Pederson knows he has some time to turn Birds around

PHILADELPHIA >> If you are what your record is, Doug Pederson and Chip Kelly are two peas in a pod.

Each has guided the Eagles to a 6-9 record.

Unlike Kelly, who was shown the door almost a year ago to the day, Pederson is confident Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie knows the real score in a season that’s blown up after a 3-0 start.

“Having that support from the top down gives you a little bit of time,” Pederson said. “Not a lot of time but a little bit of time to get this thing going in the right direction and then ultimately it comes down to me as the head football coach, to make sure this thing is going — staying — in the right direction.”

The Eagles are almost out of time this season. They have one game remaining, the Cowboys (13-2) arriving for a New Year’s Day affair. No one expects the visiting star players to make much more than a cameo as the squad has locked up the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs. The injury list is lengthy.

The Eagles, on the other hand, have made the playoffs just once in six seasons. That was in 2013, Kelly’s first year as head coach. The Eagles have had just two winning seasons in that time, both under Kelly.

Lurie, you may recall, gave full control over football decisions to Kelly prior to the third year of the coach’s five-year contract. He canned Kelly less than one year into the arrangement.

Pederson, who has control over playing decisions, not roster decisions, knows the meter is running.

“It starts with the supporting group,” Pederson said. “I think that’s where it starts with Jeffrey and the support that he has. He understands where we are as a football team. He was on board with everything, the decisions we made to go out and get Carson (Wentz) this spring. He felt like in order to have success in this league you’ve got to have a quarterback. And it started there, a young quarterback of the future.

“And you know if you don’t have that type of support, it makes it a little more difficult because the pressure is to really win from day one. And sometimes maybe you’re not built that way because you’re coming in, you’re changing scheme. Maybe guys are playing a position they hadn’t played before or in a few years. You’ve just got to get everybody to believe. And that’s the challenging thing.”

Pederson guided the Eagles to a 3-0 start. The Birds were 4-2 entering a showdown with the Cowboys. The Cowboys won that game in overtime, triggering a slide in which the Eagles have been beaten in seven of nine games.

Make no mistake, the head coaching carousel is in full swing, with the firing of Rex Ryan by the Buffalo Bills. Jeff Fisher and Gus Bradley also have been dismissed.

Kelly, by the way, is just 2-13 with the San Francisco 49ers.

••• Malcolm Jenkins is the NFC Defensive Player of the Week for the Eagles after picking off Eli Manning twice, one of which he took to the house.

It was Jenkins’ third pick-six with the Eagles and the sixth of his career.

“Being able to put a little fingerprint on the game is obviously an honor,” Jenkins said

Jenkins has 14 interceptions in eight NFL seasons, eight of those coming in three seasons with the Eagles.

••• Jordan Matthews (knee) and Allen Barbre (hamstring) didn’t practice according to the official injury report.

Linebacker Jordan Hicks (ankle) was limited at practice.

••• Nine Cowboys were held out of practice Wednesday.

The group included defensive linemen Demarcus Lawrence (back), Cedric Thornton (ankle), Terrell McClain (shoulder) and Tyrone Crawford (shoulder-hamstring).

The others are cornerbacks Morris Claiborne (groin) and Anthony Brown (concussion), linebacker Justin Durant (elbow) and offensive linemen Tyron Smith (back-knee) and Ronald Leary (back).

Defensive end Jack (foot) and linebacker Sean Lee (knee) were limited. ••• NOTES >> With 33 field goals, kicker Caleb Sturgis needs one more trey to break the single-season franchise record set by David Akers … The Eagles are tied for seventh in the NFL with 22 dropped passes. With six drops, Matthews ranks seventh in the league. Teammates Nelson Agholor and Darren Sproles have four drops each … The Cowboys have just eight dropped passes, tied with the Titans for fewest in the league … Pederson conceded the Eagles’ open

BILL WIPPERT — ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE Current 49ers coach Chip Kelly was fired as Eagles coach almost exactly one year ago. Doug Pederson has not improved on the team’s record, but it’s clear he has a much longer leash from the front office to get things right.