Eagles “Soured” On QB Nick Foles Even Before Injury?

Update:

Eagles HC Chip Kelly denied a report from earlier in the week that mentioned they had “soured” on QB Nick Foles, even before he suffered a collarbone injury last weekend.

“I don’t know where that stuff comes from,” Kelly said, per PhillyMag.com. “I know this, I know I control the roster. And I think you guys can say first-hand, I don’t talk to anybody. So whoever says they have a source in terms of what’s gonna go on with roster maneuvers or people going up and people going down, they never talked to the right person because that comes from me, and that never was the case.

“I’ve got great faith in Nick, and I think he’s a hell of a quarterback, and I think sometimes he gets banged too much, but I wish there was more people like Nick Foles in our lives.”

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Even before Nick Foles sustained a collarbone injury that could keep him out 6-8 weeks this past Sunday, sources speculated that the Eagles organization “soured” on the third-year pro, via Mark Eckel of nj.com.

Sources said that GM Howie Roseman even questions whether Foles is the answer long-term for Philadelphia.

According to one such source, Roseman has “kind of soured on Foles”, and the organization as a whole “isn’t sold that he’s the guy going forward.”

In his article, Eckel writes that part of the organization preferred QB Kirk Cousins to Foles in the 2012 Draft, but ultimately then HC Andy Reid and OC Marty Mornhinweg insisted on Foles.  They have both since moved on to the Chiefs and Jets respectively.

Foles is eligible to have his contract re-done at the end of this year.  As it stands, he is slated to earn $620,000 in 2015.

Another source within the organization however, has already stated: “Let’s just say the way things were going, he wasn’t going to get a contract extension, that’s for sure.”  That source did however note that a big second half could change that, but that is no longer possible with the injury.

It will be interesting to see how Mark Sanchez performs in Head Coach Chip Kelly’s offense.  He certainly has the tools around him to excel, despite how poorly his tenure with the Jets ended.

The Eagles did draft QB Matt Barkley in the 2013 NFL Draft, but the prevailing thought is that he is not a starting caliber quarterback.  It is very possible that Philadelphia will have to look outside the roster for a long-term solution.

In eight games this season, Foles threw for 2,163 yards, with 13 touchdowns and ten interceptions.