Why Chip Kelly's Historically Productive Eagles Offense Can't Score
The Eagles are on pace to challenge the NFL record for total offense in a season. They're ranked 2nd in yards per game behind the Denver Broncos.
But Philly is only 11th in the league in points per game. They're average 24.8 points per game (2.1 points above the NFL average), at the same time that they're gaining 458.8 yards per game (103.3 yards above the NFL average).
The chart:
Kempski persuasively argues that the Eagles can't score because they're bad at everything except for gaining yards. They turn the ball over, commit tons of offensive penalties, settle for field goals instead of touchdowns in the red zone, drop passes at near the goal line, and give up a boatload of untimely sacks.
Read his entire post for the nitty-gritty on all of those issues.
But there's an interesting takeaway here: Chip Kelly's offense is actually working.
Because Philly is 1-3, a few people are arguing that Kelly's fast-paced, no-huddle offense is inherently incompatible with the NFL game. That's not true. The Eagles are moving the ball fine. The core concepts that Kelly brought from Oregon - play fast, run the read-option - are doing what they're designed to do.
You can fault Kelly for the sacks, turnovers, and penalties. But those are issues that all coaches have, not just straight-from-college coaches.
His offensive philosophy is not the thing that's failing him, and that's an encouraging sign for everyone who wants to a revolutionary figure like him succeed in the NFL.