The Tao of Chip Kelly

[Prime Time]

http://www.turfshowtimes.com/2015/6/21/8820413/2015-nfl-season-news-chip-kelly

The Tao of Chip Kelly
By Douglas M  @thenovelroad

.The sudden purge of talented veteran players by the Philadelphia Eagles caught every NFL fan by surprise. Then came the curious additions to offset the subtractions: LeSean McCoy is traded to Buffalo, and DeMarco Murray and Ryan Matthews are added thru free agency. Quarterback Nick Foles bops his way via trade to St. Louis for oft injured Sam Bradford. I could go on listing the moves by Eagles' head coach Chip Kelly, but you've seen it all as its streamed in headlines across sports-pages. A life long NFL fan, I've never seen anything close to what's been going on in Philadelphia...

So is Chip Kelly a genius, or mad man?

What intrigues me most, is trying to glean just what he saw - or didn't see - in players most fans thought were pretty damn good? LeSean "Shady" McCoy is one of the elite running backs in the NFL. Why did Chip Kelly opt for Dallas' Murray and San Diego's Matthews; both of whom have had checkered injury histories? Linebacker Trent Cole - now with Indianapolis, and is going into his 11th NFL season - was a key component for a middle of the road defense in Philadelphia. While they added Kiko Alonzo from Buffalo in the McCoy trade, and the competition for linebacker spots looks decent, Alonzo is coming back from injury. So Kelly shifted from a solid veteran "maybe", to a second year linebacker with potential/injury "maybe"?

"...Kelly gave a contract extension in between raving about the veteran’s leadership qualities. Kiko Alonso is the only return Kelly managed to acquire while parting with LeSean McCoy,Trent Cole, Todd Herremans, Evan Mathis and Cary Williams. Meanwhile, Kelly has commented on how much time Mychal Kendricks missed last year with a calf injury." - ESPN.com

While the 49ers have lost loads of players this off season, it's nothing close to Philly. Players left San Francisco of their own accord. Not so in Philly, where Chip Kelly has made sweeping changes based on his view of what kind of team he wants to coach... He signed a 5 year/$32 million contract in 2013 with the Eagles after flirting with Cleveland.

In his first year, his offense piled up big numbers. Averaging 417.2 yards per game put the Eagles just behind Denver and Peyton Manning for the most prolific offense in the NFL. Nick Foles finished with 27 TD passes, only 2 interception, and a league best 119.2 QB rating. A more balanced attack than most thought would happen, Kelly's offense generated 2,566 yards on the ground, and 4,110 in the air. That's 6,676 yards combined, folks!

Then, it happened... Kelly wanted more. After a front office shake up left Kelly with more overall control of team direction, players began to to be shipped out, in what came to look like a wholesale house cleaning. In 2013, wide receiver DeSean Jackson had a career best 1,332 receiving yards. He was quickly shuttled out of town after the season.

The most interesting - and for me, down right puzzling move - was the trade of LeSean Mcoy to Buffalo. Over the last two seasons, McCoy's production was fantastic: 2,926 rushing yards/694 receiving, and 16 touchdowns. The stat that may be hardest to replace though, is his 179 first downs over the last two seasons... Lots of moves have happened for the Eagles, but these two kind of set an interesting stage for what followed.

I'm actually enjoying watching what Chip Kelly does. He's kicking over the conventional wisdom table. He's in one of the toughest NFL fan towns though. So many would think the Philadelphia fans would be on the verge of rioting in the streets, right? Not so fast. SBNation's Eagles blog - Bleeding Green Nation - has run a month to month job approval poll regarding Chip Kelly. Take a look at the numbers:

So, do you approve of the job Chip Kelly has done as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles?
Chip Kelly Approval Polls:

• May 2015 - 84% Approval
• April 2015 - 80% Approval
• February 2015 - 84% Approval
• January 2015 - 84% Approval
• December 2014 - 99% Approval
• November 2014 - 98% Approval
• October 2014 - 91% Approval
• July 2014 - 96% Approval
• May 2014 - 94% Approval
• March 2014 - 92% Approval
• January 2014 - 99% Approval

Interesting? Add in Kelly's signing Tim Tebow to the quarterback mix, and at times it seems he's going to great lengths to keep the Eagles' fan base guessing? The Philadelphia media - long known for being one of the toughest crowds around - has been held in check by Kelly... For now, anyway. I can't help but think the media hounds in Philly won't allow Kelly much leeway going into the 2015 season. If his great experiment falters even the slightest bit, they're going to pounce on him...

I like the idea of a head coach attacking his job in his own way. Kelly's gone at this with his hair on fire, and foot mashing the gas pedal to the floor. "Great experiments" in the NFL are fairly rare. Conventional wisdom, and conservative moves are the standard for the most part. I'm rooting for Kelly to succeed, simply because he's created an air of unknown possibilities. Will he? I don't know, but it's going to be the biggest story line in the NFL for 2015. Now, let's sit back and watch...

