G. Cobb on Kelly’s offense being ahead of NFL [media id=347 width=480 height=360]I remember playing for the Eagles when Buddy Ryan took over the head coaching job in 1986 with his blitzing and pressure defense. He was the defensive coordinator for the Bears and had led a 1985 Chicago Bears team to a 15-1 record before going on to win the Super Bowl title that year. They played two playoff games and didn’t give up a single point, but scored on defense in both of those games.
Ryan’s defense was ahead of the NFL that year and the Bears defense dominated the league like few defenses have ever done. He had a blitz system which the rest of the league wasn’t ready for at the time. Ryan would study an offense and their blitz protection then design blitzes to get to the quarterback. He would also stack the box so heavily that nobody could run the ball against them.
Eventually teams started spreading that defense out in order to lessen some of that pressure. It took a couple of years for the offensive coordinators to figure that out.
I think Chip Kelly is in a similar position right now. After looking at the tape from Monday night, I see guys open all over the place and the holes for LeSean McCoy were as big as any I’ve seen during my time around the NFL. You could have driven two 18-wheelers through those holes in the Washington defense.
On the second play of the game for the Birds, Michael Vick hit a wide open Brent Celek down the seam for a big gain, but he could have thrown the ball to DeSean Jackson on a quick screen and he had Jason Avant in front of him and that would have been a big play.
Kelly has the defense in a bind because he’s got three and four options for Vick to choose from on each play. I don’t know what defense a coordinator can call that’s going to stop the play because Vick can simply choose the option that offense has an advantage on.
On one play Eagles center Jason Kelce was leading McCoy downfield about 15 yards and knocking Redskins middle linebacker London Fletcher on his butt. I could see that Fletcher was totally embarrassed but he had no idea of where the football was at.
If Vick hadn’t missed some open receivers in the first half, the Birds could have had 40 points. If he can stay healthy and make good sound decisions, the Eagles could make the playoffs. If Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett is any indication, the defensive coordinators in the NFL are not ready for Chip Kelly’s offense.
I think we can be confident, if everything else stays the same like Vick staying healthy, that the Eagles offense will score quite a bit each week. The key to their success will be the defense which played well for the first half on Monday night. I don’t think there’s any question that this football team has a chance to make the playoffs.
Defensive coordinators throughout the league are studying that Washington tape and trying to come up with a solution to this offense. We’ll see if they can make some adjustments.
Kelly did a nice job with the unbalanced line. He had tackle Jason Peters switch places with Celek and it gave the Birds a strong blocking side with Peters and Lane Johnson lining up right next to each other. The Redskins still haven’t figured it out.
Washington linebacker Perry Riley threw a wrench into the Eagles plans a number of times, by ignoring his coverage and blitzing Vick on his own. Each time he blitzed Vick, McCoy was wide open on swing passes. Riley’s decision to blitz rather than cover McCoy surprised Vick and led to some sacks.
Kelly was ahead for the 1st half of the Opening Game.. Let’s not make Chip Kelly out to be the next “Bill Wlash” after 30 Minutes of Football..
Many Teams have gone to the up-tempo style of Play…
Saints,Peyton Manning, Patriots, have been doing this for years now…
I am very excited about this Season’s Prospects but lets “temper” this notion that Kelly is a genius already…. Only in Philly, 1 Good halfd and everyone is on the Super Bowl Wagon, 1 Bad Game and and everyone is like the Eagles suck and will only Win 3-5 Games… Wonder why Philly Sports Fans have the Reputation that it does….. Relax, Enjoy for it’s a long Season that will have many ebb & flows to it, as they usually do… It’s Football…
I hear you Paul you’re right…But its not just the speed of the game that makes Kelly unique…Its his play calling, the mix of run and pass…the way he keeps teams guessing, unbalanced line the formations the spread offense…Its his ability to move players around on the field to make it beneficial for that specific play….DJAX 7 catches at halftime…that says a lot in itself right there, imagine if Maclin were healthy, how much more problems that would present a defense…then the holes/gaps in the run game that McCoy was seeing. This offense will be solid years down the road as long as Kelly is the coach…
Not neccessarily RT777,
The Combo of Avant/Cooper is the Best Blocking WR’s on the Team..
