It will be nice just 12 hours from this posting when the Marcus Mariota rumors will be over with. Because that's when Mariota will have been drafted, by somebody. And plenty of smart, connected people think that somebody will be the Philadelphia Eagles.
This story from Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer says only that you shouldn't count Chip Kelly out. Other reports have the Eagles giving up two firsts, a second, and a package of players to move from No. 20 up to No. 2 with the Tennessee Titans, selecting Mariota and building the offense around him.
"It would be foolish to think Kelly won't try to get him," says McLane.
The Titans arguably have the worst roster in the league; one of the worst, certainly. Getting multiple first-round picks and viable starters (linebacker Mychal Kendricks and defensive end Fletcher Cox) have to be appealing to them, especially if they do in fact like Zach Mettenberger as their quarterback.
As McLane notes, Mariota is not a sure thing, and his best chance for success may well be in Kelly's system -- not Ken Whisenhunt's. Few think the Titans would be dealing away the next Andrew Luck.
Another development this morning was Adam Schefter reporting the Chargers will not be trading Philip Rivers. So they're out of the race for the No. 2 pick. The Browns may have been offering two first-round picks, but they can't/won't offer the player package the Eagles will. We already know that Kelly ships out players like takeout boxes.
If in fact the Eagles do trade up for Mariota, the next move would probably be Sam Bradford going to Cleveland, perhaps for the second of those first-round picks. Or maybe that pick goes to the Titans in a three-team deal.
Draft kicks off in a little over 11 hours.
--Andy Richardson