The Philadelphia Eagles have made a trade with Brandon Boykin going to the Pittsburgh Steelers for a fifth round draft pick just ahead of the start of training camp for Chip Kelly and following the move, the cornerback made comments echoing what LeSean McCoy said about Kelly and the head coach's issues with certain players.
The Eagles have been as active as any team in the NFL this offseason and Kelly has now moved another player in a trade. According to Pro Football Talk, Boykin was traded to the Steelers for a conditional 2016 fifth-round draft pick going to Philadelphia. Boykin is on the smaller side of cornerbacks at 5-foot-10 and Kelly has long liked taller cornerbacks for his defense, including Byron Maxwell, who was signed this offseason.
Pro Football Talk writes that Eagles defensive coordinator Bill Davis said that Boykin was "one of his favorite players" and had the potential to start this season. The Steelers have Cortez Allen and William Gay with Boykin coming in and he has already reported to the Pittsburgh facility for the season. Boykin was previously a 2012 draft pick and is just 25 years old.
Whether those accusations are true or not, multiple players have said this now and Kelly has had to address it on multiple occasions. Kelly has said that he has no issues with race and the media has reported it as Kelly making specific moves based on his unique schemes along with financial reasons for the Eagles. Either way, this is another player moving from the Eagles, continuing the year long shake up of the roster by Kelly.
The moves have extended since before last season, with DeSean Jackson being let go and this offseason the team traded LeSean McCoy, which prompted comments from the running back. According to Comcast SportsNet's Derrick Gunn, Boykin said in a text message that Kelly is "uncomfortable around grown men of our culture" and that there were times "he wouldn't talk" to players off the field. Boykin has not missed a game for the Eagles in three seasons and he is going to the Eagles with one year left on his contract at $1.5 million.
Kelly was asked about the trade on Sunday with the Eagles opening camp and he said that he did not "know why Brandon Boykin" would say what he said. Kelly had similar comments earlier in the year after what McCoy said and according to Gunn, Kelly has said in the past that he is looking for "players of high character and intellect." The team has brought in numerous players in the draft and free agency under Kelly that are African American, including Malcolm Jenkins, Eric Rowe, Jordan Matthews, Nelson Agholor and DeMarco Murray.
The Steelers had one of the worst ranked secondary units in the league and now they will add Boykin. Per NFL.com, the deal for Boykin will be a conditional pick and it could turn into a fourth round pick if Boykin plays "60 percent" for the Steelers on defensive snaps.
Check here for more on the trade and more on the comments from Boykin.
