Chip Kelly wisely reaches out to Tony Dungy about Eagles GM role

Sep 21, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly prior to the game against the Washington Redskins at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey G. Pittenger-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 21, 2014; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly prior to the game against the Washington Redskins at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey G. Pittenger-USA TODAY Sports

Chip Kelly made a pretty smart move recently in seeking advice from Tony Dungy.

Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly, who is now able to make more player personnel decisions like signing and trading players, is looking for the team’s next GM. He reached out to Tony Dungy about the current vacancy.

Now there were a few fans wondering why the heck Dungy would leave NBC and work for the Eagles. Well, he isn’t coming to town as the team’s new GM. It was clarified that Kelly is reaching out to multiple people, including Dungy, for advice and not to fill the GM vacancy.

Kelly is very wise to reach out to Dungy for advice as he conducts a GM search. Dungy has experience in the league and Dungy and Kelly have an Oregon Ducks connection. Dungy’s son played under Kelly for two years – 2012 and 2013 – when he was Oregon head coach, and they know each other well. Likewise, this is not the first time Kelly is reaching out to Dungy for advice.Kelly reached out to the former NFL coach after Riley Cooper’s viral video that showed him dropping the N-word at a concert.

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Dungy is a wise individual that others have sought out for advice before. He has a high respect level for Kelly and calling the Eagles signing Kelly as Andy Reid’s replacement as a “move”. Kelly will take serious what Dungy has to say about possible GM replacements and other information about finding a GM.

With his current job at NBC, Dungy is still involved with the NFL scene and those involved with multiple teams. If anything, he knows more about the league’s coaches and execs now than he did as the Colts head coach. As a member of NBC’s Sunday Night Football coverage, Dungy speaks to countless NFL team members, coaches, execs, and owners throughout the season. He hears the rumblings and rumors in their planning throughout the week.

Likewise, he can advise Kelly on which people the Eagles should be interviewing and who they should hire. Given their tight link, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Eagles hire Dungy as a consultant for the GM search once the NFL season concludes.

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