Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports
It is certainly easier for an NFL player to make a name for himself in a negative fashion than in a positive one, mostly because the media is constantly primed and ready to pounce on any public figure who messes up because it simply makes for popular news.
In ex-Dallas Cowboys RB Felix Jones’ case, he didn’t commit any crime or immoral act that was newsworthy or relevant, but instead he simply showed up for training camp overweight, out of shape and unable to pass the Cowboys’ most general conditioning test in 2012.
The inability to maintain physical fitness can be absolutely crushing in regards to a professional athlete’s reputation, because that is the simple foundation of their career. Remember former two-time All-Pro DT Albert Haynesworth? The mammoth of a man who went from being the highest paid player in the NFL to completely unemployed in a matter of three years, simply because he refused to stop eating and start exercising.
After a half-decade in Dallas, where the former 2008 first-round draft pick made zero impact, the ‘Boys decided not to re-sign Jones following the 2012 season.
Well, first-time NFL head coach Chip Kelly and the Philadelphia Eagles decided to bring Jones’ aboard this off-season to help backup starting RB LeSean McCoy. Eagles second-year RB Bryce Brown will also be fighting for carries in the Birds’ backfield and will likely begin the season as McCoy’s primary backup.
And if you think that Kelly is going to let any splinter of poor conditioning creep into his high-octane, mile-a-minute spread offense, than you are dead wrong.
Kelly is known for his insistence on premiere nutrition and non-stop training, because he believes that professional athletes must be at their peak physical fitness in order to perform up to their potential.
If Jones fails to meet any of Kelly’s conditioning expectations, even once, you can rest assured that he will not step foot on the field for the Eagles in 2013.
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