Eagles move quickly to undo Chip Kelly's mistakes
Chip Kelly's big-money mistakes are following him out the door in Philadelphia.
The Eagles agreed to a pair of trades Monday that will send 2014 NFL rushing champion DeMarco Murray to Tennessee and cornerback Byron Maxwell and linebacker Kiko Alonso to Miami, according to a person familiar with the deals.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the trades won't be announced until Wednesday, the first day of free agency.
Murray's agents at SportsTrust Advisors wrote on Twitter on Monday night: ''A trade (and) a new contract has been orchestrated to make (DeMarco Murray) a member of the Tennessee (at)Titans.''
On a day Peyton Manning gave an emotional retirement speech and the Redskins released Robert Griffin III, the Eagles stole the show.
The Eagles will receive draft picks for the three players. Moreover, they'll gain about $10 million in space under the salary cap. It's remarkable that Howie Roseman, who is back in charge, found takers for Murray and Maxwell because of their salaries and poor performance.
Kelly was fired one game before Philadelphia finished a 7-9 season. His abrupt dismissal came after he went 10-6 in each of his first two seasons and less than a year after he seized control of personnel decisions from then-general manager Roseman.
Kelly, who became San Francisco's new coach, gave Murray and Maxwell contracts totaling $103 million in free agency last March. He also traded LeSean McCoy, the franchise's career rushing leader, to Buffalo for Alonso, who played for him at Oregon and missed the 2014 season following knee surgery.
Murray didn't fit Kelly's offense and was a bust. Maxwell wasn't the shutdown cornerback he got paid to be. Alonso reinjured his knee, missed several games and struggled the entire season.
The Eagles hired Doug Pederson to replace Kelly and have already re-signed several young players along with giving quarterback Sam Bradford a two-year contract to stay in Philadelphia.
Murray signed a five-year, $40 million contract with $21 million guaranteed last year. He led the NFL in rushing with 1,845 yards and 13 touchdowns in Dallas in 2014 and was the NFL Offensive Player of the Year. But he wasn't comfortable running mostly out of the shotgun formation last season and finished with 702 yards.
This will be the first big move by new Titans general manager Jon Robinson, who was hired in January to turn around a franchise that has gone 5-27 the past two seasons.
The Titans have been looking for a No. 1 running back since releasing Chris Johnson in April 2014 to avoid the final three seasons of a $53.5 million deal. Johnson was the last running back to run for 100 yards in a game for Tennessee, a drought that stretches back to December 2013.
Quarterback Marcus Mariota ran for 112 yards on Dec. 6 in a win over Jacksonville, but that number was boosted by an 87-yard touchdown run. The Titans ranked 25th in the NFL last season, averaging 92.8 yards rushing per game, and new coach Mike Mularkey has talked about running the ball much more next season.
The Dolphins and new coach Adam Gase are hoping Maxwell and Alonso bolster a defense that ranked 25th last season in yards allowed.
Maxwell is going into the second year of a $63 million, six-year contract he received after starting only 17 games in four seasons with Seattle. He had two interceptions in 14 games for the Eagles, who were 28th in pass defense.
Maxwell has a cap hit of $9.7 million for 2016, which the Dolphins are expected to try to restructure. Miami would save $6.5 million in cap space by releasing four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Brent Grimes.
Alonso, a second-round draft pick by Buffalo in 2013, had 87 tackles, four interceptions, two sacks and two fumble recoveries for the Bills as a rookie. He hasn't been the same since tearing his left ACL in July 2014.
In other NFL news Monday, six-time Pro Bowl guard Jahri Evans visited Buffalo. Evans was released by New Orleans last month. The Colts re-signed tight end Dwayne Allen and the Seahawks agreed to terms on a new deal with defensive tackle Ahtyba Rubin
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AP Pro Football Writer Teresa Walker and AP Sports Writer Steven Wine contributed to this report.
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