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San Francisco 49ers: What to Expect from Chip Kelly’s Offense in 2016

By Peter Panacy

Dec 6, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly looks on from the sidelines during the second half against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 6, 2015; Foxborough, MA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly looks on from the sidelines during the second half against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports /
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Sep 20, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterbacks Colin Kaepernick (7) and Blaine Gabbert (2) on the field before playing the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field. The Steelers won 43-18. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 20, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; San Francisco 49ers quarterbacks Colin Kaepernick (7) and Blaine Gabbert (2) on the field before playing the Pittsburgh Steelers at Heinz Field. The Steelers won 43-18. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports /

Which Quarterback Suits Chip Kelly the Best?

Much of the success, or failure, of Chip Kelly’s offensive game plan will revolve around the most important position in all of sports: quarterback.

And the 49ers don’t lack for concern here.

It’s entirely possible San Francisco targets a signal-caller early on in the upcoming draft. Even if that happens though, one shouldn’t automatically assume the 49ers will employ a rookie quarterback to start in Week 1 of 2016.

For now, that leaves us with two plausible options at the position: Blaine Gabbert and Colin Kaepernick.

Kaepernick, who was benched in favor of Gabbert in Week 9, may have his best chance to resurrect his career with Kelly at the helm.

But this may not necessarily be the case, according to NFL Films senior analyst Greg Cosell (h/t Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee):

"[In] the NFL, your quarterback still has to be able to make different kinds of throws and make quick decisions and throw it accurately. Those are not Colin Kaepernick’s strengths. I could easily see Gabbert being more effective in Chip’s offense than Kaepernick. Now one of the problems that Chip has had in the NFL is he likes to get five (pass catchers) out, which increases the pressure on your quarterback. And that’s not Gabbert’s strength. And you need a really good o-line, which he did not have in Philly and which he certainly does not have in San Francisco as we speak right now."

This point would be moot if the 49ers elect to part ways with Kaepernick during the offseason — still a possibility even with Kelly as head coach.

Still, there appear to be more questions than answers surrounding San Francisco’s future at quarterback and how that player will fit under Kelly.

So, perhaps, the best option for the Niners’ new head coach may be to adjust his scheme to the players rather than the players adjusting to his scheme. At least in various aspects.

Regardless of what happens leading up to training camp and the regular season, one should be able to expect San Francisco’s offense to be better than it was last season. Heck, anything would be an improvement over last year.

But we are anything but close to figuring out exactly how effective these improvements will be.

Next: 49ers QB Options for Chip Kelly in 2016

All statistics, records and accolades courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference.com unless otherwise indicated.