Both sides of a coach-player sideline dispute played off the brief, heated interaction as a part of professional football life after Philadelphia’s 27-17 preseason victory.
Andy Reid On Cullen Jenkins’ Yelling Match: ‘Those Things Happen’
Andy Reid and defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins went face-to-face for a few seconds in the second quarter as the Eagles struggled early on with a Patriots team resting its fair share of starters. Although yelling and screaming isn't Reid's typical mode of communication, he and Jenkins both chalked the dispute up to brief disappointment rather than a longterm chemistry problem, and already appeared to have moved on when talking to press after the game.
“It’s football,” Jenkins said. “Football causes that. If you’re out there playing, you’ve got to be emotional. It was nothing. Nothing was addressed. It’s an emotional game, and sometimes you need that spark and especially now in the preseason.
“Listen, it’s an emotional game,” Reid said. “He was fired up. I was fired up. Those things happen. Cullen is my primary leader on that defensive line. I count on him for a lot of things. He was upset, and I was upset. We talked about it afterward, and we’re OK.”
Whatever the justification, Reid’s ploy might have worked: his defense only allowed a pair of field goals afterwards, coming back from an 11-0 deficit to win. Reid called Jenkins “the primary leader” of his defensive unit -- perhaps his leader just needed a little firing up to get the rest of his team going.
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