With Maclin in there and not being a strong Blocker (either is D/JAx)
the Rush Game would suffer a bit with the lack of Downfield Blocking
Watching Oregon’s Offense, their WR’s are used primarily as blockers down the Field, Catching CB’s and Safeties who are not used to getting blocked by WR’s which is one of the Beauty’s of his Offense and alows a speedy RB to break the big runs once getting to the 2nd Level.. Multiple TE’s are asked to take out LB’s and therefore allowing more Running Room and Space for the Dynamic RB’s that Kelly has with Eagles and who he has had while at Oregon and this in a nutshell is the beauty of his Offense.. if his OL win the 1 on 1 Battles and the TE’s/WR’s can block,tie up or distract the LB’s & Secondary, big plays in the Running game are very likely to occur….
Good point…the running game could be impacted…but the receiving game would be bolstered….pick your poison…
Since it appears they will be running the ball more often (Possibly a 60% Run – 40% Pass Ballance and that 1/2 the Passes are short quick Wide-Out Screens,Bubble Routes and Screens to the RB’s
I would think that Coach Kelly is going to want his Best Blocking WR’s out on the Field, expecially when he has the lead and right now that Avant & Cooper..
Vick has to keep out of harm’s way. Foles could run the offense but would not bring the threat of the run to it to the same degree as Vick. Smart decisions are the key to the offense.
I have to disagree with Paulman, the only reason why they didn’t play the same tempo had to do with him letting up, nothing else! They only threw the ball 5 times in the second half, does that sound like up tempo to you? Chip acknowledged he let up too soon in the second half, the same with the D, they went to a prevent D. this O is going to have ever team they play off balance on D, it’s very exciting!
Yes they had the lead, Vick’s adrenaline had worn off and he was getting hit pretty good there from the 2nd Quarter on.. Lots of Reasons why the Eagles played a “vanilla” 2nd Half which happens when you have 26 Pt Lead which is why I thought it was best to bring in the back-ups to play and to rest the Big 3-4 Key Players that the Eagles cannot afford to get injured (Vick,McCoy,D-Jax & Peters) .. Playing 2 More Games in the next 10 Days, I would have yanked these 4 off the Field for it’s a long 16 Game Schedule
I think you would of seen those players be sat down for rest…but that Avant fumble was big, allowed WSH to score quickly and made the game closer than it had to be.
all you people that are saying ‘vick is now going to play to his strentgths and not not throw 35 times a game’ i have bad news for you– without washington turnovers etc they couldn’t have let off the gas and they would have to run their offense, which is one that relies on a 50/50 balance while the game is competitive– with the pace of play vick is still going to throw A LOT!!! — it is going to be a fun freaking year– so unpredictable
Bottom line, the entire Team and it’s Coach’s lost a little of their “Mojo” in the 2nd Half once they got up 33-7.. It’s easy to happen, on National TV, Openinig Game, all the Media Hype about the Game, etc,etc.. but they need to use this letdown as a learning experience keep their Focus for an entire 60 Minutes of Football which will end up being a good thing..
I just think that its the first game…. you dont show too much of your scheme. just enough to win the game. The scheme and plays will be totally different as we and the league see a little bit more of the big picture. Though the “D” scared us all with bend dont break throw back!
he can throw a lot but the balance of run and pass and the types of passes are going to be a little different from what we’re accustom…we seen more bubble screen passes in one game than we seen all of last season.
Agreed and if he can stay away from injury he will flourish
Eagles lined up in formations showing bubble screen and ran the ball, threw the ball to TE, and executed the bubble screen…That type of play calling keeps the defense off balance…they don’t know what to expect. That’s what impresses me about Kelly, not the pace of the game so much but his play calling throughout the game, each play is called leading to the next play. Playbook was closed in the 3rd quarter.
There are so many options and they are simple reads all u have to do is count the number of defenders
You should try to listen to Ron Jawarski breakdown the Eagles vs Redskins game. He gets to watch the coaches “all 22” tape at NFL Films. That gives him a chance to see things we can’t always see.
Anyway, he talked a little about the game on his radio program last night. He was explaining that even Vick does not know what play is coming until after the ball is snapped and he makes his reads.
The interesting thing is that there are many options (based on reads) in the passing game.
Jawarski, who once said Kelly’s system would not work in the NFL because it didn’t have complex pass routes, now says that he doesn’t know how defenses will stop Kelly.
That is why this is so much fun. If Vick makes the right reads like he did all day on Monday, then they should score a lot of points.
I agree bugsy.
After watching that first half I feel a lot better about Vick being the starter. I don’t think he will be as exposed (physically) as I initially thought. If Kelly limits Vick to running only when the defense dictates that he run, Vick could stay healthy.
My concern with Vick has always been his age and his desire to take the game into his own hands.Even Vick’s biggest fans have to know that he can’t run for 1000 yards and last 2-3 seasons. But I can see him lasting a couple seasons if he sticks to the system.
