Philadelphia Eagles Set To Trade Up In NFL Draft To Acquire Oregon Quarterback Marcus Mariota?
The Philadelphia Eagles have made some questionable calls this off-season, most notably this past week when they traded star running back LeSean McCoy to the Buffalo Bills for former Oregon linebacker Kiko Alonso. The move was big for the Bills, who needed another running back after the miserable performance they did on the ground last year. Of course, most believe the O-line was at fault, but that is neither here nor there. While the McCoy trade seemed controversial enough, the Eagles aren’t stopping there. Rather, they are potentially going after Oregon Quarterback Marcus Mariota.
There had been rumors for some time that Chip Kelly, former Oregon Head Coach, would go after Marcus Mariota. The issue was, the Eagles seemed to be set at QB for the most part. The reason for recent struggles might be due to an offense that is new to the NFL and the Quarterbacks involved in it. The injury bug also played a factor. Meanwhile, Mariota has worked with Kelly in the past and has excelled in Chip’s system in college.
That would mean he’d be a natural fit for the offense in the NFL, so ideally, Marcus Mariota would be the dream addition to Kelly’s offense. While only rumors for some time, it is now a reality.
According to CBS Sports’ Jason La Canfora, the Eagles are “going to explore” options to try and get Mariota in the NFL Draft next month. La Canfora notes that the Eagles are not alone in love for Marcus Mariota, as the Cleveland Browns are also heavily interested in nabbing him. So it might be a battle between the Eagles and Browns for Mariota soon.
There have been some who speculate that a team that may not need Mariota would draft him, only to trade him for more draft picks to allow for more options in the draft. While this is less likely, there is a big chance that Mariota does not make it out of the Top 5, so if the Eagles want him, they will most likely have to give up a pretty good bit.
It is said that whatever team goes up to get Marcus Mariota would end up giving up a lot for him. Would it be Ricky Williams or Robert Griffin III worthy? Probably not, but there is always that chance depending on how bad a team wants him. The Eagles would love to have Mariota, especially Kelly. However, it would be doubtful that Kelly would want to gut his draft abilities for the next few years.
Historically, whenever a trade occurred involving the giving up of several draft picks, the winner was usually the one coming out with more picks. Take the St. Louis Rams for instance with the RGIII trade. They have added a ton of great talent with the picks given up for Griffin while the Rams have been stuck with an under-performing RGIII who could find it his way out of Washington soon.
The move is risky in more ways than just the obvious draft pick losses. Additionally, this is also a rookie QB being drafted who, while he may be more familiar with the system he is going into, will still be a rookie taking on season veterans, all of whom want to hurt him on a weekly basis. So giving up so much for Marcus Mariota regardless of how great the Heisman winner is would be a big gamble. Is it worth it? We’ll see if it is in April.
[IMG Credits: philadelphia.cbslocal.com, mashable.com]
