The Philadelphia Eagles may trade up for Marcus Mariota in the 2015 NFL draft, as NJ.com reports that Chip Kelly is already thinking about moves he can make in the first round to get his former Oregon quarterback in Philly and that potenitally means Nick Foles or LeSean McCoy could be traded if they try to move up.
The Eagles currently have the number 20 pick in the first round of the draft and that means they will have hard task if they want to move up to get Mariota. According to a report in NJ.com, the Eagles have already "private discussions" about moving up for Mariota and they could try and do it with multiple moves, with two trades likely being needed. The report says that Kelly thinks Mariota could be a strong fit for his offense in the NFL after working it at Oregon and if he somehow slips past the two few picks, it could motivate the team to trade up even more.
An unnamed source said it would likely take two trades to move up from 20 to get Mariota, but Kelly could think that the move would be worth it. Last season ESPN.com reported that Kelly wasn't "sold" on Nick Foles as the starting quarterback moving forward and now that he has been promoted he could orchestrate this move. Earlier this offseason Kelly was put in charge of personnel decisions, with Howie Roseman now moving to the business side.
The Eagles have all their draft picks for the 2015 event and ESPN.com writer Phil Sheidan suggests the team could potentially trade LeSean McCoy to help get it done. Sheridan wrote that Kelly has been successful with various types of running backs in college and the NFL, including names like LeGarrette Blount, Kenjon Barner, DeAnthony Thomas, Darren Sproles and Chris Polk, meaning he potentially could find ways to replace McCoy's production. On PTI Tony Kornheiser said that if Kelly sees Mariota as the "perfect" fit for his offense, the team should look at trading for him.
The Eagles have won 10 games in each of the past two seasons, making the playoffs once and winning the NFC East division. Kelly has a strong roster returning and if he makes the move for Mariota, there's a good chance the Eagles will be in the mix for the postseason again this year. The team ranked in the top 10 in passing yards and rushing yards per game last season and they have Jeremy Maclin hitting the market after a strong year as one of their top free agents. The defense ranked 31st in passing yards allowed per game and that will be another major focus this offseason.
Kelly has long been enamored with Mariota and he has spoken about him at length during the season, as Kelly often got questions during his Heisman winning campaign. Mariota won the Heisman the year after Jameis Winston and now the two players likely will be taken in the top 10 in the NFL draft. Winston could be the top overall pick and that could start a trade battle with teams trying to move up for Mariota.
