Bonkers for Boykin Trade

My circle of friends started with the tweets, texts, and Facebook posts about Chip Kelly “screwing this up,” “giving Boykin away,” etc moments after the news broke of the Brandon Boykin trade.

I was shocked at the reaction people had to losing a slot corner. Boykin was a frustrated Eagle. He had expressed his frustration with being limited to the slot corner for the past couple of years. He thought of himself as a starting outside corner. Chip and Billy Davis apparently didn’t. That was the dilemma. They actually thought the talent behind Boykin on the depth charts weren’t that far behind Boykin in terms of ability.

Boykin wasn’t going to resign here at the end of the year. So, Chip did what good GMs do and collected an asset for the future of the Philadelphia Eagles. This is almost a Hinkie move. The reality is that the Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl dreams did not rely on Brandon Boykin. If the Eagles don’t win the Super Bowl in 2015, I’m fairly certain that it will not be because of the slot corner play. I’d wager that offensive line or quarterback injuries would be a bigger factor.

Name the slot corners on the NFL playoff teams from last year? They aren’t household names. They aren’t highly paid guys. That’s why Boykin wanted a chance on the outside. He sees free agency coming and wants a chance at cashing in.  You can’t blame him for that.

Was it Boykin’s size at 5’9″? Here’s a Billy Davis from article by Eliot Shorr-Parks for NJ.com:

“Has nothing to do (with height),” Davis said on why Boykin hasn’t started. “If you are good enough, you’re big enough. If you are good enough, you’re fast enough. Now we do look for and bring in taller corners? Yeah. But it doesn’t mean Boykin is at a disadvantage.”

I don’t believe Billy Davis when he says that height wasn’t a factor. I mean, the NFL is changing. As of 2013, 22 starting WRs were over 6’3″ (via Yahoo Sports). Average height of Pro Bowl receivers in 2013 was 6-2 1/2 (via ESPN). Chip has that infamous quote of “big people beat up little people.” He’s not alone in that theory. Bears Head Coach John Fox was quoted in that same ESPN article as saying:

“This league is a bigger, faster, stronger league. And you win when you win matchups, and if you’re the bigger, faster and stronger guy, you’re going to win more matchups. That’s not rocket science there. That’s just the way it is.”

Is Chip a racist? No. Is Chip a practitioner of heightism? Maybe, but just on defense. He’s got Darren Sproles on offense and seems okay with that.

Boykin had moderate success in his nickel role. He made a couple of big plays that stood out, but he’s a guy that was on the field for only 29% of the snaps in some games. And, I remember that Cardinals game where Boykin was targeted early and often vs both John Brown and Larry Fitz. This isn’t Darrell Green we’re talking about.

Boykin’s text to CSN’s Derrick Gunn stating that Chip is “uncomfortable with grown men of our culture” assures me that Chip did the right thing. “Grown men” get traded and they move on. “Grown men” don’t go trash-talking behind their former coach’s back. I guess Boykin is insinuating that Jason Peters, DeMarco Murray, Malcolm Jenkins, Byron Maxwell and the other Eagles of Boykin’s culture aren’t grown men. I wonder how they feel about that.

That’s why I’m fine with this Boykin move. He’s not a vital piece to this team’s success. He was unhappy with his role and the coach. He wasn’t resigning here. A 5th, probably 4th round pick (if he plays 60% of Steelers’ snaps) for Boykin seems like a reasonable move by Kelly.

I haven’t seen the rookies in the workouts, camps, or game situations. Few of us have. Hopefully, the coaches know what they’re doing. To criticize Chip for this move, this early, seems a bit unfounded. If the slot corners suck and it’s a glaring weakness this year, then I get complaining. For now, let’s see what happens. The Eagles aren’t the  only team possibly going into the season with a rookie slot corner. There’s a good chance the Cowboys and Packers are as well. Both of those teams figure to be playoff contenders. Granted, they might not be relying on a 6th round pick, but rookies nonetheless.

I’m far more concerned with the offensive line and quarterback position then I am with the nickel back.

I’m amazed that the Boykin trade is getting more traction than Sam Bradford being healthy at the start of training camp.