Snap Judgement: My Take on Kelly Keeping Vick

Look, I get it.

The guy had five interceptions in his last seven games compared to just six touchdowns. His fumbled it five times as well, which means close to every game he played he put it on the ground. His team's winning record? 1-6 in the games he started. Injuries? His season ended because of one, something Eagles fans have gotten far too used too.

Yup, Nick Foles certainly didn't do much to win over his new head coach last season.

The move to sign Michael Vick might not be a popular one amongst the fans, but make no mistake about it- the decision to bench Foles was likely not a hard one for Chip Kelly.

Foles was average at best last season. Yes it was his rookie season, but outside of his comeback win against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, he had very few moments where you watched him and said "Yes, he's the guy." How many special moments did he have? Not complete games, but just plays. A handful at best? His 60% completion rate was good, and he had over 300 yards in his final game while nursing a broken hand. He was not, however, so good that Kelly could not even entertain the idea of benching him for another year.

The Vick extension is another one-year try out. If Vick does not get the job done, it's very possible the Eagles could go back to Foles. Maybe Kelly wants to give Foles a year to learn his offense and not throw a 2nd year player out there with a new offense for the second straight year. Or it could be that Kelly didn't like what he saw from Foles. If that's the case, you can't really blame him.

I would not buy into the idea that this move was in anyway a move to make Vick more tradable. Let's not forget that Vick agreed to this extension. Why would Vick let the Eagles control his fate when he could have been a free agent by just refusing to restructure? I also don't think that Vick would have signed up for a competition. Vick has met with Kelly and talked about next season, how he fits in, and what his role would be. Unless those discussions were about anything other than "Your my guy, you'll start", Vick likely would not have signed.

Even if Kelly did tell Vick it would be an open competition, something tells me Vick is not afraid of having to beat out Foles. If you think Vick looks at Foles and worried for one minute he wouldn't beat him out, you don't know Vick. And he is right- if the competition is open, he will beat out Foles.

Bringing back Vick gives the Eagles the best chance to win right now- and for a coach that is used to winning big time at Oregon, that is appealing. The idea of sitting Foles for another year is not any reason to jump down Kelly's throat. Lets not act like Foles has earned this job or played so great last season the mere idea of moving on from him is worth an uproar.

I'll also say this- let's give Chip Kelly a chance. This isn't Andy Reid stubbornly sticking with a player or an offensive scheme. This is Kelly coming in with no agenda and deciding he wants to keep Vick around. If you were excited about getting Kelly, you have to give him the benefit of a doubt on this.

Time will tell if it's the right move. But if Vick does stat for the Eagles next year, let's not act like Foles sitting on the bench is a tragedy- or a mistake.

Follow Eliot Shorr-Parks