I have some interest in Carlos Hyde. Terrible team, but I like what Chip Kelly has been able to do with running game. He knows how to draw up stuff that works.
Set aside 2013, when Kelly’s team in Philadelphia led the league in rushing. His offense at that time was novel, and he also had Michael Vick starting some of the games – adding another running dimension to the offense. Let’s set that aside.
Looking just at the last two years, Kelly didn’t have running quarterbacks. He had Foles, Sanchez and Bradford. That eliminates a bunch of the zone-read principles that Kelly uses to make his scheme go (stuff that now will be back in play in San Francisco, where both Gabbert and Kaepernick have mobility).
Anyway, take 2014 and 2015 and look only at running backs. During those two years, only the two Texas teams have run for more yards, and only Kansas City (which also began in that state) has run for more touchdowns.
So in the last two years, Kelly’s offenses in Philadelphia, without the benefit of great personnel, have put up the 2nd-best rushing production in the league.
In San Francisco, Hyde is their back. I think he’ll be very good. Not just a middle-of-the-pack running back to take a flyer on, I think, but a probable top-10 running back.
On this chart below, the "points" are fantasy points, using 6 for touchdowns and 1 for every 10 yards. It shows only rushing production -- no receiving.
| RUSHING PRODUCTIONS SINCE 2014 (RBs) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rk | Team | Att | Yards | Avg | TD | Points |
| 1 | Dallas | 839 | 3,946 | 4.70 | 24 | 538.6 |
| 2 | Philadelphia | 826 | 3,502 | 4.24 | 30 | 530.2 |
| 3 | Kansas City | 698 | 3,125 | 4.48 | 33 | 510.5 |
| 4 | Cincinnati | 795 | 3,402 | 4.28 | 28 | 508.2 |
| 5 | Denver | 777 | 3,380 | 4.35 | 27 | 500.0 |
| 6 | Seattle | 772 | 3,491 | 4.52 | 22 | 481.1 |
| 7 | New Orleans | 733 | 3,067 | 4.18 | 29 | 480.7 |
| 8 | Pittsburgh | 715 | 3,217 | 4.50 | 25 | 471.7 |
| 9 | Minnesota | 750 | 3,214 | 4.29 | 24 | 465.4 |
| 10 | Houston | 898 | 3,537 | 3.94 | 15 | 443.7 |
| 11 | Baltimore | 753 | 3,326 | 4.42 | 18 | 440.6 |
| 12 | Arizona | 766 | 3,101 | 4.05 | 21 | 436.1 |
| 13 | Buffalo | 744 | 3,165 | 4.25 | 19 | 430.5 |
| 14 | New England | 714 | 2,857 | 4.00 | 24 | 429.7 |
| 15 | Atlanta | 718 | 2,859 | 3.98 | 23 | 423.9 |
| 16 | NY Jets | 779 | 3,212 | 4.12 | 17 | 423.2 |
| 17 | Green Bay | 728 | 3,048 | 4.19 | 19 | 418.8 |
| 18 | NY Giants | 806 | 3,075 | 3.82 | 17 | 409.5 |
| 19 | Miami | 624 | 2,788 | 4.47 | 20 | 398.8 |
| 20 | Cleveland | 747 | 2,781 | 3.72 | 20 | 398.1 |
| 21 | St. Louis | 675 | 2,807 | 4.16 | 19 | 394.7 |
| 22 | Washington | 731 | 2,918 | 3.99 | 17 | 393.8 |
| 23 | Chicago | 726 | 2,842 | 3.91 | 18 | 392.2 |
| 24 | Carolina | 725 | 2,915 | 4.02 | 14 | 375.5 |
| 25 | Tampa Bay | 717 | 3,129 | 4.36 | 10 | 372.9 |
| 26 | San Francisco | 664 | 2,558 | 3.85 | 13 | 333.8 |
| 27 | Detroit | 647 | 2,404 | 3.72 | 15 | 330.4 |
| 28 | Indianapolis | 667 | 2,480 | 3.72 | 12 | 320.0 |
| 29 | San Diego | 720 | 2,546 | 3.54 | 10 | 314.6 |
| 30 | Oakland | 636 | 2,464 | 3.87 | 11 | 312.4 |
| 31 | Tennessee | 624 | 2,328 | 3.73 | 12 | 304.8 |
| 32 | Jacksonville | 592 | 2,297 | 3.88 | 12 | 301.7 |
—Ian Allan