San Francisco 49ers: Enough With The Chip Kelly Back To Oregon Talk

The San Francisco 49ers front office’s inability to supply Chip Kelly with players has resulted in a 1-10 mark. Rumors swirling about Kelly possibly returning to Oregon need to be quashed though, as he has indicated no desire to return.

Jed York put himself in a bad spot before the hiring of Kelly to run the San Francisco 49ers. He had the best coach in Jim Harbaugh when Levi’s Stadium opened. Harbaugh had lit a fire under the team and they responded with three consecutive trips to the NFC title game. Despite falling short of winning a Super Bowl, Harbaugh was the answer to a storied franchise struggling before his arrival.

Despite falling short of winning a Super Bowl, Harbaugh was the answer to a storied franchise struggling before his arrival.

Instead of trusting those who know football, York chose to be involved with personnel rather than staying in his office to handle the business side of the organization. His failures, along with those of Trent Baalke, has sent the 49ers into a downward spiral since Levi’s opened. For York, filling the stadium with concerts or other sporting events seem to concern him more than fixing the turf issues.

In a decision, now coming back to bite York, Harbaugh and the 49ers “mutually agreed” to part ways. Harbaugh now coaches at Michigan where his antics are front and center. No offense to Jim Tomsula but he had no chance after replacing Harbaugh. York and Baalke did the damage that rendered the team lifeless under Tomsula.

With an attempt to reinvigorate the franchise, management hired Kelly to spark a struggling offense. Kelly brought his signature up-tempo offense from Oregon yielding positive results with the Philadelphia Eagles. Unfortunately, he got fired before the end of last season due to off-field problems and the personnel decisions made by Kelly. The Eagles decision is just another example of front office needing to stay out of on-field activities.

Unfortunately, he got fired before the end of last season due to off-field problems and some of his questionable personnel decisions. The Eagles’ decision to fire Kelly is just another example of the front office needing to stay out of on-field activities.

Kelly was aware of the situation in San Francisco when interviewing for the job. For results, he would need the time and the personnel to deliver. However, he did not get any roster depth upon the start of the season. Thus, the 49ers have lost ten straight games since winning the opener at home against Los Angeles.

As the struggles persisted, rumors began to surface, having Kelly returning to college football. Mark Helfrich was feeling the pressure as the Oregon Ducks were having hard luck all season. Injuries piled up for a team already lacking in confidence. With Helfrich feeling the pressure and his seat growing warmer, signs started to point to Kelly possibly returning to the team he helped turn into a national powerhouse.

Oregon is now looking to fill the head coach vacancy after dismissing Helfrich on Tuesday. The final straw was an eight-year win streak snapped by Oregon State in the annual Civil War game. Helfrich could not make his own mark and was overshadowed by Kelly’s accomplishments.

His choice to bring in FCS transfer quarterbacks showed he was desperate to keep Oregon relevant and lacking confidence in the quarterbacks who were recruited to Oregon. Bad recruiting and failed leadership ultimately led to Helfrich’s dismissal.

What seems to be an ongoing story given the 49ers’ struggles has only heated up once again for Kelly. Questions keep on coming at him about whether Oregon has contacted him or he has contacted the university about the opening. Kelly

Kelly has stated repeatedly that he has no interest in the job and his task is to improve the 49ers as their head coach. Not even Phil Knight, the founder of Nike and Oregon’s big booster, can seem to lure him away from the NFL.

If anything, Kelly would likely hire Helfrich in a role with the 49ers. Helfrich served as Kelly’s offensive coordinator at Oregon before taking the job with the Eagles.

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As far as the story goes with Kelly heading back to Oregon, the story ends right now. No matter how many times Kelly gets bombarded by the same questions, San Francisco is where he will remain. The questions though, will probably continue well after Oregon hires their next coach.

Finding a new general manager should be the real ongoing story. Baalke did nothing to help Kelly in his first year, prompting the Oregon rumors to surface as the team struggled.

Perhaps the 49ers will look for a general manager who can work with Kelly to make his plan work.

At 1-10 this season, the record does not reflect the strides being made by the players. The loss of NaVorro Bowman impacted the defense in stopping opponents. Signs of life could be seen last week against Miami, but they ultimately fell short.

If the 49ers want to compete next season, a new quarterback is needed. A quarterback who doesn’t make poor decisions late in the fourth quarter with no timeouts — like trying to run the ball in.

Despite a poor start to Kelly’s tenure, the 49ers will trend upward starting next season. Both Arik Armstead and DeForest Buckner will develop and become leaders defensively. One crucial item on the to-do list though, will be to sign Eric Reid long term.

Depth at wide receiver is an area of need for next season. The starting quarterback — whoever it may be — needs a reliable receiver to throw to next season. Injuries have kept Carlos Hyde from fulfilling his potential when he was originally drafted by San Francisco. Perhaps finding a sturdy backup will help from Hyde having to carry the load and not risk more injuries.

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Chip Kelly deserves to make his mark with the San Francisco 49ers. No more of this going back to Oregon nonsense as he will not be returning to Eugene. Trust in what Kelly has in store for the 49ers.