Bowen: Eagles react to Huff's release

LEODIS McKELVIN found out Josh Huff was no longer his Eagles teammate just before practice Thursday.

"By him coming by shaking everybody's hands," McKelvin said. "Sad. Sorry to hear that, sorry to hear that it happened. I wish him the best of luck . . . It surprised me," but not totally, McKelvin said. He said he knew first-year Eagles coach Doug Pederson was facing questions about his control of the team, which has faced four well-publicized incidents involving police since June.

McKelvin said a coach needs to get players "to understand that this is just a business, and you've got to go out there and handle yourself the right way."

Was the release done - two days after returner/receiver Huff was stopped on the Walt Whitman Bridge with weed, a handgun and hollow-point bullets, one day after Pederson referred to a coach's players as "your kids" - to send a message to the rest of the team?

"Most definitely," McKelvin said. "What else can you say?"

Running back Kenjon Barner was Huff's teammate at Oregon and on the Eagles. Barner said Huff was crying when they spoke Thursday, just before practice.

"He was hurt," said Barner, who added that Huff was never in trouble before, in college or during his three years with the Eagles.

By the time reporters entered the locker room hours later, after practice, Huff's belongings and nameplate were gone from his locker stall, now labeled with a generic "Philadelphia Eagles."

"It's a tough situation to be in. What, exactly, can you say to a guy who's already at his lowest, and then he gets cut?" Barner asked. "There's not much that you can say to him, but try and be uplifting, and tell him to stay grounded, brighter days are ahead."

Was the release fair?

"That's a question you'd have to ask Huff; that's not for me to answer," Barner said.

Axing Huff seemed to be an abrupt shift in organizational tone from Wednesday, when Huff was allowed to practice and to speak with reporters, and Pederson, asked about consequences of the arrest, said: "It's hard to speculate, but I'm sure you've seen it in the past. There could be fines, there could be suspensions - there could be anything of that nature."

Those did not sound like the words of a coach who was getting ready to cut a player; a few Eagles said they'd assumed, since Huff practiced Wednesday after apologizing to the team and to chairman Jeffrey Lurie, that all was well going forward. Safety Malcolm Jenkins said the release, as the team prepared for Sunday's critical NFC East visit to the Giants, was a bigger distraction than Huff's arrest.

Wendell Smallwood, who probably inherits the kick-return job, said Huff "had a good practice (Wednesday) and was getting a lot of reps; it kind of surprised everyone."

Pederson was not available Thursday, but de facto general manager Howie Roseman held his first news conference since the Sam Bradford trade two months ago. Roseman repeatedly placed the release in the context of a "process" that had to take place following Huff's arrest.

"We spent a lot of time over the last 48 hours just making sure that we had the information and that we weren't rushing to judgment, and that we have a process in place for these sorts of things that could lead us to what we think is the right decision," Roseman said.

Roseman was asked whether new information had come up overnight. He responded by again talking about a decision-making process, which was how he answered 11 of the 32 questions he was asked.

Roseman said that he, Lurie, team president Don Smolenski and Pederson made the decision together, and that Pederson was "100 percent on board with this."

Asked about reaction in the locker room, Roseman said: "In the last 48 hours, we spent a lot of time with a lot of people in this building discussing this and going over the scenarios" - seeming to imply team leaders were consulted. Jenkins said that was not the case, that "we don't get to weigh in on that - that's a little bit above our pay grade."

Huff released a statement: "First, I want to apologize to Mr. Lurie and his family, my coaches and teammates, and all Eagles fans. I'm sorry that any action by me brought negative light to this organization. I want to thank the Lurie family, Howie, this community and the entire Eagles organization for the opportunity I've had for the past 3 years. Most important, I want to let the fans and community as a whole know that I understand the responsibility I have as a professional athlete, and I will take all measures necessary to correct mistakes I have made."

One loose end from Wednesday was Huff's contention that although he crossed the bridge soon after leaving NovaCare Tuesday morning, he didn't have the gun in his car at the facility - the sort of thing that would be a very big deal to the NFL.

"Josh told us that he did not" have the gun on the NovaCare grounds, Roseman said. Did the team find out otherwise? "No."

Where was it, then? FDR Park?

Huff could be looking at jail time primarily because he was carrying the handgun and a magazine of hollow-point bullets in the passenger compartment of his car instead of the trunk, and was arrested under New Jersey's strict gun laws. One veteran Eagle said the security staff goes over gun laws in great detail every year, with particular attention paid to New Jersey. Huff said Wednesday he knew some things about the state's firearms approach, but not everything he should have known.

Barner said "no one knew" Huff was being cut when the team gathered on the practice field for an early walkthrough. "We just kind of heard it through word of mouth while we were out there."

Barner said he considers Huff "like a younger brother."

"For me, personally, knowing him going back to college, you really feel for him, because I know what type of guy he is," Barner said. "I know that he hates to make a mistake, and it's a pretty big mistake. I know what type of father he is, I know what type of person he is to his family, I know what type of friend he's been to me, so you feel for him on a personal level," Barner said.

Given the seriousness of the charges Huff faces, and the fact that he is mostly a special-teams star, not really a starting-level wideout, it's fair to wonder whether Huff's NFL career is over, 12 days after he somersaulted into the end zone with the key touchdown of the Birds' win over the Vikings.

Defensive end Brandon Graham said: "I feel for him, because he's got a baby boy, he's got his wife . . . He's the provider in the home . . . Hopefully somebody else gives him a shot . . . If nobody else gives him a chance, just know that there's more to life than this situation. I just hope he doesn't get lost in this whole thing."

Graham said he also understands the Eagles' position.

"Being here seven years - you can't put the organization in a tough position," he said.

@LesBowen

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