The San Francisco 49ers introduced Chip Kelly as the team's new head coach, and the press conference questions hit on a lot of big topics. We'll have the full transcript later, but I wanted to get updates on a couple notable topics out of the way.
Play-calling
Kelly had a great joke that did not get nearly enough laughs. When asked if he would call plays, he said he would call the good plays, and the offensive coordinator would call the bad plays. He then confirmed that he would call the plays from the sidelines. He also clarified that there would be extensive discussion and preparation among the coaches during the week to prepare for the various situations. As he put it, he would not just be pulling plays out of a hat.
Tom Rathman returns
Kelly confirmed that Tom Rathman will return for the coming season, calling him the best running backs coach in the NFL. He could not confirm other coaches, but said the plan was to get the staff figured out over the next week or so. He said they would attempt to update the media as each coach signed their contract, and make them available. There are no guarantees, but we'll at least get some updates sooner rather than later.
Personnel control
As expected, Kelly got a question about personnel control. He was very clear in stating that Trent Baalke would have full control over the 53-man roster. He said he was comfortable with that arrangement, and he would not have joined the team if he was uncomfortable with that situation. There has been some speculation that he would have say in the quarterback position, but he would not go into details.