 

[DaveFan'51]

So is Chip Kelly a genius, or mad man?

Neither!! Just Stupid!!

 

[-X-]

Seems like he just wants 100% total buy-in from his players and no questions asked.
Good luck with that at the NFL level.

 

[MrMotes]

So is Chip Kelly a genius, or mad man?

As always that will be measured in wins and losses. Two 10 wins seasons, he's off to a good start...

 

[Merlin]

I think he's an elite offensive mind and coach. I'll bet his team makes the playoffs this season, too, in spite of all the complaints his moves have stirred up.

A lot of folks talk like McCoy made that offense go, but it's the other way around IMO. McCoy won't do too much the rest of the way in his career in my estimation, while someone else will step up and kill it in that Eagles attack. His ability to gameplan, adjust on the fly, and teach his players so they can execute fast and with swagger is downright rare.

 

[Zaphod]

I just think it's funny that Chip Kelly was a media and fan favorite since coming to the NFL and doing things his way.

And now he's public enemy number one. A lot of people are now gnashing their teeth, calling him a racist and hoping he fails.

I for one hope he has his most successful season yet (when he's not facing the Rams of course) and royally pisses off everyone.

In an ideal situation, everyone will brush of the dirt and bruises from their properly wounded egos and jump right back on to the Eagles bandwagon so that when the wheels of said bandwagon truly fall off in 2016-2017 all of Iggles fans will simultaneously combust as Chip Kelly escapes in his spaceship like the true evil genius that he is.

 

[Stranger]

Martz takes two Rams teams to the SB, and a Cutler-lead Bears team to the NFCC game, and he gets all kinds of crap, and never ever did anything as dramatic or insance as this. Yet, Kelly gets realitively positive press, even amongst those who may disagree, and yet Martz is treated as an egomaniacal outcast. There is something about the inner workings of the NFL machine that I simply do not understand.

 

[LACHAMP46]

He's won with Andy Reid's players...Now he'll get a chance to win with his own...Good luck...when I look at the moves the phrase, "if it aint broke..." comes to mind....

 

[nighttrain]

After 10 losses, i predict for the Eagles, let us see what the Philly fan base says, riot i'm thinking
train

 

[WvuIN02]

He's been very successful so far, cant argue with W's.

 

[FRO]

Seems like he just wants 100% total buy-in from his players and no questions asked.
Good luck with that at the NFL level.

That's why successful college coaches fail in the NFL.

 

[Alan]

I'll just chime in with this appropriate Tao proverb:
"Those who know do not speak, those who speak, do not know"
Lao Tzu

 

[kurtfaulk]

.

murray - 1,845 yards, 4.7 ypc and 13 tds, 57 rec 416 yards 0 tds

mccoy - 1,319 yards, 4.2 ypc and 5 tds, 28 rec 155 yards 0 yds

what's the problem here?

.

 

[den-the-coach]

He's been very successful so far, cant argue with W's.

How many playoff victories?

 

[-X-]

I'll just chime in with this appropriate Tao proverb:
"Those who know do not speak, those who speak, do not know"
Lao Tzu

So every deaf-mute .... knows? :huh:

 

[Alan]

-X- thinking I don't know:
So every deaf-mute .... knows? :huh:

 

[CodeMonkey]

We are the fortunate beneficiary of at least one of his wild and crazy moves so far. Thank you very much! From a Ram fan perspective we want Sam to play enough games to qualify us for that second rounder AND we want them to suck balls and come in last place so we get the first pick in the second round.

I will say this though: He is fun. Self-confidence is an admirable trait and I like to see people trying bold different things. For the sake off progressing the sport I hope he is succesful and inspires others with fresh ideas. People will copy things that work. From that standpoint, I'm rooting for him.

My deviant self wants to see the trainwreck though. I can hardly wait to see that you-tube Philly fan if the train comes off the rails. ha ha

So really, it's a win-win. Either way he's going to give us something to talk about.

The truth is it that it will probably be, like most things, a mix of good and bad.

 

[CodeMonkey]

-

I'll just chime in with this appropriate Tao proverb:
"Those who know do not speak, those who speak, do not know"
Lao Tzu

That is a good one. I was thinking of the quote "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." -Lord Acton

 

[Alan]

CodeMonkey making a connection:
That is a good one. I was thinking of the quote "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men." -Lord Acton

"Is that a Martz crack?"
Alan

 

[Prime Time]

http://mmqb.si.com/2015/07/15/chip-kelly-philadelphia-eagles-roster-jimmy-johnson-nfl-the-mmqb-100/

Rich Schultz/Getty Images

No. 3: Chip Kelly Is Not Afraid to Fail
In his first offseason with full control over the roster, Chip Kelly made a series of aggressive moves and cast off a number of popular players. It’s not unlike what another college coach once did with an NFC East power—and Jimmy Johnson built a winner in the 1990s. Johnson weighs in on Kelly’s moves and has advice for the coach as the Eagles fanbase grows restless
By Emily Kaplan

Editor’s note: This is part of our summer series, The MMQB 100, counting down the most influential people for the 2015 season.

