Kick the Can

It looks to me like Chip Kelly has been paying attention to Sixers’ GM Sam Hinkie and the way Hinkie does business. In fact, it looks like he’s been paying close attention.

Charles Ponzi

In case you missed it, on more than one occasion, Sam Hinkie’s M.O. has been compared to a Ponzi Scheme by at least three of the best sports authorities the City of Philadelphia has even known:

1. Fox 29 & WIP’s Howard Eskin
2. NY, Philly & national sports-talker Jody McDonald
3. Blame My Father Football Outsider Barry Bowe

In addition to those three, national basketball pundit Brian Geltzeiler has said the same thing – but used other words.

“And my problem, more than anything else, is that asset accumulation is fine, but asset accumulation has to at one point stop and has to become about winning basketball games. And what Sam Hinkie’s done is that he’s just continued to kick the can down the road – and there comes a certain point in time where that doesn’t work anymore.” – Brian Geltzeiler

The advantage to playing kick the can is that Sam Hinkie continues to delay the starting point from when he’ll be held accountable for his on-the-job performance.

In essence, he’s building his own job security by putting lousy teams on the court.

Since Hinkie came to town, the Sixers’ record looks like this:

• 2013-2104 – 19-63
• 2014-2015 – 18-64

The 2015-2016 season looks like more of the same – and it’s recently become public that Hinkie’s plan is a seven-year plan to make the Sixers a competitive team. Pardon my French but – for Christ’s sake I could build a competitive team in less than seven years without tanking season after season and making the Sixers the laughingstocks of the NBA.

Quarterback Friendly

Chip Kelly would like the world to believe that he can transform any quarterback into a quarterback capable of leading his team to the Super Bowl. The universal term being applied to this notion is that Chip Kelly’s system is “Quarterback Friendly.”

Yet – if that were the case – why would Kelly trade a quarterback who threw for 27 TDs with only 2 INTs just two years ago?

The Eagles drafted Nick Foles in the third round of the 2012 NFL draft with the 88th overall pick. His rookie contract was a four-year deal for $2,768,520 total – which included a guaranteed signing bonus of $543,250 distributed equally over the first three years:

• 2012 – $390,000 base salary + $135,880 signing bonus = $525,880
• 2013 – $500,000 base salary + $135,880 signing bonus + $20,000 workout bonus = $655,880
• 2014 – $615,000 + $135,880 signing bonus + $20,000 workout bonus = $770,880
• 2015 – $1,522,000 base salary + $20,000 workout bonus = $1,542,000

Power Struggle

During the off-season Chip Kelly initiated, orchestrated, and won a power struggle that ousted Howie Roseman as the Eagles’ GM and exiled Roseman into the bowels of the NovaCare Complex. On the winning end of that struggle, Chip Kelly took complete control of football operations.

In the opinion of one particular Eagles Outsider, Chip Kelly isn’t yet capable of being a good GM – let alone simultaneously being a capable combination head coach and GM. It seems to me that he’s neither a good judge of NFL talent, nor is he a good bargainer at the negotiation table.

On the other side of the Nick Foles trade, the Eagles acquired a quarterback who hasn’t played in an NFL game since he lost 30-15 to the Carolina Panthers on October 20, 2013.

Let’s compare their records:

• Sam Bradford’s record as a starting QB in the NFL is 18-30-1.
• Nick Foles’ record as a starting QB in the NFL is 15-9-0.

Pretty much one-sided – advantage Foles.

And comparing their salaries:

• Sam Bradford’s salary for 2015 is $12,985,000.
• Nick Foles’ salary for 2015 – as mentioned above – is $1,542,000.

Again pretty much one-sided – advantage Foles.

But Chip Hinkie didn’t see it that way. So he not-so-shrewdly hoodwinked the Rams into taking a second-round draft pick to agree to the trade.

And let’s not forget that Sam Bradford has refused to negotiate a contract extension with the Eagles. So next year, it just could be that Chip Kelly will be looking for another new starting quarterback– and oh, yeah, starting over again in his fourth season. Sounds like more Hinkie-ism.

On the other hand, Rams GM Les Snead says that it’s “definitely realistic” that the Rams will re-up Nick Foles to a long-term contract.

Believe it or not, there is sentiment out there that the first two years of Chip Kelly’s regime don’t count. Since he’s just now become the head coach and GM, his measuring stick starts with the upcoming season and the first two years were mulligans while he voided many of Andy Reid’s players so he could bring in his own.

Injured Players

Both GMs seem to share a predilection for acquiring injured headliners:

• Nerlens Noel
• Joel Embiid
• Sam Bradford
• Kiko Alonso

Five QBs

Chip Kelly has five quarterbacks on the roster – although one is now masquerading as a running back and/or wide receiver – who have little or no chance of leading the Eagles to the Super Bowl:

1. Sam Bradford
2. Mark Sanchez
3. Matt Barkley
4. Tim Tebow
5. G.J. Kinne

Man, I hope I’m wrong, but I see doom and gloom at the quarterback position this season – and the persona responsible for that is Chip Hinkie.

Remember – you heard it here.

Barry Bowe is the author of:

• Born to Be Wild
• 1964 – The Year the Phillies Blew the Pennant
• 12 Best Eagles QBs
• Soon-to-be-published sexy, police procedural Caribbean Queen