Chip Kelly Update: Rock Bottom or Free Fall?

Mark Saltveit NFL

Last week, after two straight home losses to bad teams in the easiest part of the Eagles schedule, I wrote that Thursday’s game against Detroit would tell us a lot about how much fight Chip Kelly has left in him. Apparently, not much. The Eagles lost 45-14, and after the game Chip had no attitude. He spoke in the hushed, …

Chip Kelly Update: Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth

Mark Saltveit FishWrap, FishWrap Archive, NFL

Last week the Eagles lost a tight game to a bad Miami squad, 20-19. And Eagles fans and reporters went crazy with despair. This Sunday, the team was blown out by a bad Tampa Bay team featuring a rookie quarterback (Jameis Winston) who the Oregon Ducks destroyed just 11 months ago. If you thought the infamous Philadelphian negativity would expand …

Chip Kelly Update: A Great Start

Mark Saltveit Editorials

Preseason games mean nothing — we all know that. And yet … the Philadelphia Eagles stomped on the Indianapolis Colts Sunday, and it was hard not to be excited by the way the team played. Even if you ignore the final score — 36-10, not that it mattered — there were a lot of individual performances that were highly encouraging. …

Ascending Eagles — Bradford and Tebow

Noah Smith FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

With the NFL preseason around the corner, all of the intrigue that has been building throughout the offseason will finally be seen on the field. One of the most interesting stories coming out of Eagles camp this year has been surrounding Chip Kelly’s two new quarterbacks – Sam Bradford and Tim Tebow. Both players have looked impressive thus far, with Bradford looking …

Chip Kelly Update: “I’m not governed by the fear.”

Mark Saltveit FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

The winter and spring are long and barren for a football fan, especially one who follows Chip Kelly. The Eagles coach speaks to the press only at press conferences, and he basically doesn’t have any from the day the team cleans out its lockers after its final game until organized team activities (OTAs) start again in late May. There are …

Of Chip Kelly’s System and the “Franchise QB” Conundrum

Noah Smith FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

It is well documented that a franchise QB is required in order to win the Super Bowl — at least, that is the common concept. However, this idea has two problems: First — and obvious issue — is that franchise QBs are extremely hard to find; there are many more franchises in the NFL than there are franchise QBs. The second …

Shorts, Passes, and Screens — The New Read Option?

Noah Smith Editorials

Needless to say, the Philadelphia Eagles have had an interesting offseason. With a flurry of moves that had (and still have) many Eagles fans questioning Chip Kelly‘s sanity, Philadelphia has set themselves up to have the strongest run game in the NFL. With potentially the strongest stable of runners Kelly has ever had, the Eagles are primed for dominance. Interestingly, what may …

Chip Kelly Update: Playing for Pride Now

Mark Saltveit FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

The Philadelphia Eagles were openly discussed as a Super Bowl contender and ranked in the NFL’s top 4 after thrashing Dallas on Thanksgiving Day. The 9-3 overachievers were led by backup QB Mark Sanchez, an NFL laughingstock since his infamous “Butt Fumble” two Thanksgivings earlier, suddenly looking like the league’s most improved player. Then they played Seattle at home, the …

Chip Kelly Update: Forget Seattle, Beat the Cowboys

Mark Saltveit FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

The Philadelphia Eagles under Chip Kelly keep reaching for the stars. They encourage fans to hope for a Super Bowl run with unselfish teamwork, clever schemes on both sides of the ball, and emerging young talent. Then reality slaps them back down to earth, as the Eagles lose to the top level of NFL teams: Green Bay (at Lambeau), San …

Chip Kelly Update: Sanchez is Redeemed as Eagles Crush Dallas

Mark Saltveit FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Two years ago on Thanksgiving Day, in front of 20 million TV viewers nationwide, Mark Sanchez had a game, in fact a single play so humiliating that it has its own Wikipedia article: The Butt Fumble. This Thanksgiving, he carved up the Dallas Cowboys like a slow-cooked turkey and rebuilt his legacy in front of an equally large audience. Sanchez …

Chip Kelly Update: Welp …

Mark Saltveit FishWrap, FishWrap Archive

Going into last Sunday’s showdown between NFC division-leading teams, optimism about the Eagles was soaring like Icarus did right before his wings melted. This game against Green Bay would define how great the Eagles really were. Talk of Philadelphia as a legitimate Super Bowl contender abounded, and one moron thought the tiff might be a preview of the NFC Championship …