It’s a fun year to be a Philadelphia Eagles fan…. so far, that is. I just hope we don’t go the way the 2002 Redskins went…. when Jim Johnson pissed on Steve Spurrier’s picnic in week 2…..lol
Losing to the Chargers would be disapointing but we all want that Week 3 game more than anything.
Glad that that will be a short week, because there will be a million national stories about how Philly never appreciated Big Red and that he is in a better situation now…
Losing to the Chargers would be a huge lost opportunity
Chargers played late Monday Night, have to Fly to East Coast on a Short Week and play 10am (Pacific TIme) for a 1pm East Coast Time Start.. the Eagles have basically been home since Week #3 of Pre-Season when they traveled to Jacksonville.. They’ve been home for 3-4 Weeks now after a short Travel trips to NY Jets/Washington DC… Eagles should come out fresh and ready to thump the leg-heavy Chargers right out of the gate
Eagles Win 33-16
@have i guess the avant turnover didn’t have anything to do with the 2nd half momentum shift. it was big. the eagles were on the verge of moving the ball again and had a 1st down that would’ve put them in scoring position. as chip kelly said they made a lot of mistakes too. it wasn’t that the deadskins helped them or rg3 was rusty. the eagles beat playing just one half of football!!! when they begin to string 3-4 quarters of this together for the rest of the yr. watch out!!!
I agree but in a competitive game Vick is going to throw a lot by the shear number of plays. The run pass was skewed so everyone thinking Vick is going to throw 20-26 times is wrong
Jeff McClane article today is pretty good showing the times that they lined Peters and Johnson up on the left side of the line and the play where the tackles lineup up wide. Good read.
Wasn’t Mike Martz thought of as an offensive genius with the “greatest show on turf”. Somebody figured him out. Got to keep evolving the offense.
I dont think anyone will ever FIGURE this out because its not a trick play or a blitz or the wildcat. The Option could be 4 different plays which takes advantage of the defensive personnel that is on the field. In order to STOP it defenses are going to just have to beat the man in front of them if they have any hopes to slow this offense down. No college coach could figure out how to stop it and those guys spent years studying Chip Kellys offense only 4 teams were able to beat Chip Kelly.
Chip Kelly and the offense is in a very good position. Essentially they’re taking advantage of teams that play a lot of zone coverage in a similar way as NE has been doing for years, but like New England I think the train starts to slow down when teams that have the quality secondary to do it start playing primarily man coverage and even then the bubble screens can start to neutralize that a little bit. The thing is most teams don’t have a good enough secondaries to do that against fast WRs. While the Eagles lost Maclin for the year they still have DJax and the fact that he’s actually getting used versus constantly being used as a decoy is HUGE.
So let me get this straight once defenses catch up to Kellys offense all of the sudden Peters wont be effective blocker and Shady will be rendered useless as a runner? lol. I don’t care what offense they run defenses shouldn’t be able to stop this offense anyway.
Vick spoke to NFL network crew (lewis S Young) and stated he asked Chip and the OC why they didn’t run half the plays they game planned for. He was told everything they did this week was set up for San Diego next week.
Jason Peters is probably worth 1
opps, meant Jason Peters is worth 10 points plus add a competent RT Lane Johnson ( he is right now nothing special but Herremans Kelly, Dunlap and Bell were awful at RT)
It’s clear Michael Vick is showing how smart he is a QB calling the right play from the line of scrimmage, just need Vick to put touch on the ball on those 15-20 yard throws and he’ll definitely lead this team to “green”er pastures.
News to you my friend this offense needs a QB that can count to 11. That’s how smart he is. This offense is ingenious in its SIMPLICITY . It is perfect for Vick he doesn’t need to read a defense in a pass progression and his athleticism is utilized. It really is an offense broken down formation and numbers are everything. Mv is perfect for now with this offense but Kelly has his eye on a college QB as we speak
lol.
That’s a SERIOUS oversimplification of how the system works. And kelly’s system isn’t as simple as it seems. As a matter of fact Vick has to make MORE decisions and make them on the fly than he’s had to do in any of the systems he’s run.
So much so that the guys over at Grantland didn’t beleive it would work with MV at the head b/c they didn’t think him capable of making the necessary decisions to make this offense hum.
The beauty of the system isn’t the simplicity (cause it’s not as simple as many seem to think) but in the way they take complex concepts and communicate them in a simple, direct way that everyone can understand. When you’re running at warp speed you don’t have time to rip complex lingo for the next play – it needs to be short and to the point.
