A.J. Brown, drafted Kelce’s heir apparent at center in Cam Jurgens, and improved throughout the defense through free agency and the draft.

Kelce, after all, has been around long enough to know that talent and expectations only go so far. In fact, Kelce told the team exactly that before practice on Friday.

“In this city, it feels like very year when the media thinks that we’re really good, we end up being really (bad),” he said, using an expletive. “And every year the media thinks we’re going to be (bad), we end up being really good. So I prefer not to look at what everybody thinks we look like on paper.

“The only way we’re going to be good this season is if we come out here and we work − each and every one of us. But I think we have a lot of talent. We have a great offensive line. I think we have a lot of really good skill-position players. I think we have a quarterback (Jalen Hurts) that is continuing to improve and was a great player last year and will be a great player this year.”

Kelce has experienced both extremes.

In 2011, he was a rookie sixth-round draft pick when the Eagles signed several high-priced free agents. One of those free agents, backup quarterback Vince Young, infamously referred to the Eagles’ additions as the “Dream Team.”

It didn’t work out that way.

Instead of going back to the playoffs for a fourth straight year, the Eagles started out 4-8 before finishing with four straight wins. Most of the free agents were busts.

Conversely, in 2017, not much was expected of the Eagles. They were coming off a 7-9 season under a first-year head coach in Doug Pederson and a rookie quarterback in Carson Wentz. The Eagles ended up winning the Super Bowl.

The Eagles are in a similar situation this season, going into Year 2 behind a first-time head coach in Nick Sirianni and a quarterback entering his second full season in Hurts.

Kelce knows this, too.

He is one of four core veterans who have been together for a decade, joining Johnson (10th season), defensive tackle Fletcher Cox (11th season) and defensive end Brandon Graham (13th season).

That’s another thing that Kelce is excited about, the Eagles’ practice schedule during camp. The Eagles’ practices are shorter and there are walkthroughs scheduled every third practice day.

“There are a lot of people in this building who do numerous studies, GPS loads, a lot of different criteria to make sure they’re putting us in the best and optimal situation for the team and the individual,” Kelce said. “And I think that has certainly has not just benefitted me, but benefitted everybody.

“But obviously, this schedule is certainly beneficial for older guys.”

Don’t call Miles Sanders a backup

Sirianni said Saturday it was a coincidence that Sanders was with the second unit during Friday’s practice, saying that the three primary backs − Sanders, Boston Scott and Kenny Gainwell − rotate in and out without regard to which offense is on the field.

So Sirianni and the Eagles had some fun with that on Saturday. When Sanders took the first handoff with the starters on Saturday, Sirianni yelled out: “He’s in with the ones!”

But Sirianni insisted, “Miles is our guy.”

Sanders bristled at the suggestion that running with the reserves Friday meant anything when he was asked about his motivation going into his fourth season.

“Just get the respect I finally deserve,” he said.

Then he was asked what that looks like. “Stop making articles about me being on second team,” he replied.

Camp observations

∎The best matchup in camp is clearly between wide receiver A.J. Brown and cornerback Darius Slay. They go at each other hard on every play.

On Saturday, Brown made two nice catches against Slay. Both were short passes along the sideline. On the second, Brown dove and caught a back shoulder pass with Slay draped all over him.

But it wasn’t all rosy for the offense.

Jalen Hurts, for the most part, played well. But he had an awful interception where he rolled to his left and threw across his body just before going out of bounds. It went right into the arms of safety Andre Chachere for Chachere’s second INT in two days. Hurts should have either thrown the ball out of bounds or just run out of bounds.

Hurts did throw a nice deep ball to Quez Watkins, who had gotten behind Slay. But Watkins couldn’t come down with the ball, which drew the ire of Sirianni. Still, there is plenty of time to make that play work.

∎ Backup QB Gardner Minshew and rookie tight end Grant Calcaterra were forming a good tandem. That is, until Calcaterra appeared to pull a muscle while catching a pass from Minshew. Calcaterra walked off with a trainer and didn’t return.

∎ The Eagles had their first player miss a practice due to injury in DT Milton Williams (elbow). WR Zach Pascal has missed all three practice days with a non-COVID illness.

The Eagles are off Sunday and will return to practice Monday.

Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.

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Jason Kelce bullish on team; Miles Sanders demands ‘respect I deserve’

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