Five NFL teams poised for a fall in 2015
By Andrew Garda
I’m not 100 percent sure what Chip Kelly is doing with the Philadelphia Eagles, but as I have said before it’s either genius or madness—maybe a little bit of both. Trading LeSean McCoy and Nick Foles, letting Trent Cole, Cary Williams and Jeremy Maclin walk in free agency—it’s enough to make Eagles fans a little antsy.
He replaced McCoy with DeMarco Murray and Ryan Mathews (both of whom have significant injury history), Williams with Walter Thurmond and Byron Maxwell and added Kiko Alonso as well.
Eagles
The backfield might be better than last year if Murray can stay as healthy as he was last year and replicate the type of year he had when he was behind the best offensive line in the NFL. The team will miss Cole though, and Miles Austin is a poor replacement for Maclin. Jordan Matthews should continue to improve in his second year, but aside from him it’s Riley Cooper and a bunch of guys.
On top of that, who is throwing the ball to them?
Oh, that would be Sam Bradford—at least for the 12 games he averages being healthy for. He’s behind a better offensive line with one better weapon (Matthews) but he’s yet to consistently show the talent which got him drafted with the first overall pick in 2010.
On the plus side, Bradford did run an offensive scheme similar to the one Kelly uses for the Eagles, back when he was in Oklahoma. That’s not to say he can do it in Philadelphia, but he has some experience. There is also the hot theory that Kelly will use Bradford to help trade up for Marcus Mariota in the upcoming draft, but sources around the franchise have said to me that Kelly is aware that the franchise cannot afford to bankrupt themselves for one player, something Kelly has said since publically.
This seems like an all-or-nothing bid by Kelly and the Eagles, doesn’t it?
If the Eagles misstep—if Kelly is wrong about his moves—it won’t take long for the Eagles to see their season go south in what could be a competitive NFC East. The Giants at least should improve, and Washington should as well.
On top of that, they face the New England Patriots (like the Dallas Cowboys), and will take on the Arizona Cardinals and the Detroit Lions as well.
It’s a tough schedule with no real margin for error.
I trust Chip Kelly. It’s Bradford and the receivers that give me pause.
Next: Pittsburgh Steelers