It is simple
The first ‘read’ is to count. I am saying Vick is perfect. His inability to read a defense in a complicated system has been negated he counts defenders and has one read on the defensive line. He can be MVP
“His inability to read a defense in a complicated system has been negated…”
First there was nothing complicated about Atlanta’s or Reid’s system. Also the other “simple” systems in the league are the Broncos and the Patriots.
Vick “inability to read defenses” has generally been greatly exaggerated. And the idea that Chips system is so “simple” is also greatly exaggerated.
But okay.
He struggles reading blitzes and pass progressions. But you believe what u want. I’m trying to say this system was built for him and he may finally be a success .
” He struggles reading blitzes and pass progressions.”
He does. I didn’t say he didn’t. I said it was greatly exaggerated.
He has to go through pass progressions in this offense as well (originally I didn’t think there would be much of that, but I was wrong). And actually has done a pretty good job of that thus far.
His blitz pick up has improved greatly from 2010 to now. He was actually decent against the blitz last year. We will see if that continues, ’cause the blitzes are coming. I’d be surprised in the Chargers don’t employ that strategy.
OVERHYPED DRAFT PROSPECT UPDATE:
Rookie cornerback Dee Milliner, who the New York Jets hope will take over the Island formerly named after Darrelle Revis, was benched during Thursday’s 13-10 loss to the New England Patriots after a series of miscues and miscommunications………
This guy was touted as the greatest CB to come out of Alabama, but really continues to carry on the tradition of Alabama CB’s and NCAA Championship team bust in the NFL…..I know, I know, its just one year……but a year that will continue to duplicate itself because, like GMCliff stated…He not all that.
GM Cliff — NYJ only gave up 13 points and they really benched Dee Milliner? How did their #1 pick DT look? I didn’t watch the game.
GM give us your scouting report on Lane Johnson, Ertz, Logan and the Redskin rookies Amerson and Rambo from the week one game.
You also said Lane Johnson was a horrible pick for the Eagles, that he was nothing special…, average at best. His tape indicates that he is a stud, beyond solid and has future pro bowl potential if he keeps developing. Ray Didinger and Brian Baldinger compared him to Pro bowler Anthony Munoz, but said he is more athletic.Your thoughts?
Thats a lie. His tape does not indicate he is a stud. He is average at best which is a step up from Dunlap, and Dennis Kelly; and considering the two sacks he just surrendered against Washington, I would suggest you temper your enthusiasm, with a little more reality. He has a lot of work to do to get to the point where you could call him beyond solid. He is nowhere near that. That’s more of your optimistic enthusiasm, than reality.
Reality is that, He should never be mentioned in the same breath as Anthony Munoz. Keep in mind Baldinger also said Danny Watkins would be a stud for the next 10 years. I respect Baldy, but he’s not GM material. Same for Ray Diddy, who could, but he’s been wrong a lot as well. Those words means nothing to me.
I hope he turns into what you would like to see, because if he doesn’t, you’ll have to start thinking of some excuses as to why GMCliff was right, and why you didn’t know what you were talking about. He is serviceable; nothing special.
It’s not a lie just because you fail to agree. He is rated as one of the top 20 performing draft picks Of the 2013 draft class based on his play thus far by Mel Kiper Jr., Neither Luke Joekel or Eric Fischer made that list, but of course you know more than him too.
I don’t have to think of excuses, when I’m wrong I admit it because I can temper my ego witth the fact that I know I hit and miss on my assessments of college players transitioning to the NFL. If you check, I recently gave you props of your assessment of Earl Thomas and Brandon Graham so I don’t have a problem checking my ego at the door.
By the way, what rookie O lineman doesn’t give up a sack, especially against pro bowl calibur players (Kerrigan)? Is that your criteria? Seriously, if that’s the case then no pro bowl tackles never gave up a sack during their rookie year, I challenge you to prove that in the past five years.
Last but not least, I really would like to see you get a real GM job to see how you would do assembling a team via the draft, and free agency. Have you bstarted looking at players yet for the 2014 draft, particularly in the ,areas of safety, OLB and cornerback? Hi me off with sokme names and I’ll share the names of the guys I’ve been checking out. We can then follow them up to the draft and see where they get selected by round based on talent.
Ciff, when you get a chance read the article entitled Eagles Rookie OT Lane Johnson Looks Impressive Early by Brandon Lee Gowton on Bleeding Green Nation. com posted on Sept. 12. It gives the breakdown of the facts, not opinions, based on thoughts and evaluations before a game was played in the NFL.
