Jason Kelce shared a blunt assessment of NFL coaching philosophies while speaking with actor Leonardo DiCarpio. He slammed overly rigid approaches that he believes stifle team performances.
On Monday's edition of "New Heights" podcast, DiCarpio asked whether players are allowed space for creativity or forced into strict systems. The Philadelphia Eagles centre, who retired after the 2023 season, did not hold back.
"There are some a*sholes out there, man," Kelce said. (Time Code: 1:13:10). "I've liked in some capacity, every coach I've ever played for. There's things you like every single one of them, and there's things that you wish were different.
"But I just I, I've been a part of the micromanaging coaches that want everything done their way militaristic and yeah, I just don't think that that leads to much creative like it just doesn't ever become what it the maximum potential that it could be."
Jason Kelce questions the value of players-only meetings
Jason Kelce weighed in on another leadership topic this season: the use of players-only meetings.
After the Miami Dolphins started the year with defeats to Indianapolis and New England, the locker room reportedly called one of its own. Kelce talked about the move on his "New Heights" podcast last week, saying that such meetings often signal deeper problems.
"I've had a few of them [player-only meetings]," Kelce said. "You're in a really bad state once you get to players' meetings. It's not a good place to be, usually."
To Kelce, gatherings that exclude coaches feel more like a last-ditch show of unity than real solutions.
“A lot of the time, when you get to this point, it’s because you don’t know how to fix the issue," Kelce added. "It’s a last resort, like, ‘Hey, we don’t have an answer from a playcalling standpoint or an actual legitimate reason to improve our play on the field. So, we’re going to have a players-only meeting to motivate the guys and make a difference.’ And sometimes it does, I’m not trying to say that they don’t work at all.”
In September, his brother Travis Kelce attracted attention for an emotional sideline confrontation with Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid. Jason talked about that exchange.
"You don't become the best tight end in the world by being a f****** reasonable, level-headed f****** person," Jason said on Monday.
That intensity resurfaced when Reid and Travis clashed again in Week 3 against the New York Giants. Afterward, Reid rejected concerns and praised his tight end's competitive spirit.