Eagles Notes: Kelly ‘a Fan’ Of Tim Tebow

Phoeniz, Ariz. — Chip Kelly got to the owners meetings in Arizona early this weekend to check out the NFL’s veteran combine.

Hearing from someone also at yesterday’s Regional Combine that no team has been more thorough than the Eagles. Talking to plenty of players.

— Marc Sessler (@MarcSesslerNFL) March 22, 2015

There’s no doubt that Kelly finds great value in watching players live, as evidenced by his attendance at so many Pro Days during the offseason.

Kelly is now here at the Arizona Biltmore, along with Jeffrey Lurie, Howie Roseman and Don Smolenski. On Wednesday morning, we’ll have an hour-long interview session here with Kelly.

Lurie, meanwhile, has not chatted since the end of the season. And there’s plenty to get to with him. After the Week 17 win over the Giants, the Eagles’ owner scoffed at the idea that Roseman might not return as the team’s GM. A week later, he changed his mind. And the way Kelly spun it, the whole power shift was Lurie’s idea.

It will also be interesting to see how Lurie feels about the roster makeover. Was he on board with the LeSean McCoy and Nick Foles trades? What role did he play in approving those deals?

And there’s always some rumors floated at this event. A lot of media and a lot of decision-makers are in the same place. Last year, we were chasing down the DeSean Jackson stuff, and the Eagles signed Mark Sanchez. We’ll see if there’s any such drama this time around.

‘A FAN OF TIM’

Kelly talked to NFL Network about Tim Tebow in an interview that will air tonight at 7 p.m. EST.

“I’ve always been a fan of Tim,” Kelly said in an interview that will air tonight at 7 p.m. ET on NFL Total Access. “We bring in a lot of players for private workouts, it’s just he’s the one that everyone keeps talking about. We brought in Terrelle Pryor for a workout and Thad Lewis in for a workout. When players are available for you to work them out it’s the same thing of going to the Veteran Combine or going to the Super Regional Combine.”

“It’s getting an exposure to a player so that when you have to make a decision and say ‘Hey, what are we going to do now. You say, I don’t know anything about these players. Let’s bring them in and work them out, and it may be too late at that point in time.’ So all we’re doing is just doing our homework.”

We’ll see if the Eagles end up adding Tebow at some point in the coming weeks.

EAGLES TO CHECK OUT CB

According to Bleacher Report, the Eagles will host Wake Forest CB Kevin Johnson at the NovaCare Complex. Johnson (6-0, 188) is an intriguing prospect. He was a three-year starter and has the skill set to be a press corner.

ESPN analyst Louis Riddick is a big fan:

Wake CB Kevin Johnson’s technique is about as good as it gets. That was fun to watch. — Louis Riddick (@LRiddickESPN) March 15, 2015

.@BuckyBrooks true…although Johnson’s movement patterns and COD/explosion metrics are second to none.

— Louis Riddick (@LRiddickESPN) March 15, 2015

The Eagles signed Byron Maxwell to a big contract earlier this offseason, but still need help at the position.

Walter Thurmond is on a one-year deal; Nolan Carroll II couldn’t beat out Bradley Fletcher last year; and Brandon Boykin is on the last year of his deal.

Johnson is expected to be a first- or second-round pick.

MORE TO COME

T-Mac and I will have plenty of updates from here in the next three days, so be sure to check back.