There hasn’t been a huge risk taking coach in the NFL, like Chip Kelly for sometime now — not since the days of Jimmy Johnson and the Dallas Cowboys.
The former Super Bowl winning coach of the Dallas Cowboys would have shut the internet down if social media was around the day he traded Herschel Walker to the Vikings.
Johnson understands the moves Kelly just made, trading Nick Foles and LeSean McCoy, while acquiring DeMarco Murray in free agency.
Johnson told TheMMQB that he helps and advises Chip Kelly, because he really likes him.
“I really like what I have seen out of Chip Kelly. Chip called me and we visited a couple times, and what I heard from him, I liked. No one can say from the outside—right moves, wrong moves. You gotta let ’em play out. You won’t know until you see the results. I felt I was right when I did the things I did, but who knew? I traded away my starting quarterback, Steve Pelluer, to Kansas City. The leading receiver, I don’t remember his name [it was Ray Alexander] we got rid of. I talked to Danny White, and he retired. Then I traded Herschel Walker. You can’t be afraid to make moves. Chip’s not. So some of it is similar. But there is one big difference: We were the worst team in the league two years in a row [1988, 1989]. People were ready for a big change.
“The similarities? We’re both confident, both competent, both know how to win. We talked after he got the new responsibilities this year. I just said, ‘Go with people you believe in, and go with players who fit your personality and fit your system.’ I have talked to Bill Belichick about this too. Certain players are going to be successful in his system and not in others.” […]
“I am a fan of Chip Kelly and I will be a fan of Chip Kelly’s until he proves me wrong. I love his offense, I love his style, I love the nutrition stuff, love his practice schedule, love how he turns over the roster.”