PHILADELPHIA -- Last week Seahawks cornerback Cary Williams criticized Eagles' head coach Chip Kelly for overworking the team down the stretch last season after a 9-3 start resulted in a 10-6 finish without a playoff appearance that seemed to be a lock on Thanksgiving Day.

"We was talking about how our conditioning and things like there were going to kick in because we work harder than everyone in the National Football League with the 'Chip Kelly' thing...and we got out there and got our teeth kicked in," Williams said during a radio interview. "So all of that conditioning didn't necessarily work."

Kelly said prior to Tuesday's first practice of the Eagles' mandatory minicamp that he hadn't heard Williams' comments but dispelled the notion that the team was burnt own down the stretch.

"Yeah, I talked to the rest of the team," Kelly said. "Malcolm Jenkins said he felt the best of his entire career after playing the most snaps. That's a minority opinion. The majority of our players would tell you that they felt great."

Following Tuesday's practice, the reaction to Williams' comments wasn't as cut and dry as Kelly intimated just hours earlier.

"I don't know," Eagles right tackle Lane Johnson told NJ Advance Media. "I think you can see just from our performance. I think the whole team was tired. Towards the last stretch, we just kind of nosedived. I don't really know what it was. Hopefully that changes this year and we can get back into the playoffs and hopefully the Super Bowl."

Kelly and several players mentioned comprehensive surveys that the players fill out following every practice. One player mentioned daily hydration tests that are mandated as part of the team's emphasis on sports science, all with an eye towards maximizing results.

"That's just one guy's opinion," Eagles wide receiver Josh Huff told NJ Advance Media of Williams' comments. "Here, they want the best out of you. They're not going to stop until they get the best out of you. Here, they want you to reach your maximum potential.

"Whether that's going all out and asking you to give your all in practices ... We have things built in to calm down after a certain period and fire it back up. That's one guy's opinion. Obviously it's still a bunch of guys here and doing well. I respect Cary, but that's just his opinion."

The surveys and other methodology towards monitoring players seems rooted in the goal that Huff talked about, in terms of maximizing practice time and results.

"They check in with us with the surveys everyday to check and see how we're doing," Eagles outside linebacker Connor Barwin explained. "Is everybody dead? Is everybody fresh? It's not just them out there looking at us, deciding what the hell they think we feel, we're actually telling them and reporting to them. It only works if you're honest. Everyone is encouraged to be honest. It's only for the benefit of all of us."

The Eagles' meteoric fall in the month of December last season could be telling, but it is also worth noting that Williams' twice fired shots in the head coach's direction on this subject which leaves it open to wondering just how honest he was in the assessments that players talked about on Tuesday.

Matt Lombardo may be reached at MDLombardo@yahoo.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattLombardo975. Find NJ.com Philadelphia Sports on Facebook