When I was scouting the quarterback prospects in the 2012 NFL Draft, it was obvious that RGIII and Andrew Luck were the two top prospects, regardless of the order that you had them. Another player caught my eye during my film study and he was under the radar. Nick Foles’ film during his career at Arizona was very impressive, especially being as though he didn’t have supreme talent around him offensively. I saw a quarterback with prototypical NFL size, more than enough arm strength, good accuracy, great field vision, solid decision making and the best anticipatory skills in the draft. When I gave him a second round grade and said he was the third ranked QB in the draft, I was killed by so called experts, but I stuck to my guns and trusted what my eyes saw. After his first two years as a pro, with sixteen starts under his belt, Foles has proven me thus far to be correct in my evaluation of him.
Foles got his feet wet during his rookie season in 2012. He played in seven games and started six of them on the field with a team that basically quit on former head coach Andy Reid. Foles went 1-5, while completing 161 of his 265 passes for 1,699 yards, 60.8%, six touchdowns and five interceptions. Reid threw him into the fire, allowing the rookie quarterback to air it out as shown by how he attempted more then thirty passes in all but one of the games that he played. He threw for more then two hundred yards five times, including 381 yards versus Tampa Bay and 345 yards against the Redskins. When you look at the circumstances, Nick Foles did pretty well, he made some mistakes, but when studying the coaches tape weekly, you could see him getting better.
When the Eagles hired Chip Kelly as their head coach heading into the 2013 offseason, there was this notion that Nick Foles didn’t fit into “The Chip Kelly System” because he wasn’t a running quarterback. Kelly said that having a quarterback who was accurate, made quick decisions, and took care of the football was what he was looking for. Plenty of people in sports media thought Mike Vick had the upper hand because of his running ability, but I wasn’t one of those guys. To win in the NFL, you need a quarterback who throws accurate strikes from within the pocket, and Vick had proven over the last two seasons that he wasn’t that guy. Vick and Foles both played well during the preseason, but Chip Kelly made the decision to go with Vick as the starter.
The Eagles started the season 1-3 with Vick at the helm. In week five versus the Giants, he left the game in the second quarter with a hamstring injury and Foles took over, completing 16 of 25 passes for 197 yards, two touchdowns, leading the Eagles to a 36-21 victory. Foles never gave up the starting job, going 8-2 with over 3000 yards passing, twenty-five touchdowns, only two interceptions as he lead the Eagles to the NFC East title and a home playoff game versus the New Orleans Saints in the Wild Card Round. Looking at Foles stats alone, you would think that he had a great game, but going back and looking at the All-22 tape, he missed some throws, and also missed some guys who were open. The Eagles only converted 3 of 12 third downs in the game. Even still, he drove his team down the field for a touchdown to take the lead 24-23 with 4:54 seconds left to play.
Foles greatly exceeded expectations in 2013, but now that the Eagles are coming off a ten win season and a division title, the target is now on the third year QB’s back. In their second year under Kelly, even after finishing second in the NFL in total offense, you would expect Foles to have a better grasp of the offense, and the defenses he will face in 2014. Teams now have twenty games of film on Foles to watch, along with a season’s full of tape of Chip Kelly’s offense. That along with the tougher schedule(On Paper), could make things difficult for the Eagles in 2014. The Eagles face the NFC West, the NFL’s toughest division, home of the reigning Super Bowl champs, the Seattle Seahawks along with San Francisco 49ers, Arizona Cardinals, and St. Louis Rams. All four NFC West teams finished in the top 15 in yard allowed and scoring defense in 2013. Also on the schedule are the Indianapolis Colts, Green Bay Packers, Houston Texans, and Carolina Panthers.
Going into his third year of his four year rookie contract, and by rules in the current CBA, Foles could receive a new deal at the end of the 2014 season,meaning this season is huge for him money wise. Colin Kaepernick signed a six year contract that could possibly pay him up to 126 million dollars, with an NFL record 61 million guaranteed, thus setting the bar for quarterbacks like Foles, Andy Dalton, Cam Newton, RGIII, and Andrew Luck. Obviously Kaepernick has accomplished more to this point the Foles has, but with a big year statistically, another NFC East championship, and a playoff win, the Eagles young QB could prove he is the franchise’s guy and worth a long term deal. It’s all up to him, bottom line, if he performs well, and the Eagles take another step towards winning a Super Bowl, he will be compensated greatly.
