Chip Kelly has been given near-full control of the Philadelphia Eagles, and has been on a free-agent and front office frenzy ever since.
Eagles fans have been biting their nails the last couple of days, agonizing over the flurry of moves Kelly has done in an attempt to restructure the team.
People all over the league are a little puzzled, and rightfully so, but it seems that there is a method to the madness. Whether it will work or not is another story entirely.
Here’s a summary of the Eagles’ moves thus far this offseason:
Out: RB LeSean McCoy, WR Jeremy Maclin, OG Todd Herremans, LB Trent Cole, CB Cary Williams.
In/Staying: LB Kiko Alonso, CB Byron Maxwell, RB Frank Gore, QB Mark Sanchez, LB Brad Jones.
The largest reaction has been to the trade of LeSean McCoy to the Bills for Kiko Alonso. Signing Frank Gore means that the Eagles will have a nice thunder-and-lightning-style rushing attack with Darren Sproles providing the lightning. However, McCoy is a rare talent in the NFL at the running back position, and was not being used properly in Kelly’s offensive scheme. Defensive needs are definitely a key concern for Philadelphia, but in the secondary, primarily. The willingness to trade McCoy and bring in Gore seems to imply that a new rushing scheme is in the works for Philly.
It’s about time the Eagles got rid of Cary Williams. The guy has been an absolute detriment to that secondary. When teams played Philadelphia and wanted a big, game-changing play to happen, they’d look Williams’ way and exploit his side of the field for a big play. Maxwell provides much more stability for the Eagles at the CB position.
In my opinion, the biggest loss for Philly is that of Jeremy Maclin. A successful passing game requires a no. 1 wide receiver, and Maclin is a solid no. 1. That Eagles offense isn’t going to be high-flying if they don’t have a good receiving core, and right now, their top wide-out is Riley Cooper. Yeah…so there’s that.
I have a very strong feeling that Chip Kelly is nowhere near done with his offseason roster moves, and that Philadelphia fans won’t be able to catch their breath for another couple of weeks. Only time will tell if Kelly’s crazy scheme will work in Philly.