Wake-Up Call: Eagles Considering Virtual Technology

Earlier this week, reports surfaced that the Cowboys are inking a deal which will allow them to use virtual reality technology at practice.

And Chip Kelly said Tuesday that the Eagles could follow their divisional rival’s lead.

Per Recode, the virtual reality headset was developed by a startup called StriVR Labs. A camera is stationed behind the line of scrimmage. Players and coaches can wear the device afterwards and see a 3-D replay from various angles.

“It’s interesting because it gives you the chance from behind to see all 11 guys on offense and all 11 guys on defense but from a closer angle,” said Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett, via ESPN.com. “Oftentimes you have to kind of pull yourself away to get the all-22 shot. This allows you to get a little closer so you can coach better. You can see hand placement. You see where they have their feet, where they have their eyes. I think that’s important. You can look at that and coach them better being that much closer to the action.”

Added Stanford coach David Shaw, per FoxSports.com: “This is too good. This is too good for football. This can help advance the sport. You’re looking at cutting down practice times. You’re looking at having guys hit less and do less. This is one of those things that everyone gets what we want to some degree. We as coaches want them fully prepared, but now we’re not keeping them on the practice field any longer. You’re getting more work with less practice time.”

Former Stanford kicker Derek Belch developed the technology. Per Recode, Arkansas, Clemson, Vanderbilt, Auburn and Dartmouth have all signed deals to use it.

Given the Eagles’ investment in sports science and Kelly’s obsession with finding tools that can give his team an edge, it seems likely that they’d be one of the next teams to invest.

“Saw it at the combine,” Kelly said. “We were impressed with it. So we’re talking to those guys.”

Once training camp starts, we’ll see if the Eagles are on board and perhaps how they use the device.

WHAT YOU MISSED

Our running diary of Eagles practice observations from Tuesday’s session.

“Out of sight, out of mind.” Teammates show very little support for Evan Mathis, writes T-Mac.

“We were exhausted, and we got out-coached.” Cary Williams sounds off on Eagles, talks about Kelly’s methods.

“No progress” with Earl Wolff, says Kelly.

Be sure to preorder your Eagles Almanac now!

Brandon Graham preps for a new role in 2015, writes Tucker.

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING

Tommy Lawlor of Iggles Blitz offers thoughts on Kelly’s vision:

Kelly wants players who continually strive to get better. No one is perfect, but you chase perfection anyway. That leads you to places other players won’t get to.

Achieving success is hard. Sustaining success is incredibly difficult. Continually improving? That’s a whole other level. Al Davis had the phrase “Commitment to Excellence”. Kelly takes that to a whole other level. His players sleep, eat and drink football. Literally. He is looking for any edge he can find and he needs players that have the obsessive, competitive spirit to embrace that. Think of this as Total Football.

Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com weighs in on the QB situation:

Certainly, there is ample time between now and training camp for Bradford to continue to mend-up and pick-up this system, but if Chip Kelly’s brief but spirited time in the NFL should tell us anything it’s that he’s never standing still, much less waiting for anybody, he’s not going to kowtow to anyone’s contract and that any number of quarterbacks have proven functional in his system. So I’d suggest holding off on inking Bradford in as the opening day starter – Sanchez said he’s looking at this as an open competition and it’s difficult not to see Kelly being open to pretty much anything he believes will help his team win – and waiting at least to see if or when Bradford can operate this offense effectively, at full speed, unencumbered, before writing off the incumbent.

COMING UP

We’ll have a Wolff story and more.