Classy Philadelphia Eagles give Super Bowl ring to woman who was fired by Chip Kelly despite 30 years of service

… she suggest the flea-flicker

Doug Pederson remembers Carol Cullen well. When Pederson was an assistant coach with the Eagles under Andy Reid for four years, Cullen was the Executive Assistant to the Head Coach who typed out the game plan each week for the coaches.

Cullen had been with the Eagles for 30 years under seven head coaches. However, fired Coach Chip Kelly fired Cullen without specifying his rationale. “Chip just said my job was no longer needed," Cullen told ESPN.

"It was very difficult. I had no idea it was coming, so it was very emotional for me. And it took me a while to get over it and get used to another life, really, because when you work in football like that, it's not 9 to 5 -- it's seven days a week, and I loved every minute of it."

Pederson never forgot her, though, and when Kelly was fired shortly after firing Cullen, and Pederson was hired to take his place, the Eagles coach continued to talk to his old friend.

The Flea-Flicker

When Cullen was typing in the game plan during the Reid years, she would mention to Pederson that she liked the fact that the trick play, the flea-flicker, was in the game plan.

So, when she texted Pederson prior to the NFC championship game earlier this year, she mentioned that. “I texted him prior to the [Vikings game] just to say good luck," she said in the ESPN interview. "And I said to him in the text, 'And I only have one thing to say, and that's 'flea-flicker.' And he texted me back, 'Actually it's in the game plan this week. All I have to do is call it.' And during the game he called it."

Pederson did use the play, and QB Nick Foles delivered a 41-yard TD pass to Torrey Smith that effectively put the knife in the Vikings’ hopes for a comeback.

Almost immediately, she was watching the game and received a text that made her feel good. “Right after the play, [executive vice president of football operations] Howie Roseman texted me and said, 'That one was for you.' So it made me feel like I was really still a part of them," she told McManus.

Why give her the ring?

Asked by ESPN’s Tim McManusif Cullen received the ring because of her suggestion, Pederson laughed. “Ha, no, she is a longtime Eagle."

She said that she did not know who pushed for her to receive the ring, but conjectured that it was team owner Jeffrey Lurie.

Classy move

Whoever made the decision, and Lurie probably approved the decision suggested by Pederson, it was definitely first class. How many teams have ever given a fired ex-employee a ring despite not being part of the effort? However, Lurie may have had a guilty conscience about how Kelly treated Cullen, and perhaps that is the reason for this.

And these things are not cheap. They cost more than a car does, often in the range of $35,000 based on previous years. They are "pure 10-karat white gold and contain a total of 219 diamonds and 17 green sapphires in each ring.

I continue to be impressed with Pederson, but in this case, the praise extends to the Eagles’ organization itself and Lurie. They showed that they are a classy organization.