Chip Kelly hired as Philadelphia Eagles head coach

Upon hearing that the Philadelphia Eagles had hired Oregon head coach Chip Kelly, the word I'd use to describe my reaction would be "intrigued." 

Part of this is due to the fact Chip Kelly doesn't have any NFL experience, yet the guy's offensive wit helped the Ducks dominate the Pac-12 conference in recent years. Like when Steve Spurrier took his show to D.C. to coach the Redskins, that same curiosity is present regarding Kelly, who, like Spurrier, doesn't run a prototypical NFL-style offense. So, the big question on most people's minds, will his style of offense work in the NFL? 

At this point, no one knows the answer to that question. We can all give our predictions, include as many numbers and sources as possible, but until we see the results on the field and long-term mind you, we're not going to know just how well Chip Kelly's offense will transfer over to the next level. I am intrigued, however, and slightly excited to see Kelly attempt to work his magic in the NFL. 

The next question most people have regarding this move is who will be Chip Kelly's starting quarterback? His offense has centered around speed, including a dual-threat quarterback who is able to be productive both on the ground and through the air. Of the two quarterbacks whom started games for the Eagles this past season - Michael Vick and Nick Foles - Vick would appear to be the more ideal fit for Kelly's offense. However, that doesn't rule out the possibility of the Eagles looking elsewhere, either in the free agent market or the upcoming draft. Neither Vick nor Foles are ideal for this kind of offense. Foles, probably the worse fit of the two, lacks the speed necessary to fit the bill. While the guy is a decent athlete and can run for 5-10 yards when he can't find any receivers open and there's an open lane in front of him, is not the kind of guy who will be very efficient running the ball consistently throughout the course of a game and season, on both scrambles and called plays. Vick is definitely the quicker and better fit of the two. However, his size poses a problem. While Vick is extraordinarily quick for a quarterback, unless he slides or gets out of bounds, is more susceptible than most NFL quarterbacks of getting injured. He's 6'0'' and not built like a Ben Roethlisberger or Tim Tebow. Vick has historically been pretty bad about sliding, although he has improved on getting himself out of bounds. In both possible scenarios, though, I see potential problems. If Kelly goes with Vick, I'd highly recommend either signing or drafting a similar-style back-up quarterback, such as Terrelle Pryor or someone of the like, in the likely chance that Vick gets banged up during the course of the season. 

No matter what happens at the quarterback position, though, there is a new-found excitement in the city of brotherly love. While former coach Andy Reid seemed to pass the ball more times in a game than he's said the word "the" in his lifetime, even on 4th and centimeters inside the 5-yard line, Chip Kelly focused much more on the running game and working the passing game off its success. With LeSean McCoy and Bryce Brown as the team's top two running backs, and Dion Lewis as a third-stringer, Kelly will be loaded at that position come next season. It'll be extremely interesting to see what kinds of moves the Eagles make this off-season and how well Kelly's offense will be run in the coach's first year with the club. In any case, as I'm sure many other football fans are as well, I'm excited to see Chip Kelly's Eagles play next season.