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Eagles Players Enthused By First Meeting With Chip Kelly

By Spike Eskin

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Though Andy Reid had his detractors in Philadelphia amongst the fans and media, he did have one thing that was always sort of comforting: he was familiar.

We knew Andy Reid. We knew what he'd say, how he'd act and react, we knew everything that would happen before it happened. Familiarity on some level does breed contempt, but at least we knew what we were dealing with.

Now that Chip Kelly's here, there's a lot for all of us to learn. That goes for fans, media, and of course, Eagles players.

Eagles players got to talk to Chip Kelly about football for the first time on Monday, and most seemed very happy with what they heard.

"All energy, straight energy," linebacker DeMeco Ryans told PhiladelphiaEagles.com. "Coach started speaking and everybody -- everybody -- was right there on every word. No doubt everybody is excited about a fresh start and what lies ahead for us."

"After this initial meeting, the feeling is even more exciting for me. I loved what I heard about how we're going to be doing things," guard Evan Mathis said. "It's going to be structured and very well planned out all across the board. It seems like they put together an incredible staff and it definitely gives us a lot of reason to be excited."

"We're all excited to see how it works. I think Coach wants his playmakers to make plays, and I'm all about that. I've had a busy offseason, a lot of good things going personally and with my training, so I'm ready to go," wide receiver Jeremy Maclin said.  "I think everyone is ready to go. It's been a long time since we've been together. This is the first day of the season for us. That's what it feels like."

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