NFL Rumors: Four Teams Trying Hard To Trade Up To Draft QB Marcus Mariota
Quarterback Marcus Mariota is in the hot seat, but not for a bad reason. He’s currently the subject of numerous NFL rumors, and there are apparently a number of teams looking at having the young man be their quarterback. Some teams looking to trade up to take Mariota in the 2015 NFL Draft are expected, but others are quite surprising.
Bleeding Green Nation has the Philadelphia Eagles as one of the teams that is still looking to trade up and take Mariota. That’s not surprising at all, considering it’s known that head coach Chip Kelly wants former Oregon players on his NFL roster.
Kelly denies left and right that the Eagles aren’t looking for a quarterback after trading Nick Foles to the St. Louis Rams for Sam Bradford. Everyone knows that Bradford is a huge injury risk, and Kelly is still high on Mariota.
It’s also no secret that the New York Jets are looking for a quarterback after Geno Smith hasn’t really impressed thus far in the NFL. The New York Daily News reports that the Jets had general manager Mike Maccagnan and other higher-ups at a personal workout for Mariota in Oregon on Saturday.
Jets head coach Todd Bowles said that Smith is still on tap to be the starting quarterback over veteran Ryan Fitzpatrick, but a rookie quarterback being drafted could change things.
“We’re spending a lot of time on it. We’ve still got to work (Winston and Mariota) out. We’re going to do our homework on those guys at the top of the draft, but then we’re going to do our diligence on all the guys that could possibly go at No. 6. It’s not just the quarterbacks. It’s all of them.”
Those are the obvious teams that will likely try to trade up for Marcus Mariota, but Music City Miracles says there are others. Two other teams, to be exact. No, the Dallas Cowboys aren’t one of them as other rumors state, but the San Diego Chargers and Washington Redskins are.
While Philip Rivers has been the subject of loose rumors, the San Diego Chargers say he is still their starter and their future. Well, then why is Mariota going to be working out for them in mid-April?
… The Chargers are set to work out Marcus Mariota on April 15. And I’m told the Redskins are setting up a visit for Mariota in Ashburn.
— Albert Breer (@AlbertBreer) March 28, 2015
Yes, the Washington Redskins are the other team that will be bringing in Marcus Mariota for a workout. Even though Robert Griffin III is healed up and looks ready to go, he has underachieved during his time in the NFL, and teams can only wait so long.
Right now, Marcus Mariota is seeming like a much bigger asset than Jameis Winston, but anything can happen in the month before the 2015 NFL Draft. Either quarterback could go number one overall, but four teams — Jets, Redskins, Eagles, and Chargers — are all looking to possibly trade up and take their future play-caller.
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