Chip Kelly speaks highly of Belichick
New Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly arrived in Indianapolis for the NFL Combine. Upon his arrival, he agreed to a press conference where he was asked a variety of questions ranging from his college experience to other NFL coaches; Patriots coach Bill Belichick in particular. Chip Kelly, a New Hampshire native, had plenty of praise for the New England coach:
"He's one of the iconic coaches in this profession," said Kelly, the former UNH offensive coordinator and Oregon head coach. "Obviously he grew up through football. When you're around people like that, you do a lot more listening than talking."
Kelly made a few trips to the Pats' practices during training camp, and gave Belichick and OC Josh McDaniels a few tips on the high-tempo offense. As result, the Patriots ran the quickest offense in the league this year. Kelly then went on to explain that the Patriots weren't the only team to talk to the former Oregon Ducks coach:
"I think we're all byproducts of our experiences," he said. "I went to OTAs with Joe Philbin [in Miami] last year. I went with Chan Gailey down in Buffalo. I've been to see Jim Harbaugh with the 49ers. I've been to see Pete Carroll at Seattle. All those guys have been gracious to let me come."I find it interested (and to be frank, it's pretty cool) that Kelly was a college coach that visited a number of NFL teams to give them advice on how to run their respective offenses. Now, he has his own NFL offense to run. The New England native has a lot on his plate, but after being regarded as one of the top head coach candidates this offseason, it's widely accepted that he will succeed.
