Heeding Kelly’s words, Matthews is catching on BOB GROTZ’S CHECKLIST
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. » No matter who the Eagles choose as their next head coach, a part of the old one will be with Jordan Matthews.
Matthews quietly is having a banner season in spite of the drama at One NovaCare Way that this past Tuesday resulted in the dismissal of Chip Kelly with one game, two years and a lot of sports science left on a five-year contract.
Make no mistake, the Kelly force will be there when Matthews and the Eagles finish their sad season against the equally miserable and downon-their-luck New York Giants Sunday at MetLife Stadium (1 p.m., Channel 29, WIP 94.1-FM, WBCB 1490-AM).
“He used to always say play out of the expectations to succeed and not out of fear of failure,” Matthews said of Kelly. “I feel like a lot of guys, when they get to the league and then money gets on the line and more people are watching they start being afraid to fail and they kind of tighten up. Those words have stuck with me.”
Asked if there were current Eagles suffering from fear of failure, Matthews quickly responded “No, I don’t think so.”
Of course, what would he be expected to say?
For a guy who early in the season didn’t look like he could catch the baby or the bath water, Matthews has rebounded well. His 145 receptions are the most in the first two seasons for any Eagle. Tight end Keith Jackson had 144 grabs for the Birds in 1988-89.
Matthews needs 57 yards for his first 1,000 receiving yards season. DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin, to mention a couple heavyweights, did that in 2013 and 2014, respectively.
“I think it ’s one of those things that when you get done, you look back and it’s kind of cool to see,” Matthews said. “But even then it’s kind of like it’s over at that point. My whole purpose going into this game is I want to put great plays on film and I want to help our team end on a high note. If we can go out on a high note, we can say, ‘OK, this right here, this is what we need our offense to look like going into the offseason, going into OTA, minicamp, camp,’ those things.
“If 1,000 yards happens, it happens. Truth be told I should’ve had 1,000 yards already but I wasn’t playing up to my standards, the coach’s standard, and my teammates’ standards.
“I’ve been able to turn it around a little bit. But at the end of the day, I look at it that
EAGLES..........................GIANTS
OFFENSE
Two big-market franchises going nowhere fast make this game another shade of ugly. Think of the plot “For Love of Game” without the love. Think of the flick “Rudy”, only where the walkon doesn’t make the team. Giants win one for The Coughlin.
Giants 31, Eagles 20
my standard isn’t just 1,000 yards. I can go way higher than that.”
Matthews leads the league this year with six touchdown receptions in the fourth quarter or overtime, per Stats LLC. That’s been buried in a 6-9 season in which the Eagles have been a shell of the squad that obliterated the Giants, 27-7, in October.
The Eagles have given up 20 or more points in nine straight games, the longest active such streak in the NFL. They’ve allowed 400 or more yards in six straight games, the second-longest skein of ineptitude in the NFL per Stats LLC. The New Orleans Saints with Steve Spagnuolo, now the defensive coordinator of the Giants, own the record as they were gashed for 400 or more yards in 10 straight games.
Though the Eagles are giving up almost 400 yards each week, the Giants are worse.
And the Giants (6-9) are favored by 3 points although the fate of head coach Tom Coughlin is in the balance. The Giants are the first team to miss the playoffs in four straight seasons after winning the Super Bowl. Coughlin could be gone despite winning two world titles.
To avoid embarrassment, interim Eagles head coach Pat Shurmur and defensive coordinator Billy Davis have to find a way to defend Odell Beckham Jr. despite being without the services of their highest-paid cornerback in Byron Maxwell, out with a shoulder injury.
Beckham, coming off a onegame suspension for f lagrant fouls, needs just nine catches to reach 100. He leads the league with 13 TD grabs.
For Matthews, the seasonender is about staying in the moment. This game is another opportunity for Matthews to lobby for the re-signing of Sam Bradford, whose contract is up after the campaign.
“I’m very adamant about having a quarterback that you can build with and that you can grow with,” Matthews said. “It’s huge. … I let him know by the way I go out and practice. I’m like, ‘Bro, I want you to be the guy.’
“You can see the type of player he can be. He has completion records in the game and that’s with guys not even executing the way we should as receivers. His stats could’ve been even crazier.
“And just the way he’s talking. He’s like, ‘Guys, if you go out and do this, give me a little time, I’ll pick these guys apart.’”
On Sunday Matthews, Bradford and the Eagles have one more chance to play out of expectations to succeed, and not out of fear of failure.