Chip Kelly coached two days after the death of his dad.
Will return home to be with mom, who urged son to still take field
CHICAGO — The 49ers’ Chip Kelly coached Sunday’s 26-6 loss despite the death of father, Paul, late Friday night in New Hampshire.
“My mom wanted me to coach,” Kelly told Comcast SportsNet Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco after the team’s 11th consecutive defeat.
Kelly flew from Chicago to New Hampshire on Friday, unable to say goodbye before his father passed. General manager Trent Baalke informed players Saturday morning about the news, and Kelly returned to the team Saturday night, a team spokesman said.
“The thoughts and prayers of the entire San Francisco 49ers organization are with Chip and his family as they face the difficult process of grieving the loss of a loved one,” Baalke said in a statement.
Kelly left Soldier Field in a private car and planned to return to New Hampshire to be with his mother, Jean.
“Understandably, coach will take some time to be with his family before returning to the team this week,” Baalke’s statement continued. “Chip has our continued support as he mourns the passing of his father.”
It’s unknown how old Paul Kelly was or his cause of death. He was a retired trial lawyer who practiced from 1960 to 2000, mostly in Manchester, New Hampshire.
The 49ers got penalized n a season-high 11 times en route to an 11th consecutive loss Sunday. That’s the first issue Kelly brought up in his postgame news conference.
The first penalty Kelly brought up was on rookie Rashard Robinson, who drew an unsportsmanlikeconduct call for making a snow angel in celebration of Dontae Johnson’s recovery of a blocked punt.
“We go over all of (the rules) and it’s not a disciplined play by us,” Kelly said. “We will re-emphasize what we have to do in terms of discipline and poise.”
Robinson’s 15-yard penalty brought Johnson’s return back from the Bears’ 4-yard line to the 19, and the 49ers had to settle for a Phil Dawson field goal and 3-0 lead. Robinson also drew a holding call on a fourthquarter punt return, and he shouted at an unidentified 49ers assistant as he came off the field.
Kelly pointed to two other penalties that crushed the 49ers: a Joshua Garnett holding call that wiped out a 15-yard completion to Shaun Draughn to the Bears’ 18-yard line, and a Tramaine Brock pass-interference call in the end zone to set up the Bears’ first of three touchdown runs by Jordan Howard.
Brock disputed the call and afterward said, while leaving the locker room: “I don’t agree with a few calls. It was what it was. They called it.”
The 49ers had 31 penalties in their first seven games and 46 in the past five.
Shaun Draughn n blocked a punt for the second time in his career, and it set up the 49ers’ first scoring drive. “I went hard to try to get it, turned my shoulder so he couldn’t hold me and kept going toward the punter’s foot,” Draughn said.
Dontae Johnson snagged the ball in the snow-filled air and returned it for an apparent touchdown, but officials ruled he stepped out of bounds at the 4.
Draughn was involved in another key play, as he had a 29-yard run to the Bears’ 15 nullified by a Vance McDonald holding penalty.
The 49ers retained n possession after a review confirmed Jimmie Ward’s fumble recovery on a Bears kickoff return by Deonte Thompson following Phil Dawson’s first of two field goals.
Dawson’s pair of second-quarter n field goals (31 and 28 yards) moved him into a tie with Ryan Longwell for 15th on the NFL’s all-time scoring list (1,687 points).
Stating that a 49-yard field-goal attempt was beyond Dawson’s range in the snowy conditions, Kelly opted to punt and Bradley Pinion pinned the Bears at their 5-yard line. “It paid off for us,” Kelly said. “We got a blocked punt on the next one and it was a field-position change in a field-position game.”
Ahmad Brooks recorded n the 49ers defense’s only sack, his fifth of the season. He now has 501⁄2 sacks in his 49ers career, and the only others in franchise history over 50 are Bryant Young (891/2) and Charles Haley (661/2).
Outside linebacker n Aaron Lynch missed his fifth consecutive game because of an ankle injury.
Wide receiver Quinton n Patton cleared the league’s concussion protocol but had no passes come his way. He was one of six wide receivers active. The only receptions were by McDonald (two), Jeremy Kerley, Carlos Hyde and Chris Harper.