Morning Phil-Up: Is Chip Kelly Still Chasing Marcus Mariota?

Maybe Chip Kelly Is Still Chasing Mariota – Philly.com

On Wednesday afternoon, Chip Kelly supposedly put to bed any talk of the Eagles going all-out to acquire his college quarterback, Marcus Mariota.

However, some signs still point to the Eagles looking in to making a move for the talented quarterback.

The Eagles were present for Mariota’s Pro Day, and sat down to have a conversation with the top prospect. What does it all mean? If Kelly and company are truly committed to Sam Bradford, then why is the team still having conversations and looking into the status of the Oregon product.

More than likely, this is just the team doing their due diligence.

The Eagles must be prepared for any scenario that might present itself leading up to the draft, and in the event that Mariota were to slide down the draft board or another team looking to trade back were to approach the Eagles with a decent offer, the Birds need to have some plans in place to be prepared to act.

It’s All About Mindset For Jesse Biddle – CSNPhilly

Former first-round pick Jesse Biddle has gone from being one of the top arms in the Phillies’ farm system to becoming a giant question mark after struggling mightily in minor leagues last year.

Things got so bad for Biddle that Phillies decided just to shut him down for the year and get him away from the game in order to clear his head.

Biddle has returned to spring training with a fresh approach, and a new mindset that he hopes will lead to more success on the mound. The lefty had been trying to simplify the game, and focus simply on throwing strikes, and throwing quality ones.

Team officials have spoken well of Biddle’s performance so far in camp, and are optimistic again about his future.

There’s no pressure on Biddle to make a jump to the big leagues this year, so the former top pick should be able to spend the year rediscovering his game.

Is Chip Kelly A Mighty Duck Or Just A Quack? – Philly Voice

In the wake of all of the wild and unpredictable moves made by the Eagles this winter, many have to come to question whether or not Chip Kelly is truly going to provide long-term success for this franchise.

While Kelly the head coach has proven to be a pretty bright guy and one who is capable of designing an offense that can move the football and put up points, Chip Kelly the general manager has made a number of moves that have caused the fanbase to question his sanity.

The sense that I get is that Kelly is not going to be the success that many hope he will be.

I don’t agree at all with the direction Chip has taken this team over the last two years. The Eagles had such a strong, productive offensive core with Nick Foles, LeSean McCoy, DeSean Jackson, and Jeremy Maclin. This wasn’t a group that needed to be blown apart, and if the team had simply focused on building up the defense and adding some more complimentary pieces to the offense, they’d be much closer to a Super Bowl than they currently are.

Chip may soon be in for a rude awakening that he can’t just plug-and-play whoever he wants in his system, especially at the wide receiver position.

Notes From Marcus Mariota’s Pro Day – Birds 24/7

Sheil Kapadia of Birds 24/7 compiled a collection of tweets and reactions to Marcus Mariota’s Pro Day.

Mariota drew mixed reviews, with some stating that he was underwhelming and appeared nervous, while at least one report said that he threw some excellent passes.

But for the most part, the reactions to Mariota’s workout trended more towards the negative side.

That’s good news for those holding out some hope that the Eagles will still find a way to make a move to acquire Mariota. With a poor showing today, the idea would be that some of the top teams could be put off form taking Mariota.

However, I don’t think one bad workout is enough to scare teams away. Teams are always desperate to find their answers at quarterback. There are years where underwhelming prospects like Jake Locker, Christian Ponder, and Blaine Gabbert will all be top draft picks, it can be assured that Mariota will still find his way into the top 15 picks.