Chip Kelly is returning to the NFL as the Las Vegas Raiders’ offensive coordinator, a person with knowledge of the decision said Sunday.

Kelly was the offensive coordinator on Ohio State’s national championship team this past season after previously serving as the head coach at Oregon and UCLA as well as the Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers.

This was the second major personnel decision made by new Raiders coach Pete Carroll. He also retained defensive coordinator Patrick Graham last week.

In hiring Kelly, the Raiders will try to spark an offense that was fourth worst this past season with 303.2 yards per game and last in rushing with a 79.8-yard average.

The Raiders’ offensive problems are wide ranging. They failed to adequately replace running back Josh Jacobs, who signed with the Green Bay Packers. The Raiders also lost a game-changer at wide receiver when Davante Adams was traded during the season to the New York Jets.

But there are some areas of optimism. Brock Bowers had a historic season for a rookie tight end, Jakobi Meyers put together his first 1,000-yard receiving season and offensive linemen Jackson Powers-Johnson and DJ Glaze proved to be strong building blocks as rookies along with tackle Kolton Miller.

Kelly established himself as a creative offensive mastermind as Oregon’s offensive coordinator in 2007 and 2008 and then as the Ducks’ head coach the following four seasons. He went 46-7, appearing in the Bowl Championship Series national championship game in the 2010 season and finishing in the top four of the AP poll his last three years.

Kelly then went to Philadelphia for three seasons, going 10-6 each of his first two seasons. He was fired after going 6-9 in 2015.

The 49ers then hired Kelly, who lasted just one season after posting a 2-14 record.

He returned to college football in 2018 at UCLA, but got off to a slow start with losing records in each of his first three seasons. The Bruins went 25-13 over his final three years. He finished 35-34 overall.

Kelly left UCLA after the 2023 season to direct Ohio State’s offense. The Buckeyes rolled through the College Football Playoff, scoring 83 points in the first two rounds before defeating Texas 28-14 in the semifinals and Notre Dame 34-23 in the title game.

BIENIEMY JOINING BEARS AS ASSISTANT

New head coach Ben Johnson continues to progress toward completing his staff as the Chicago Bears will retain tight ends coach Jim Dray and are hiring Eric Bieniemy to oversee the running backs, sources told the Chicago Tribune.

Bieniemy returns to the NFL after serving one season as the offensive coordinator and associate head coach at UCLA. The Bruins parted ways with the former Bishop Amat standout shortly after the season ended. He was previously UCLA’s running backs coach from 2003-05.

He had a one-year run as the offensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders in 2023. Bieniemy was the offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs from 2018-22, taking that position after Matt Nagy left the Chiefs to become the head coach of the Bears. Bieniemy coached running backs for Andy Reid in Kansas City from 2013-17.

At one point, Bieniemy, 55, was considered a potential head coach in the NFL. He was part of two Super Bowl champion teams in Kansas City and also had a successful stint coaching running backs for the Minnesota Vikings.

Dray is believed to be the only position coach from Matt Eberflus’ staff who will remain. He has been with the Bears since 2022.

The only offensive position coach remaining to be hired is an offensive line coach.

Johnson moved quickly to fill the coordinator positions, hiring Declan Doyle (offense) and Dennis Allen (defense) and retaining Richard Hightower for special teams. On offense, Johnson has added coaches Antwaan Randle El (wide receivers), J.T. Barrett (quarterbacks) and Press Taylor (passing game coordinator).

Al Harris has been hired as a secondary coach.

BUCS name new OC

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers promoted pass game coordinator Josh Grizzard to offensive coordinator, replacing Liam Coen.

Grizzard becomes the fourth play-caller for the Buccaneers in four years. The previous two became head coaches after Baker Mayfield had Pro Bowl seasons under their guidance.

Coen was hired by the Jacksonville Jaguars last week. Dave Canales became the head coach of the Carolina Panthers after helping Mayfield revive his career in Tampa Bay in 2023.

Grizzard guided Tampa Bay’s passing attack and oversaw its third-down offense in his first season with the team. The Bucs finished fourth in scoring in the NFL (29.5 points per game), third in yards passing (4,257) and tied for second in passing touchdowns (41).

Mayfield had a career season under Coen and Grizzard, throwing for 4,500 yards and 41 TDs with a 71.4% completion percentage.

Grizzard, 34, was an assistant coach with the Miami Dolphins from 2017-23.

PRO BOWL GAMES

With Olympic flag football three years away, this much is becoming clear: the U.S. team should want a former LSU receiver on its roster.

The four ex-Tigers competing in the Pro Bowl Games in Orlando, Florida scored a combined eight touchdowns in a flag football game that capped the NFC’s third consecutive victory over the AFC, 76-63 on Sunday.

Rookie Malik Nabers of the New York Giants found the end zone twice for the NFC, and Minnesota’s Justin Jefferson also scored. Jefferson caught six passes for 46 yards. Nabers finished with five receptions for 62 yards.

The conference essentially sealed the win by returning two interceptions for touchdowns in the second half. Arizona’s Budda Baker and Minnesota’s Byron Murphy delivered the big defensive plays in a made-for-TV event designed to showcase offense.

Jared Goff, who got the NFC off to a strong start with his near-perfect performance in a skills competition Thursday, completed 10 of 11 passes for 126 yards and three touchdowns. Goff and Murphy earned MVP honors.

Tampa Bay’s Mayfield added three TDs on eight completions for the NFC, his second one going to Nabers.

Former LSU guys in the end zone ended up being the biggest trend in a game that lacked drama.

Cincinnati’s Ja’Marr Chase scored three times, including a 45-yarder from Russell Wilson late, and Jacksonville’s Brian Thomas Jr. added two more for the AFC.

The NFC started the day with a 14-7 lead after six skills competitions worth up to three points each Thursday night. The conference added to its lead by winning the “Great Football Race” and dominated an old-fashioned tug-of-war competition Sunday.

With Dexter Lawrence of the New York Jets, Tampa Bay’s Vita Vea and Seattle’s Leonard Williams anchoring the strength test, the AFC got yanked into a foam pit twice in a best-of-three event.

Dallas Cowboys return man KaVontae Turpin put on a show. NFC coach Eli Manning used Turpin as a pass rusher, and his quickness was evident throughout the game. He pressured quarterbacks regularly, forcing them into mistakes, and seemingly pulled flags with ease. He finished with five tackles, including a sack.

Jacksonville’s Logan Cooke edged Detroit’s Jack Fox wowed teammates and fans in double overtime of “Punt Perfect.” It may have been the most dramatic finish of the Pro Bowl Games.

Cooke and Fox went head-to-head in the first two rounds — with some help from Baltimore cornerback Marlon Humphrey and San Francisco fullback Kyle Juszczyk — and were tied after two rounds. It went to sudden death, where Cooke hit and then watched Fox’s attempt rattle off the rim of one of the six canisters from 35 yards away.