Chip Kelly has been named the 19th head coach in San Francisco 49’ers history, the team announced. He will be officially unveiled at the press conference next week.
Kelly is a former Philadelphia Eagles coach and was fired prior to week 17 after a losing season. He failed to make the playoffs and to win the NFC East Division, so the GM of the Eagles part ways with him. Kelly has a 26-21 record in three seasons as an NFL coach. He started very well in first two seasons with Eagles and recorded ten victories in each of them. However, some of the last off-season moves backfired, most noticeably letting LeSean McCoy go and adding DeMarco Murray. The best rushing running back from the previous year was unrecognizable in Kelly’s system and struggled throughout the season.
Kelly also had some personnel problems, and that will not be the case for sure in San Francisco because the GM Trent Baalke will have this duty. San Francisco GM also interviewed a former New York Giants HC Tom Coughlin, former Broncos and Redskins coach Mike Shanahan, and the new Cleveland Browns HC Hue Jackson.
The central question surrounding Kelly’s appointment as a new boss is a Colin Kaepernick’s situation as team quarterback. The team wanted to let Kaepernick leave at the end of this season, but maybe Kelly can convince the organization that he can rebuild the team around a former Super Bowl contestant. As a matter of fact, Kelly tried to trade for Kaepernick while in Philadelphia a few years ago. However, a backup QB at the time when Kaep was a starter, Blaine Gabbert, showed good signs in his eight starts, recording over 2000 passing yards, ten touchdowns, and seven interceptions. It’s still unknown who will be the starter at the beginning of the next season.
Before joined the Eagles, Kelly spent 22 years in collegiate football. He was a head coach at the University of Oregon Ducks (2009-12) and produced a 46-7 (86.8%) record and victories in both the Rose and Fiesta Bowl. Earlier in his career, Kelly worked 13 years at his alma mater, the University of New Hampshire as an offensive coordinator for eight seasons (1999-2006).
Chip Kelly is born November 25, 1963, in Dover, New Hampshire. In the University of New Hampshire, Kelly played both quarterback and defensive back. After his playing career that lasted four years, he was an assistant at Columbia University and worked with the defence and special teams. In 1992, Kelly returned to his native state and became a running back coach before spending 1993 at John Hopkins University as the defensive coordinator.