Don’t need to read it. His play is all that matters, no matter what anybody writes. He’s an average lineman.
I give less than a darn about someone elses opinion of him. Thats mine, whether you feel I am right or wrong. He gave up 2 sacks last week. He’s off to a good start in proving me correct. That being said, I hope he improves for my teams sake. I want a A SuperBowl Championship like you do.
I do remember you giving me props Eagle. Appreciate it Brother, but You, and I have to agree like Paul, and I do, to disagree at times, without a lack of respect.
I got love for everybody on GCobb – except Eagles0Superbowls. This is all fun to me. I actually enjoy the dialogue, but the attacking demeanor of individual comments, aren’t necessary.
Let’s see how these guys develop, and we’ll still have fun with it either way…….Go Birds!!!
Sounds good bro…Go Birds!!!
Must agree with my sexy bitch. Johnson, this offense is not all that easy to grasp and Vick is showing more than I thought he would, starting to believe in Kelly and Vick
Wait… what?
It is brilliant in its simplicity Kelly draws plays in the dirt and communicates them with tin cans on a string. He has outsmarted all the geniuses with simplicity
If it was that easy more teams would do it. On top of that trying doing it while taking 18 seconds between snaps. Stop trying to call Vick dumb and just enjoy the Eagles offense.
I did not call him dumb. Never. I am saying that this offenses brilliant in its simplicity … Vick is not good at reading progressions, this offense your progressions are pre-snap. It will change the game
It’s funny. If it was Brady running this same offense he would be called a genius. funny.
I seen Brady over shooting players, erratic as hell the other night and the commentators was saying it’s the receivers fault even when balls were overthrown and when Vick do the same exact thing it’s because he’s not accurate like Brady or Manning.
Pathetic.
Now, Vick have an offense that showcases his heady play by having freedom to change plays at the line after assessing the defense, now it’s a Chip Kelly and not Vick making the decisions.
What’s wrong with this picture?
Dude if you are saying Vick is brilliant in a traditional offense then u are wrong. Vick is brilliant in this offense because its not traditional I am not dogging Vick I am agreeing with those on here who say Vick has not been in an offense to utilize his strengths and minimize his weakness
It is really unfair, an inaccurate to call Vick done. While we can all argue about his level of success, the guy has started in the NFL for over a decade. He is no dummy. That is not a fair.
Songs, who cares, Brady is a Fag, he’s on his way out, go eagles
Not only that..but the play can change significantly AFTER the ball is snapped. Kelly uses a lot of basketball concepts to run this offense. The QB really is a point guard. Vick has more responsibility in this system than he’s had in any. Which is why more than one football analyst seriously questioned his ability to run it.
Before Vck got the job Kelly needed a “smart” Qb…after Vick won the job, any idiot can run it. lol
Oh Jakedog…
SMH
Hey gm, what about chance warmack, Jake’s pick, I have some shirts for you, “I smelled jakedogs balls”
Hahahahaa!!! Warmack, is playing very well Jake. No one doubted he was a player. I felt at #4, picking an Offensive Guard, was way too high, and I still feel that way. He’ll be an All Pro one day.
It’s time to rally around chip Kelly and the eagles, lets drink up some good Kelly green kool aide, oh yeah…. Kool aide man
No koolaid for me… but there is nothing that can shake the fun from last weekend and the fact that i am looking forward to tomorrow. The truth is… they still need some pieces to build a champ team BUT…. who knows what can happen? Anything is better than thr last 2 years.
I had hopes for some wins this year and that they would show me something. They have done that already.
I’m with you brother stevo, let’s go eagles
And the kool aide is tasting fine
****NFL News***
Cardinals Release CB Jamall Fleming and added a 5th WR to their 53 Man Roster.. The Eagles need to bring this CB Fleming in for a work-out and would add depth and be an upgrade over Poyer & Hughes
Cardinals are very deep at CB .. Call him Rosman get him in here
He would have to clear waviers paul. Hes not a seasoned vet
Former Eagles OLB Chris McCoy released by the Jags. Not good for McCoy considerring how bad that D looked last week.
Are you sure about this G-Nan
After 2 good Quarters of Offense, what has Chip Kelley done?
By the way, the Packers put up 40 on the Redskins with about 600 yards of Offense so I guess Packers HC McCarthy is a genius too
The good Teams with the Good Coaches adjust, I have’t seen any good adjustments from Chip Kelly and his Team in 2 weeks..
Someone needs to tell him this isn’t the PAC-12 or Colkege Football