No one has a better idea of what's behind Nick Foles' (Arizona) recent struggles than coach Chip Kelly, and he offered a detailed assessment of his star-crossed quarterback when he met with reporters Monday.
One of the most obvious issues has been Foles is sitting on his back foot on passes, and not stepping through the throw with authority. The best sports analogy might be that of a basketball player failing to follow-through on a jump shot. Kelly chalked that up to Foles not getting his feet set because he's too busy dodging pass rushers in the pocket. And said defenders are appearing from unexpected places.
"I think its fixable," Kelly said. "Its just a matter of drill work, fundamentals, do a lot of movement drills, (quarterbacks coach) Bill (Musgrave) does a really nice job with him from that standpoint.
"We just got to get him to where hes real comfortable in there and sometimes guys are coming clean or coming off at times that you didnt expect. It may have been a three-technique that beat the guard, so hes got to slide-step. Usually you kind of understand that when theres a blitz coming, you know where the unblocked guy is coming from. But sometimes when you think its going to be solid but you feel a little bit of pressure and you step into your right or step into your left, you just need to do a little bit better job of getting your feet set before you throw the football."
Over his last two games, a road loss to the 49ers and Sunday's 34-28 home win over the Rams, Foles is connecting on only 56.3 percent of his passes for 302 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions. His passer rating is an average of 64.25 (out of a possible 158.3) over that stretch.
Kelly admitted his quarterback has been under greater duress through the first five games than he was in a record-setting 2013, when he threw 27 touchdowns to just two interceptions. Part of that is likely because the offensive line is missing two standout starters, left guard Evan Mathis and center Jason Kelce, and right tackle Lane Johnson is still re-adjusting after sitting out the first four games with a drug suspension.
"I dont think we got as much pressure last year, to be honest with you," Kelly said. "But I still think its a combination of things. Sometimes its just little, fundamental things and we all got to go back to work and I think he understands that."
