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Eagles Rumors: Team ‘Bidding Against Itself’ for Marcus Mariota

By Somers Price

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This time Friday, the whole Delaware Valley and its surrounding areas will either rejoice or revolt in the results of Thursday evening’s draft. In recent days, there has been a significant uptick in the speculation that the Eagles will do whatever it takes to jump up towards the top of the draft so Chip Kelly can select his former protegé Marcus Mariota as his franchise quarterback. Depending on the media outlet, the reported price will be steep and probably a difficult pill to swallow, even if the team does get Mariota.

When Kelly was given absolute control over the Eagles roster and personnel decisions, there was the fear that he would wield his new clout in a big way. Sure enough, the Eagles have been the most active team in the NFL’s offseason period of transition and do not appear to be finished. Though there are some who continue to report that the race for the 2nd overall pick involves multiple teams, the overwhelming sentiment is that it’s the Eagles contest to lose.

Because of this, it is possible that the Titans, who own the selection, are trying to drive up the price as much as they can. Those within the organization may or may not be leaking misinformation to the assembled media to try to scare Kelly and the Eagles into upping the ante. Benjamin Allbright, a well-connected draft analyst and radio host in the Denver area, seems to think that this may be the case when it comes to the Eagles.

Given the somewhat luke-warm feelings there are towards Mariota from personnel people not named Chip Kelly, this is a very conceivable possibility. The Chargers have already reportedly taken Philip Rivers off of the trade block, the Browns’ offer of their two first round picks reportedly is not enough, and the Jets haven’t seemed to have the same level of reported interest as the other two teams mentioned. Albright continues to go on about what the Eagles’ decision to give Kelly the power he possesses means in these instances.

No matter how much of an advocate one is of Chip Kelly, it’s impossible to argue with Allbright’s point. This potential trade will cost the Eagles quite a bit, perhaps even more than what the Redskins ponied up to acquire Robert Griffin III in 2012. That being said, it’s not as if the Eagles will be dismantling a Super Bowl contender with a track record of playoff success to do so. This team has very little by the way of postseason success and even less as far as franchise quarterback talent. May this deal blow up in Kelly’s face? Sure. If that does happen, Eagles fans can rest easier knowing that they’ll have achieved just as much with Kelly as they have under any other coach in franchise history.

Update 6:57 p.m.

Albert Breer says this of the offers that the Titans have received thus far.

To be fair, if it’s going to happen, it will happen while the Titans are on the clock. The desperation offer from the Eagles probably hasn’t come yet, and there still is the possibility that the Titans are bluffing on their Mariota interest.

Next: Eagles Reportedly 'Doing All they Can' to Get Marcus Mariota

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