Great coaches usually have a vision for a team. Andy Reid wanted a West Coast Offense that could really throw the ball. He wanted a 4-3 defense that was good at zone blitzing. He took STs seriously. Reid preferred big OL and speedy DL.

Chip Kelly also has a vision. It is more specific than Reid’s.

Kelly wants big defenders. He wants Safeties that have good enough cover skills that they can play the slot. Kelly wants tall DL. He wants tall, athletic OL. He needs a Center that has very good movement skills. Receivers should be big, but must be able to block. He prefers downhill runners. STs is a priority.

In terms of scheme, Kelly is going to run his offense (with NFL passing concepts mixed in). He wants a 3-4 defense that 2-gaps. And Kelly wants a no-huddle, up-tempo team. Not just offense. The whole team is built to work at that pace.

Then there is the culture side of things. Reid took some players in the draft that Kelly likely wouldn’t touch. That’s not to pass judgment. Time will tell if Kelly’s ideas work as well as Reid’s. But Kelly is more specific in his vision and so far has been more dogmatic in bringing that vision to life.

I talked about how the team’s showing against the Ravens let’s us see some of Kelly’s vision.

* Dropback QB threw the ball well

* Wave of RBs was productive

* Skilled DBs came up with INTs

* Another big play by STs

I’ve mentioned this before, but in some ways Chip Kelly is the offensive version of Buddy Ryan. Ryan’s number one goal on defense? It wasn’t to stop the offense from scoring. It wasn’t to stop the offense from moving the ball. It wasn’t to hit the QB. It wasn’t to get the ball. Buddy’s number one goal for his defense…score.

Think about that.

Kelly coaches offense so of course he wants to score points. But Kelly has the same mentality as Ryan. Kelly wants the defense to score. He wants STs to score. Any time the ball is snapped on the field, there is a chance to score points.

Kelly has built the Eagles to be aggressive. He has loaded the roster with playmakers all over. Kenjon Barner has 2 PR scores this preseason. And he’s the backup at that spot. Guys like Bryan Braman and Trey Burton aren’t just good STers in terms of coverage and tackling. They are skilled at penetrating and getting pressure on punters. The Eagles didn’t block kicks by accident last year. It was by design. The coaches taught the players how to do it and the team got the right players to execute those ideas.

Score points.

Kelly sees every player on his team as some sort of weapon. Just think about his mentality with WRs and run blocking. Kelly would be furious if the OL did a great job and the RB hit the hole to create a potentially huge play, only to see a DB make the tackle because the WR didn’t do his part. Everyone can affect every play. Think that way. Practice that way. Play that way.

I think the 2015 roster is the best of the Kelly era. This group is also best suited to making his vision come to life. I can’t wait to see how things go this year.

_