Chip Kelly’s NFL offense already has sports writers in a tizzy. All of the various combinations are very intriguing. The burning question for the upcoming season with the new hire of Chip Kelly is ‘Who is going to be running the offense?’ Several writers have dug up quotes from the last off-season, indicating that Kelly is a fan of Foles. However, Foles height and lumbering movement will prevent him from running the zone read/read option that is the staple of Kelly’s offense that ran a play every 20.4 seconds in Kelly’s last season at Oregon. While it seems likely that Foles will stay on the roster and be an option, Micheal Vick’s pricetag for 2013 and beyond is prohibitive and the Eagles would be best served to cut him and save some money. The only way the organization will be able to afford this from a performance standpoint is if they are able to find an adequate quarterback replacement that has the skill set to run Kelly’s hurry-up zone read predicated system. While it is certainly possible that they run a two quarterback system, it is my belief that Kelly will want to have a quarterback who is capable as a passer, but is a much quicker athlete than Nick Foles is. What follows are 3 potential targets for the Eagles to look at in the next several months if they do indeed decide to move on from Vick and in combination, decide that Foles is not the full-time solution.
Thad Lewis is one possible option for Chip Kelly and company.
Thaddeus Lewis: The former quarterback from Duke spent his entire NFL career on the bench until a series of injuries to Brandon Weeden and Colt McCoy gave him a chance to start in 2012′s Week 17. He wasn’t spectacular, but pieced together 22 completions on 32 attempts. Lewis not a burner or an incredible athlete, but he does throw well on the run and doesn’t shy away from pressure. Lewis had two seasons in college completing passes above a 60% clip which is a positive indicator for NFL accuracy. He wasn’t asked to run much at Duke At the 2010 NFL combine he ran a 4.84 40, which is by no means elite level speed but is certainly quicker than Foles 5.14 40 time. His second position at the combine was a Joe Webb-like WR/ATH, which shows that he is at least capable of making the runs needed out of the zone read. Lewis is probably the least talented of the 3 quarterbacks mentioned on this list but would certainly be a very cheap option. Additionally, being pulled from the 3rd string of the Browns to a part-time starting role in combination with Foles probably would be much more preferable for Lewis than sitting behind Weeden. If Kelly’s jump from college is an indicator of being innovative in the future, giving Lewis a look is not out of the realm of possibility.
Dennis Dixon’s main advantage for Chip Kelly’s NFL offense is knowledge of the system.
Dennis Dixon: Dixon’s main advantage in getting brought in to the Eagle’s is that he has played for Chip Kelly before. In his senior year under Kelly, Dixon threw for 2,136 yards at 67% clip in addition to running the ball 105 times for 583 yards. Clearly, he has had moderate success in Kelly’s system. In the NFL, Dixon only started two games, once against the Baltimore Ravens, an overtime loss and again against the Atlanta Falcons, an overtime win. He has not had anything resembling success throwing the ball in the NFL. However, if Kelly does adopt the two quarterback system with Foles, Dixon could be an adequate second quarterback, posting a 40 time of 4.49, which is nothing to sneeze at for an NFL running back. Part of Kelly’s system is just knowing the playbook and being intelligent in making reads and decisions in a hurried, frantic atmosphere. Due to his familiarity with the system, I would be thoroughly unsurprised to see Dixon brought in as the 2nd guy, or the emergency 3rd quarterback.
Terrelle Pryor: Unlike the other two, I actually came away impressed with Pryor’s skills as a passer. Due to the amount that Oakland gave up to draft Pryor, it is more unlikely that he changes rosters. However, if Pryor were to find his way onto the Eagle’s roster, it is my belief that he could be a solid NFL quarterback. I did a film study on his week 17 start against the San Diego Chargers. Many saw the start as a rocky patch with little to get excited about; I wholly disagree. Pryor made several very difficult throws to Rod Streater in coverage and Brandon Myers in the seam. More than anything, Pryor is an absolute magician in the red zone. His legs and height allow him to keep the play alive as he scans downfield for an open option. Once in the red zone, he scrambled to his off-hand side for a quick score and late in the game, kept a play alive after it broke down for about 8 seconds before he hit a wide open Denarious Moore. I may be out on a limb with Pryor, but I think his physical talents, in combination with reports that he has been very open and humble when it comes to coaching and instruction, make it a distinct possibility that he is an NFL-caliber quarterback. To me, he is the perfect option for Kelly. A fast player, running a 4.38 40 time, with a cannon for an arm could be huge if taught correctly by Kelly himself. Again, the cost for acquiring him could be far too high for the Raiders regime to consider, but if they don’t consider Pryor part of their plans moving forward (He was Al Davis’ last draft choice), they could move him at a relative discount.
Tim Tebow: Just kidding. This is the one that has been thrown around by terribly lazy sports writers. Tebow can’t throw the ball. He’d do well to follow Penn States Micheal Robinson, who converted to fullback for the Seattle Seahawks.
20 Year old student of English at Kansas State University. Writer for Sports Wunderkind, The Fake Football and Hockey, and various other media outlets. Fan of the Cowboys, Thunder, Avalanche and Royals
