Philadelphia Eagles, Chip Kelly's Investment in Special Teams Pays Dividends

The Philadelphia Eagles couldn’t have come back from a 17-point deficit in Week 1 if it were not for their offense awakening. And the Eagles wouldn’t have survived the upset-minded Jacksonville Jaguars had the defense not been able to hold its ground.

Then again, Philadelphia’s offense and defense could not have pulled off a 34-17 victory at all without a huge effort from the special teams units, either. From place-kicking and punting, to returning and coverage and even rushing kicks, special-team contributions were arguably most responsible for notching a one in the win column on opening day.

Of course, it should come as no surprise that the Eagles would dominate on special teams. Since Chip Kelly’s arrival in 2013, the front office has been on a mission to upgrade every aspect of the unit at the head coach’s behest.

DE Brandon Bair	LB Bryan Braman	CB Nolan Carroll
WR Josh Huff	P Donnie Jones	S Chris Maragos
S Chris Maragos	K Cody Parkey	WR Brad Smith
RB Darren Sproles

The latest additions? Most notably linebacker Bryan Braman and safety Chris Maragos, free-agent signings aimed almost exclusively at improving special teams.

Braman and Maragos are not alone. Almost every player on the roster who isn’t an offensive or defensive starter—and even quite a few of them—made the team because he can help out on special teams in some capacity.

In fact, most of the club’s free-agent acquisitions from the past two offseasons play special teams. Tight end James Casey, wide receiver Brad Smith and cornerbacks Cary Williams, Bradley Fletcher and Nolan Carroll were all signed for their ability on special teams to some extent.

About the only specialist position that hasn’t undergone an overhaul since Kelly’s arrival is long snapper—but long-time veteran Jon Dorenbos is nearly flawless in his execution in that department.

It’s not enough just for Philadelphia’s special teams to be good, though. Kelly seems to be looking for nothing short of dominance in that phase of the game.

If Week 1 was any indication, it’s working. The Eagles probably don’t escape with a win if special teams doesn’t come up with several of a bunch of big plays versus the Jaguars.

PLAYER	ATT	YDS	AVG	LNG
Nolan Carroll (KR)	1	24	24.0	24
Darren Sproles (PR)	4	62	15.5	22

I already touched on Darren Sproles on Monday, but it bears repeating that a punt return helped spark the comeback. His afternoon-best 22-yard runback set up a six-play, 40-yard scoring drive to cut the Birds’ deficit to three. Sproles, acquired in an offseason trade, finished with four returns for 62 yards.

For years, DeSean Jackson excited Philadelphia with his speed on punt returns, but the fact of the matter is he hadn’t broken through with a big punt return in years prior to his release—2010, the "Miracle at The New Meadowlands," to be exact.

Special teams helped jump-start the offense, but the defense had some help in holding the Jaguars to 17 points.

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One reason the unit was able to do its job was punter Donnie Jones. After setting an Eagles franchise record with 33 punts downed inside opponents’ 20-yard line, Jones was at it again in Week 1. Five of six kicks pinned the Jaguars deep in their own territory, putting the 11th-year veteran well on his way to a new record.

Jones was added as a free agent last year and signed to a long-term contract in the offseason. He won NFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors in back-to-back games for the Eagles last season, pinning opponents inside the 20 on 11-of-14 attempts with longs of 69 and 70.

Often going overlooked on Jones’ punts are the gunners and cornerback Brandon Boykin in particular. The 2012 fourth-round pick downed a kick on Jacksonville’s 1-yard line on Sunday, a 12-play drive that ultimately ended in a missed 50-yard field goal.

Boykin may be a star on defense, but he’s just another spoke in the wheel on special teams.

The defense was also made to look better against the Jaguars by a blocked field goal—a play that was no fluke, by the way. A blocked field goal in an exhibition game against the Chicago Bears helped defensive end Brandon Bair clinch a roster spot this summer, so when he did it again in the regular season, nobody should’ve been caught off guard.

The final piece of the puzzle is Cody Parkey. Acquired in an August trade with the Indianapolis Colts, Parkey wound up winning the Eagles’ kicking job essentially by default. That being said, it hasn’t taken long for his impact to be felt.

PLAYER	ATT	YDS	AVG	LNG
Jordan Todman (KR)	2	36	18.0	18
Mike Brown (PR)	3	28	9.3	13

Parkey was 2-of-2 on field goals against the Jaguars, including a fourth-quarter 51-yard field goal to knot the score. He also boomed five of seven kickoffs for touchbacks, while the two that were actually returned out of the end zone made it as far as Jacksonville’s 13- and 14-yard line, respectively.

Those long fields obviously made life easier. Jacksonville didn’t score points on a single possession that began with Philadelphia kicking off.

Do the Eagles manage to outlast the Jaguars in Week 1 if Parkey and Jones and their respective coverage units don’t force the offense to earn its points through long drives? Does the offense get going without the excellent field position produced by quality returns, or without the points from field goals? Perhaps.

However, Philadelphia’s special teams were so stellar that the contributions cannot possibly go overlooked. If any one of the areas mentioned wasn’t operating at maximum capacity, the result of the game may have looked very different.

Ideally, the Eagles will be a little less reliant on special teams to steal wins against inferior opponents going forward. Then again, clearly the focus on improving in this aspect of the game has produced the desired effect.