Philadelphia Eagles Running Game Is Offended

Mar 10, 2015; Orchard Park, NY, USA; Buffalo Bills running back

and his son LeSean McCoy Jr. hold up his jersey after a press conference at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

Philadelphia Eagles Running Game Is Offended

The rule of any market is to buy where the dollars aren’t and sell where the dollars are.  Or, in short form, buy low and sell high.  But when the NFL analysts began to assess the moves in 2015 by new Eagles general manager Chip Kelly, they forgot that simple rule.   In short, they haven’t a clue what Kelly is up to, so they grade it negatively.  But Chip Kelly is not making moves like a checker board.  His strategy is a chess board, each move setting up the next one.

In 2013, the Philadelphia Eagles offense was a well balanced machine.   Catching teams by surprise, they had a nice blend of run and pass that kept teams off balance.  Their offense fell short of the NFL top spot only due to the nearly perfect season of Denver quarterback Peyton Manning.

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However, in 2014 things changed.  The Philadelphia Eagles offensive line was patched together most of the season.  With a less productive running game, the team worked at passing.  Passing moved the ball, but interceptions plagued the team all season.  In the last four games, the fatigue of the year caught up to the team.  Offenses exploited the Birds Achilles heel, sending receivers deep.   Losers of three of the last four games, the team failed to repeat as a playoff team.   Despite being in the mix for home field advantage, the team was unable to keep the season together.  The running game failed at times, the passing game failed other times, and the defense failed in the end.

Clearly things had to change.   The initial thoughts were to bolster the pass defense.  While that is sound judgement, it is not enough.   To prevent a repeat, the team needs to avoid a 60% pass/ 40% run distribution in 2015.   To assure the running game gets its work, the team has to have a stable of fresh legs to rotate into the game.  In 2014, despite having nearly an identical number of carries, LeSean McCoy’s production fell.   Some justification could be assigned to new offensive linemen and the challenge to coordinate run blocking with so many new faces each week.   But the offense relied far too heavily upon the arm of quarterbacks Nick Foles and Mark Sanchez.   Somehow, runs needed to be balanced against passes.

Let’s take a look at the moves so far.

LeSean McCoy is Traded

In the days leading up to free agency, the word in Philadelphia media was that the Eagles were seeking some salary concessions from running back LeSean McCoy.  But as we later learned, McCoy was the one initiating contract talks and it was to increase his salary from a $10.65 M upwards to over $11 M.  Whether this was merely a test to challenge the resolve of the new GM, or bona fide contention, the team quickly addressed the request by trading McCoy to the Buffalo Bills, a team who would be willing to increase his salary, and in return obtained the services of one-hit wonder at inside linebacker Kiko Alonso.

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Betsided

While that released a great deal of salary cap money, it placed tremendous pressure on an offense that was losing the bidding war for wide receiver Jeremy Maclin.   Two stars gone.  Yikes!

But there is more to the story.  The secret to the Eagles offense in Chip Kelly’s scheme is rapid execution.   By forcing defenses to decide instantly, the plan is to make them overcommit, and then simply place the ball where the defense isn’t.  Throughout 2014, Chip Kelly encouraged McCoy to “just hit the hole”.   McCoy’s running style, while one of the most talented in the NFL, is based upon change of direction and making defenders miss.    Chip Kelly’s offense is predicated on creating a seam in the defense and the running back hitting that hole instantly.

"“I think LeSean is trying to press too much and trying to hit a home run on every play instead of letting it develop.  It’s a combination of the backs hitting the hole when the hole is there and the offensive linemen creating a little bit more movement at times. You can’t just say, ‘It’s this.’ If it is, it would be an easy fix … We’re just kind of off a little bit. We need to get back into that rhythm.” – Chip Kelly, as interview by USA Today  Martin Frank, Nov. 2, 2013"

That was 2013. In 2014, the running game was slow to start.  Complicating the slow start from a kaleidoscope offensive line was the fact that McCoy just could not get untracked.  When the wheels are humming on an offense, everyone is happy.  When the running game found itself mired?  Scrutiny and feedback became the storyline.  “What happened to Shady?” became weekly headlines.  But the Eagles offense was taking what the defenses were giving them… or baiting them into.  Resisting the offensive pass formation, defenses stayed baseline and dared the Eagles to beat them. with a pass.   While they did on ten occasions, they had mixed results.   The running game that had carried them into the playoffs in 2013 was unable to repeat the same magic in 2014.

Back to the drawing board.