Philadelphia Eagles: An Early Look at Potential 2015 Schemes and Best Draft Fits

It's been less than a month since the Philadelphia Eagles saw their disappointing 2014 season end, yet it already feels like it's going to be one of those crazy offseasons. 

It began when the Eagles mutually parted ways with vice president of player personnel Tom Gamble just three days after the end of the season. Gamble recently rejoined the San Francisco 49ers as their senior personnel executive. 

That wasn't all, though. After a power struggle between general manager Howie Roseman and head coach Chip Kelly, owner Jeff Lurie announced that Kelly had full control of all roster decisions, per Eliot Shorr-Parks of NJ.com. Roseman was demoted to vice president of football operations, a move that no longer includes scouting and drafting. 

A four-week search for Kelly's right-hand man concluded on Thursday, when the Eagles named Ed Marynowitz their vice president of player personnel, per Zach Berman of The Philadelphia Inquirer. Marynowitz, who previously worked as the assistant director of player personnel under Gamble, is just 30 years old. He has some previous success with recruiting at Alabama, and it will be his job to help Kelly build the team through free agency and the draft. 

Other than the front office, however, the Eagles didn't make many major coaching changes. Offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur interviewed for the Oakland Raiders' head coaching position, but ended up staying in Philadelphia. Wide receivers coach Bob Bicknell was blocked by the Eagles from interviewing for the San Francisco 49ers' offensive coordinator position. 

The Eagles also delegated Ted Williams, their longtime running backs/tight ends coach, to the scouting department. He was replaced on the coaching staff by Justin Peelle, a nine-year NFL tight end who served as the assistant tight ends coach the previous two seasons. 

The big change on the offense involved quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave, who did leave for the Oakland Raiders' offensive coordinator position. Musgrave was replaced by Ryan Day, who both played and coached with Kelly at the University of New Hampshire. Per Reuben Frank of CSNPhilly, Day is the first quarterbacks coach for the Eagles in at least four decades with no previous NFL experience as a player or coach. 

This marks the fourth straight year that the Eagles will have a new quarterbacks coach. In 2012, Doug Pederson coached a rookie Nick Foles and veteran Michael Vick before leaving to join Andy Reid as the offensive coordinator in Kansas City. In 2013, Bill Lazor helped to coax a record-setting season from Foles before leaving to join the Miami Dolphins as their offensive coordinator. Then there was Musgrave in 2014, whose combination of Foles and Mark Sanchez combined to lead the NFL in interceptions, and in 2015, it will be Day tutoring Foles. That is, unless the Eagles go all in during the draft for Kelly's former college quarterback, Marcus Mariota. 

For the Eagles, the main focus on offense should be cutting down on turnovers. It's become apparent that Kelly's offense will find a way to score points even if they do turn the ball over, as the offense (with 11 return touchdowns thrown in) ranked third in the league with 474 points scored in 2014. So how many points can the Eagles score if they can reduce their turnovers?

The key is establishing the ground game, which was dominant in 2013 and subpar in 2014. And the key to the ground game is the health of the offensive line, where the five members started all 85 games in 2013 but missed a combined 23 starts in 2014. 

Through the draft, the Eagles likely don't need to add any starters on the offensive side of the ball. They could definitely use an upgrade at the No. 2 receiver, but hopefully Kelly chooses to replace veteran Riley Cooper with last year's rookie Jordan Matthews (moving Josh Huff into the slot). And they could use a better option at right guard, where veteran Todd Herremans missed the final eight games of the season. But it makes sense for the Eagles to bring back Herremans for one more season in 2015, possibly with a restructured contract. 

The Eagles should look to add depth on the offensive side of the ball, possibly another quarterback like Bryce Petty or Brandon Bridge, a running back like Jay Ajayi, a deep threat at wide receiver like Kevin Lockett and/or a couple of offensive linemen like Jake Fisher or Reese Dismukes. 

But the offense wasn't the problem for the Eagles in 2014, even with all of the turnovers. After all, 474 points is still the most the team has ever scored in one season. With improved quarterback play by Foles and fewer injuries on the offensive line, the Eagles have a real chance to reach 500 points for the first time in team history. 

On the defensive side of the ball, the Eagles likely could have justified firing defensive coordinator Billy Davis, whose unit has ranked 17th and 22nd in scoring in his two seasons at the helm. But Davis will return for at least one more season.

The only change among defensive coaches was the firing of defensive backs coach John Lovett. Under Lovett, the Eagles allowed 30 touchdowns against just 12 interceptions. Cornerbacks Cary Williams and Bradley Fletcher and safety Nate Allen could all be replaced as starters before the 2015 season. 

Lovett was replaced by Cory Undlin, who coached the defensive backs in Denver for the last two seasons. In 2014, Undlin helped cornerbacks Chris Harris and Aqib Talib and safety T.J. Ward earn Pro Bowl selections. He'll try to revamp the Eagles secondary in 2015, which will likely consist of at least one rookie starter and one free-agent starter. 

As far as schemes go, the Eagles won't be making many changes, if any, before the 2015 season. Davis' 3-4 defense and consistent subbing of his defensive players helped the Eagles record 49 sacks, with significant contributions from six different players. Although veterans Brandon Graham, Trent Cole and DeMeco Ryans could all end up leaving, the Eagles will likely spend the majority of their draft picks on the defensive side of the ball... that is, if they don't move up in the draft to acquire Mariota. 

Some likely draft candidates for the Eagles on the defensive side of the ball include defensive end Arik Armstead, inside linebacker Denzel Perryman, outside linebacker Lorenzo Mauldin, cornerback Jalen Collins and safety Kurtis Drummond. Any of the above candidates would have a legitimate chance to start too.

It's way too early to predict how a team will do next season, but on paper, the Eagles look like a prime candidate to finish with at least 10 victories for the third straight season.