Michael Vick and DeSean Jacksonshould have set new NFL single-game records for passing and receiving yards in last week's 33-30 shootout with the San Diego Chargers.
The pair just missed on four big plays, including a potential 79-yarder (drop), 69-yarder (just out of bounds) and a 37-yard touchdown that was nullified by an illegal shift penalty. They left roughly 150 yards on the field.
Just what is this Chip Kelly effect that is taking the league by storm?
NFL Media columnist Mike Silver revealed on Thursday's "NFL Total Access Kickoff" that Washington Redskins players were begging the Eagles to ease up on their "ridiculous" pace in the first half of the season opener. One offensive coordinator predicted to Silver that the Philadelphia Eagles' offense will have success all season because defensive coaches will need the offseason to adjust.
It's obvious that opposing teams will have to go back to the drawing board. As we pointed out during the "Around The League Podcast" "Thursday Night Football" preview, Jackson has more receiving yards than the entire Tennessee Titans team combined.
Only 15 players in NFL history have posted more yards from scrimmage through two games than LeSean McCoy's 356. Eagles left guard Evan Mathis and McCoy have earned Pro Football Focus' two highest offensive grades thus far, while Jackson and center Jason Kelce also sit atop the ratings at their respective positions.
What defenses need to adjust to is more than just the frenetic tempo, however.
As ESPN analyst Ron Jaworski explained on "The Tony Kornheiser Show" last week, the Eagles' Week 1 demolition of the Redskins "changed the landscape of the NFL from a philosophical, schematic approach to how the game is played."
Jaworski already has added Kelly's multiple offense to the seven benchmark changes in NFL history that comprised his 2011 book, "The Games That Changed the Game."
Jaworski and NFL Films guru Greg Cosell both have explained that this offense's multiple options on every single play are unprecedented. Whereas Peyton Manning and Tom Brady introduced pre-snap adjustments to manipulate defenses in a slower no-huddle attack, Vick is tasked with making an immediate post-snap read that will determine whether he runs, hands off to McCoy, throws a bubble screen to Jackson, tosses a slant to Jason Avant or hits Brent Celek with a pop pass down the seam.
"What Michael Vick did to London Fletcher on numerous reads was take his strength and make it a weakness," Jaworski said. "An aggressive, downhill, smart, intelligent player was pretty much rendered useless early in the game because all of the options within this scheme that Chip Kelly has designed. So I think it is here to stay."
Kelly often has described his offense in terms of mathematics. Getting the quarterback involved as a running threat means the defense now has to account for 11 players instead of 10, leading to mismatches of three-on-two, four-on-three or five-on-four.
The element of speed comes into play because the quarterback then benefits from a "totally static" view of the defense before the snap, Cosell explained on last week's SI.com's "Audibles NFL Podcast."
While Cosell is hesitant to join Jaworski in declaring this offense revolutionary, it already seems evident that Kelly will spawn a legion of emulators in the next few years.
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