09-24-2015, 08:08 AM
I have long been a fan of the mindset that the sport played by NCAA football programs and their NFL counterparts is a completely different animal depending on which side of the NFL Draft you are. Now I doubt this is breaking news to even the most casual football fan but the exact reasons have always been a bit murky to me. Is it simply talent level? Allowed time to practice? Coaching effort? Maturity of the Players?
To this point, I throw out there the 2015 Philadelphia Eagles. As has been well documented, Chip Kelly retooled his offense to the tune of a new Quarterback in Sam Bradford, new Runningbacks in DeMarco Murray and Ryan Matthews, a new Linebacker in Kiko Alonso - he of the perpetual IR stint - and other moves too numerous to count. As has also been well documented, the Philadelphia Offense of 2014 was quite the machine; they racked up such statistics as the 5th ranked Offense in Total Yards (6,348), the 9th ranked Rushing offense (1,992), and the 6th ranked offense in terms of Passing Yards (4,356). The future was looking bright in the City of Brotherly Love, but what effect were the changes going to have?
For those who were willing to give Kelly the benefit of the doubt based on his success in the NCAAs, the moves were only going to increase that production. Due to the process of adding talent, the Eagles were getting better. And really, wasn't this a lot like adding a new Class of Recruits to the roster? I mean, he did that all the time while at Oregon! As of Week Two, that future seems to have dimmed a bit. While two games does not a season make, the production of the Philadelphia offense has taken a turn for the worse.
But the Philadelphia team is not our focus here, but rather Kelly's actions and how they were actually detrimental to his team's success. What Kelly did to his team is not all that uncommon amongst the top flight NCAA programs. Squads at that level swap out players at not only the skill positions but across the board on a regular and frequent basis due to graduation and early entry to the NFL. It's a rather uncommon thing now for even a Quarterback in college to put up three years worth of starts, so why would Kelly expect the NFL to be any different? I put out to you, the Reader, that the difference is in the continuity that Kelly threw out as compared to the continuity that his opposition now enjoys.
This isn't to state that NFL teams stay the same from year to year; just look at Jacksonville's most recent Free Agency haul! Six players at key positions were brought in and with a nod to the injured Julius Thomas, each of those positions looks to be improved! While talent is and always will be king, what role does having the same roster by and large from year to year have? What advantage does it give to a squad to know that 65 - 75% of the people in the room are going to be there in two years?
NCAA football programs, and by extension their coaches, will not experience this simply due to their own rules and traditions. A coach who has not spent any time on an NFL staff, read as 'Kelly', may not even be aware of the continuity and the need for patience to allow his roster to develop. I think maybe Kelly just flat out got fidgety with his roster and decided to change things just to change. After all, that's what happened in College, right?
To this point, I throw out there the 2015 Philadelphia Eagles. As has been well documented, Chip Kelly retooled his offense to the tune of a new Quarterback in Sam Bradford, new Runningbacks in DeMarco Murray and Ryan Matthews, a new Linebacker in Kiko Alonso - he of the perpetual IR stint - and other moves too numerous to count. As has also been well documented, the Philadelphia Offense of 2014 was quite the machine; they racked up such statistics as the 5th ranked Offense in Total Yards (6,348), the 9th ranked Rushing offense (1,992), and the 6th ranked offense in terms of Passing Yards (4,356). The future was looking bright in the City of Brotherly Love, but what effect were the changes going to have?
For those who were willing to give Kelly the benefit of the doubt based on his success in the NCAAs, the moves were only going to increase that production. Due to the process of adding talent, the Eagles were getting better. And really, wasn't this a lot like adding a new Class of Recruits to the roster? I mean, he did that all the time while at Oregon! As of Week Two, that future seems to have dimmed a bit. While two games does not a season make, the production of the Philadelphia offense has taken a turn for the worse.
But the Philadelphia team is not our focus here, but rather Kelly's actions and how they were actually detrimental to his team's success. What Kelly did to his team is not all that uncommon amongst the top flight NCAA programs. Squads at that level swap out players at not only the skill positions but across the board on a regular and frequent basis due to graduation and early entry to the NFL. It's a rather uncommon thing now for even a Quarterback in college to put up three years worth of starts, so why would Kelly expect the NFL to be any different? I put out to you, the Reader, that the difference is in the continuity that Kelly threw out as compared to the continuity that his opposition now enjoys.
This isn't to state that NFL teams stay the same from year to year; just look at Jacksonville's most recent Free Agency haul! Six players at key positions were brought in and with a nod to the injured Julius Thomas, each of those positions looks to be improved! While talent is and always will be king, what role does having the same roster by and large from year to year have? What advantage does it give to a squad to know that 65 - 75% of the people in the room are going to be there in two years?
NCAA football programs, and by extension their coaches, will not experience this simply due to their own rules and traditions. A coach who has not spent any time on an NFL staff, read as 'Kelly', may not even be aware of the continuity and the need for patience to allow his roster to develop. I think maybe Kelly just flat out got fidgety with his roster and decided to change things just to change. After all, that's what happened in College, right?