Linebacker Kendricks confident he'll still fit in with Eagles

Mychal Kendricks is still on the Eagles and still practices with the first-team defense, two realities that had been in question at times this offseason. The questions came after Kendricks endured almost two months of trade rumors, during a spring when the Eagles have not revealed how they will sort out their logjam at inside linebacker.

For now, nothing has changed for Kendricks. But he enters the last year of his contract with more uncertainty about his role and his future than any of his previous three seasons in Philadelphia.

"One thing you've got to know about this league is we're all renting space," Kendricks said Tuesday in his first public comments since the draft. "Hypothetically speaking, if I was to get traded, the next team obviously wants you. So either way, if you can play, you can play. And if you can play, somebody's got to pay. Regardless, whatever it was, I had no hard feelings."

Kendricks, 24, has been a starter since his rookie season in 2012. He's now part of a crowded inside linebacker group that includes Kiko Alonso and DeMeco Ryans.

Alonso was acquired by the Eagles for LeSean McCoy after missing last year with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. He figures to be a big part of the defense. Ryans, coming back from a torn Achilles tendon, is a returning starter who received a reworked contract this offseason. The Eagles also signed veteran Brad Jones and spent a third-round pick on Jordan Hicks of Texas.

Kendricks called the Eagles' group the deepest since he has been in Philadelphia. He did not see an issue with the three starting-caliber players and only two spots, figuring that "the more players, the better." But he also expects his role to be unchanged from 2014, when Kendricks thought he played at a Pro Bowl level. That means he would not accept being the odd man out of the starting lineup.

"Oh, no, come on, bro," Kendricks said. "The competitor in me says I have to start. That's what I came here to do."

The Eagles have not indicated how they will split the playing time between the three players this season, but there seemed to be a possibility that Kendricks could have been moved over draft weekend. Kendricks called the NFL a "straight business" and at one point referred to himself as a "businessman."

"One thing you've got to know in this league is you've got to know your worth," Kendricks said. "And I think I can play anywhere. So whether that [trade] was going to happen or not, that didn't really matter to me."

In March, coach Chip Kelly said that Kendricks "played really well for us" when he was healthy, but he also pointed out that Kendricks missed four games last season. After the Eagles drafted Hicks, Kelly said that he still sees Kendricks on the Eagles' roster and that the team made it a priority to add to the inside linebackers this offseason.

Even though he was limited to 12 games last season, Kendricks totaled 108 tackles with four sacks and three forced fumbles. But questions about his future with the Eagles are not just because of the newcomers on the roster. Kendricks was drafted before Kelly arrived, and with a listed height of a 6 feet, he does not appear to fit the coach's prototype at the position.

"I am the new prototype," Kendricks said, offering his rebuttal. "I'm fast, I can get in all the little gaps. . . . I feel like I can cover the field pretty well. . . . Height may be an issue, but I don't worry about all that."

With Kendricks entering a contract season, any reduction in playing time could hurt his market value. Kendricks said he is unconcerned because "what's on tape is what's on tape," and he believes the league knows his skill set.

Kendricks did not voice any displeasure with the Eagles on Tuesday. He confirmed that his absence from the beginning of the offseason program was about spending time with his family while his brother, Eric, prepared for the draft. (The Vikings picked him in the second round.) Kendricks said the absence was not because of his uncertain status.

When asked if he is sure that he will still be on the team come September, Kendricks paused.

"I don't know," Kendricks said. "But I would think so."