49ers hire Chip Kelly as head coach

The San Francisco 49ers today hired Chip Kelly as their head coach, while the New York Giants hired Ben McAdoo as their head coach. While coaching the Eagles, Kelly’s offense finished in the top 5 in points scored and total offense in his first two seasons while sporting 10-6 records.

Baalke doesn’t anticipate any issues working with Kelly but there was tension in his relationship with former coach Jim Harbaugh, who parted ways with the franchise after the 2014 campaign. “As one of the most historic franchises in the National Football League, I realize the high standards and expectations that this position demands and I embrace the challenges ahead”, the 52-year-old coach said in a statement. One question for Kelly will be if he elects to go with Colin Kaepernick as his QB. And I think Chip Kelly will be the same way. “And the reason that I say that is, because that’s the impression that they would have gotten from Tom Gamble who was in Philadelphia when Chip Kelly was in Philadelphia and now is in San Francisco”.

Mike Bellotti, the former OR coach and athletic director who was Kelly’s boss for three years, knows little more about Kelly than that he hates green vegetables and loves beer. Kelly is a smart coach but had personnel troubles in Philly and reportedly didn’t really get along with people, so we’ll see whether he’s learned from it.

Plot twist! Kelly might’ve pushed for the job because of Kaepernick. He won a power-grab prior to last season that resulted in a major shake-up of the team, largely for the worst.

The coaching staff under Tomsula hadn’t been dismissed, though York said the new coach would make those decisions upon his hiring. The 49ers were the only team believed to interview Kelly.

However, he was highly criticized for making certain personnel moves like trading LeSean McCoy an All-Pro at running back and sending Nick Foles a quarterback to St Louis for quarterback Sam Bradford.

Back in November, a few weeks after Kaepernick was benched in favor of Blaine Gabbert, a former San Jose Mercury News reporter noted that prices on Kaepernick gear had been slashed.

For the first time since he had the opportunity to coach Michael Vick in 2013, Kelly will find himself with the kind of mobile quarterback who’s best suited for his system.