Chip Kelly will stop at no end to get players he thinks will win him a title

Scared money don't make no money. Whether Chip Kelly is a fan of Young Jeezy or old gambling adages that inspire modern lyrics, the Philadelphia Eagles boss sure isn't scared.

Of course, what sounds bold in a hip hop-song isn't always the finest way to run a franchise in the NFL. It's a league that is generally scared of doing anything that will lose a press conference, cause television analysts to scream or, hey, in Kelly's case, basically be accused of racism on ESPN.

Kelly, full of his signature self-confidence, appears unfazed by all of it.

You can't say he doesn't provide a jolt of excitement, NBA-style wheeling and dealing in the NFL. Whether he can create a champion in Philly is the question.

On Tuesday, Kelly pulled off his second major trade in as many weeks and it appears rather unlikely he's done. This time it was quarterback Nick Foles, who in 2013 became a star under Kelly's offense only to be hampered by injuries last year, that was shipped off to St. Louis for Sam Bradford, whose stats the last two years include seven starts and two ACL injuries. The Eagles also gave up a fourth-round pick this year and a second-round pick next year, and will get back a fifth-rounder this year along with a reported conditional pick in 2016.

No one outside the Eagles' small executive circle knows exactly what Kelly's blueprint says but the guess is the deal increases the possibility of Philly moving farther up to select Kelly's old Oregon quarterback, Marcus Mariota. So this isn't likely to be Philly's last big deal.

It was just last week Kelly stunned the league by sending star running back LeSean McCoy to Buffalo for linebacker Kiko Alonso, who was injured last year but … played at Oregon, of course.

Maybe nobody fully understands the thought process behind these deals. Maybe everyone questions it. Maybe it all fails and Kelly looks like a guy who is overmatched handling all player personnel decisions.

Only time will tell. Trying to assess them now, however, is ridiculous.

What's clear is Kelly hasn't lost a bit of self-belief. He sets out on a plan and never hesitates on it. If that means upsetting conventional wisdom or standard operating procedure, so be it.

Players that he doesn't believe can win him a championship are dispatched for ones he thinks can. Foles has been pretty good. In 2013 he put up the ridiculous 27-2 touchdown-to-interception difference.

Clearly, however, Kelly believes he isn't as good as Mariota can be … or Bradford, perhaps, if he actually keeps the former No. 1 overall selection.

Kelly isn't worried about hurt feelings, not from players, executives, coaches or opponents. The bigger the star, the less it matters.

"It feels good to be appreciated," McCoy said Tuesday when announced by the Bills, taking a not-so-subtle-shot back to Philly. Not that he wanted to leave in the first place. "Chip is [an offensive] mastermind," McCoy noted.

McCoy noted he learned he was traded when he woke up to a flurry of text messages from friends about the pending deal. None of them, he said, were from Chip Kelly.

"I thought at least if he was going trade me … just let me know, I mean, as a man," McCoy said on the NFL Network.

It would've been the right thing to do, but Kelly chose otherwise. It's doubtful he'll lose any sleep wallowing in regret. It's a cutthroat business and he's a cutthroat guy.

Kelly came into the league not shying away from his so-called "college offense" but embracing it and declaring it more than fit for the NFL. He's 20-12 since, albeit without a playoff win. This offseason he won a power play for personnel decisions. He's using that power – and then some.

There's almost no use in trying to decide whether each move makes sense because it's clear this is mid-process. Perhaps Bradford can be further dealt to some quarterback-desperate team – Bradford has shown some value when healthy. If so, and it helps Philly move up from No. 20 in the first round to grab Mariota, then this all makes sense.

Of course, Mariota has to become a star in the league, the probability of which is anyone's guess. If there is anyone who has an accurate scout on him, however, it's the head coach who once recruited him to Eugene.

So, we'll see.

"He has a plan," McCoy acknowledged, even if it turns out he wasn't part of it. "He's a smart guy. Whatever he's doing he's trying to make it right, he's trying to make it work."

This much we know: Chip Kelly isn't scared. He isn't done either.