Since arriving in Philadelphia Chip Kelly has toyed with convention, from calling plays with sideline flash cards to dictating the coconut intake in post-practice smoothies. Those tweaks paled in comparison to what occurred over the last six months, as Kelly acquired personnel responsibilities then treated the NFL offseason like a game of Risk.

The coach staked his future on an injured quarterback in Sam Bradford, cut one of the league’s best guards in Evan Mathis and traded 2013 rushing champion LeSean McCoy. Fans in Philadelphia simmered, hypothesizing how (and when) Kelly’s gutsiness would implode. “The city is obsessed with Chip Kelly, because he drives us crazy,” says Howard Eskin, the longtime Philly sports talk radio host. “But Chip doesn’t care. The reason he’s influential is because he doesn’t get influenced by what people think.”

Fans and media have spent a disproportionate amount of time dissecting Kelly’s psyche. There are few in the NFL as audacious. For perspective, we turned to a man who has been there before. In 1989, Jimmy Johnson was Chip Kelly: a successful college coach who put his imprint on an NFL franchise with a series of counterintuitive moves. Johnson shipped the Cowboy’s lone star, running back Herschel Walker, to Minnesota. He built a small, fast defense when everyone else was thinking big. He was called, among many descriptions unfit for print, crazy.

And then Dallas won three Super Bowls, two with Johnson as coach (and the third with Barry Switzer coaching Johnson’s roster). Despite claims to the contrary, there can be a method to the madness. Here is Johnson’s explanation of Kelly’s potential power:

“When you have one guy making the decisions—like I was in Dallas or Miami, like Bill Belichick is in New England, and now like Chip is—you don’t have a lot of devil’s advocates. You don’t have a lot of people who work for you second-guessing you. If you have a committee involved in the decision-making, 95% of the time, you’re going to be conservative. There’s always going to be one person saying, ‘Oh, I don’t know about this,’ or, ‘Wait, let’s think about that.’ When one guy makes the decision, you take chances. That’s what Chip has done this year.

“I’m a fan of Chip Kelly. I like what he’s doing. The biggest concern I have is that even though they’ve been the healthiest team in the league the last couple years, because of his holistic approach with sports science and nutrition, he’s taking some big risks trading and obtaining players with major injuries. That’s the only concern I have.

“You don’t let media or pundits affect you, but of course you are aware of what they’re saying. It was both comical and hurtful. Even though you found it comical because you knew they had no idea what you were trying to do, nobody wants to be criticized. At times, it would almost feel personal. It had nothing to do with your decision-making, it had to do with the fact that they just didn’t like you—because you rubbed somebody wrong.

Maybe you didn’t do right by one of their favorite players, which Chip has done, which I did, which Belichick has done. With Belichick, he has the credibility so people accept it. Late in my career, they began to accept it. With Chip right now, people are not accepting it. Some people are not accepting trading LeSean McCoy. Some people are not accepting cutting Evan Mathis. Until you win big, people are going to criticize you.

“Chip and I have talked a couple of times, and he’s a very private guy; so much of what we discuss should not be shared. But I did give him one piece of advice this year. He wanted to know what it’s like to be the decision maker as well as the coach. I told him this: You have an advantage in the draft because you know these players. You’ve been in a lot of their homes, you’ve watched them play closely.

So the draft is when guys like you and I have the advantage. The problem I ran into in Miami (I didn’t have it in Dallas because free agency had just begun) was that during the season, I was so busy that I couldn’t stay on top of all of the things I wanted to: picking up players from the street, making some moves, especially on the bottom end of your roster. You’re so busy prepping with your current team for that week’s game that you can’t do it all by yourself. The job is overwhelming to do it 12 months of the year all by yourself.

I found that out. My advice would be to have somebody—and not a group of people, just one person that you trust, that you like, that’s loyal, that’s like-minded—do those type of things. That will help because during the season itself, the job can be a little overwhelming. But in the offseason? The draft and free agency? Take advantage of your talents. You’re good at evaluating players because you did it in college just like I did in college, so that’s where you can shine. But during the season is when you’re going to need a little bit of help.

“Here’s the big question: Do you want to play it safe and be good or do you want to take a chance and be great? If you’re not afraid to fail, you can do some great things in this league. But most people are afraid to fail, so they play it safe. I always liked to take risks because I was always confident in my abilities. I think—no, I know—Chip is confident in his abilities, too.”