The Chip Wagon

A Debut to Remember

Well that was fun, huh? I must admit, I didn't think Carson Wentz's debut was going to be as bad as many of the national media were suggesting, but I wasn't expecting anything like that. Carson Wentz had a terrific debut on Sunday showing amazing poise and confidence throughout the day and making numerous WOW throws along with some fascinating changes at the line of scrimmage. Much will be dissected of the all the things Wentz did great on Sunday along with areas of improvement but what I was really fascinated to see was how Doug Pederson would structure and scheme the offense around him. What was very encouraging on Sunday was that this was not a basic attack. I don't think Pederson really held back too much of the playbook from Wentz and as we saw particularly in the second half, Pederson was happy to let Wentz push the ball down the field. 

However, the major theme I pulled out of this game after re-watching is how much Doug Pederson and Frank Reich utilized familiar spread concepts to help Wentz settle into his first career start. The gameplan implemented simple concepts and RPOs to maximize a number of Wentz's first read opportunities. We know that the one area where Wentz will require some development is going through progressions. The coaching staff did a fantastic job with quick step drops and packaged plays to ensure that more often than not, Wentz's first read was open  Let's have a look. 

Where Did it All Go Wrong? The Rise and Fall of Chip Kelly

I apologize for what was a very quiet 2015 NFL season at the Chipwagon this past year. There are a couple reasons for that. 1) I started a new job in September and it has been pretty demanding of my time and balancing that with the family life didn't leave a lot of time left to put blog posts together. 2) Watching the 2015 season was one of the worst and most frustrating seasons I can recall watching. I realize that this was far from one of the worst seasons in Eagles history, but from beginning to end it was just so frustrating and aggravating to watch. We had lapses in execution all season long and Chip's offense that I loved so much in 2013 and 2014 just went completely stale.  The truth is, there is no one reason why things didn't work out in Philadelphia. Certainly, Chip the GM, Chip's personality, the power struggle with Howie Roseman and his apparent fractured relationship with Jeff Lurie will lead the way in the headlines. Our old friend @sheilkapadia was spot on this assessment which really nicely summarized the downfall of the Kelly regime. However, to look at it from another angle, one really needs to understand that Lurie's decision was not exclusively a non-footbal decision. To put it bluntly, the Chip Kelly we fell in love with just stopped showing up on the chalkboard in 2015. The offense we saw in 2015 was a stripped down version of what we saw in 2013 and 2014 and lacked any imagination, creativity or evolution as defenses around the league continued to adjust and catch up. Furthermore, it seemed in 3 years Chip Kelly's offense lacked some of the fundamental concepts and philosophies that need to be considered and applied in the pro game. Here is my post-mortem and likely final chapter on Chip Kelly's offense.

New Wrinkles or Breaking Tendencies?

First and foremost, big apologies for the complete lack of posting in the last month. I started a new gig in September and the ramp up has kept me pretty engaged. However, quite frankly the last couple of games before the bye really left very little to get excited about with this team. Sunday night came with some of the usual warts, but did provide a little room for optimism moving forward. While some might not like the fact that it took the Eagles overtime to beat Matt Cassell and the Dallas Cowboys, as we've learned over the years very few road divisional games are gimmes. The Cowboys fought hard for their season and the Eagles were just able to wear them down. 

One Step Forward?: Gameplan vs. Execution in the Passing Game

In my last post, I talked about the Eagles improvements in the running game vs. the Saints being a mix of better execution from the personnel and better game-planning from the coaches. I think its fair to say that the same can be said for the passing game last Sunday. First and foremost, I thought Chip did a good job deciding to attack with the passing game from the start and even his decision to go for it on 4th down on the opening drive (more on that in a bit) was a good one to try and extend the rhythm they have had such a hard time establishing in the first several games. That said, I think it's important to note that the Saints do not have a good defense and were beat up in the secondary. It played a major role in making the Eagles offense looking good. 

The Eagles Passing Game is a Hot Mess

Yesterday I broke down just how bad the Eagles ground game was on Sunday. Problems amongst almost every member of the offensive line. Still, it isn’t the first time an NFL team has had to overcome a poor ground game performance. Unfortunately, the Eagles passing offense might be even worse right now with erratic QB play front and center. When Chip Kelly traded Nick Foles and a 2^nd round pick for Sam Bradford all the concern was surrounding Bradford’s health. People thought it was a terrible move considering he was coming off back to back ACL injuries. That said, the optimists among us said if, just if, Sam could stay healthy he’s the exact QB Chip Kelly is looking for. Great arm, intelligent, quick decision maker with repetitive pinpoint accuracy. Despite Sam’s lackluster QB stats and win-loss record, of which most blamed coaching and supporting cast, people believed that Bradford could still be what everyone thought he would be as the #1 overall pick many years ago.