Eagles' Kelly on Marcus Smith: 'He needs to be more consistent'

Eagles first-round pick Marcus Smith hasn't had a whole lot of playing time thus far during his rookie campaign, and according to head coach Chip Kelly, there's a pretty good reason for it.

“He needs to be more consistent from a practice standpoint to show the coaches that we have the trust in him to put him on the field,” Kelly told John Gonzalez of CSNPhilly.

The Eagles have scratched Smith twice this season, and he's only been on the field for 54 defensive plays in five games, a very clear sign that Kelly and his coaching staff don't trust him to be a regular part of their already thin linebacker corps.

Smith, for his part, is trying to stay positive while he acclimates to the professional game.

“I want to be the player I know I can become,” Smith said. “There’s a reason why they picked me. I want to be that guy to come out of all this and be that player.”