Amid a 2-9 start to the season, the Las Vegas Raiders had to do something to shake things up. Following the 24-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 12, the team decided to fire offensive coordinator Chip Kelly.
This comes less than a year after he won a National Championship with Ohio State, and the Raiders made him the highest-paid coordinator in the NFL. Unfortunately, the Raiders are tied for the lowest scoring offense in the league this season, so Kelly’s offense wasn’t working.
Though defensive end Maxx Crosby plays on the other side of the ball, he has formed a strong relationship with the coach. He was disappointed to see him go, but he understands the decision.
“Chip’s a guy that I’ve had a lot of respect for from afar, and what he has done over his career. Everyone knows that growing up, I was a big Buckeye fan, my dad is a huge Ohio State fan, and so them winning the Natty last year, I was super excited about him coming here,” Crosby said on the “Let’s Go!” podcast.
“When Chip was here, he was always good to me, and we had a cool relationship. Unfortunately, this is a production-based business, and if the offense is struggling, you know, I feel like it’s just, it comes down to, it’s production at the end of the day. The offense has been struggling and felt like, you know, we needed to make a change. So that’s above my pay grade. But at the end of the day, I wish the best for Chip, and I know he’ll be back doing his thing soon.”
Did Raiders Make Right Decision by Firing Kelly?
The Raiders gave Kelly a lot of money because they thought he could be a difference-maker for the offense. That hadn’t been the case thus far, but the team also didn’t give him much talent to work with, especially along the offensive line.
However, Kelly’s playcalling wasn’t working at the NFL level. He’s a strong college playcaller, but the two sports have some key differences. The Raiders couldn’t justify keeping Kelly around with the offense playing so poorly, considering his lack of a track record of recent success in the NFL.
Pete Carroll Explains Kelly Decision
Head coach Pete Carroll could’ve justifiably fired Kelly at multiple points this season, but he was trying to remain patient. After scoring just 10 points against the Browns in another loss, he knew he had to do something.
Carroll explained why it was a difficult decision to finally relieve Kelly of his duties.
“I thought it was too painful where we were, and the play has not been good enough,” Carroll told reporters on Monday. “And I’m really surprised as well that this has happened, but I think our players deserve it, and our fans deserve that we give them our best shot, and that’s what competing is all about. And so, it falls in line philosophically. It’s just a very difficult time to have to do this. And unfortunately, this would not have happened, but we’re 2-9.”
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