ESPN hires otherwise unemployable Chip Kelly

Image courtesy of Zimbio

Former Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers head coach Chip Kelly won’t be on the sideline this upcoming season. But he will definitely be employed.

ESPN has hired Kelly to become a studio analyst for the upcoming college football season. The network made it official with a press release on Friday.

“Kelly will primarily be part of Saturday pregame, halftime and wrap-up shows on ESPN2. He will also provide NFL analysis on Sundays during SportsCenter,” the announcement read.

Kelly was the 49ers’ head coach this past season, putting up a disastrous 2-14 record before being fired immediately after the team’s final game. Prior to that, he coached the Eagles from 2013-15, posting a combined 26-21 record.

The coach’s knowledge of college football makes him a perfect hire for ESPN. He manned the Oregon Ducks’ sideline from 2009-12, posting an absurd 46-7 record and earning a spot in a major bowl all four seasons.

“Over the last 30 years, I have experienced football from one perspective — as a coach,” Kelly said in a statement. “Working in television will allow me to see the game from a different angle; simultaneously, I’ll provide viewers an insight to the mindset of a coach and team while offering alternative views of various situations.”

It will be interesting to see whether this is just a temporary gig until Kelly finds another coaching job. He was linked to the Atlanta Falcons’ offensive coordinator job after Kyle Shanahan departed to replace Kelly as the 49ers’ head coach. But nothing came to fruition there.