When Nick Foles was granted his release from the Los Angeles Rams last week, speculation immediately turned to a reunion with Chip Kelly in San Francisco.
Speaking on KNBR-AM's "Murph and Mac Show" Monday morning in San Francisco, Kelly made it clear that his 49ers will not be adding Foles to the quarterback competition between Colin Kaepernick and Blaine Gabbert.
"I'm a big fan of Nick, but right now our eggs are in Kap and Blaine's basket, and we're going to see what those guys can do," Kelly explained, via Comcast SportsNet Bay Area's Matt Maiocco.
"And (we're) very confident in those guys and it has really nothing to do with Nick, but it has to do a lot with both Blaine and Kap, in terms of where they are and giving them an ample shot at being the quarterback. I think if you have three guys in the mix, it gets really diluted and now you're not going to get enough reps for anybody to make a determination of who the quarterback is going to be."
Kelly's comments come as no surprise.
By midseason of 2014, though, reports surfaced that Kelly's regime had soured on Foles as the long-term solution in Philadelphia. The No. 88 pick in the 2012 NFL Draft displayed poor footwork, scattershot accuracy and questionable decision-making, ultimately leading to his trade for Sam Bradford in 2015. Those shortcomings continued to haunt Foles in St. Louis last season.
The 49ers aren't the only quarterback-needy team to shy away from Foles.
Despite their aspirations as a playoff contender with an overmatched Kellen Moore as the top backup to Tony Romo, the Cowboys have stated they have no interest in Foles as veteran insurance.
Perhaps Foles will find a home with the Chiefs under Andy Reid, the coach who drafted him and later tried to trade for him in Kansas City.
