Jason La Confora of CBS Sports is convinced Oregon Ducks quarterback prospect Marcus Mariota, who won the 2014 Heisman Trophy, is going to be taken No. 2 overall in the upcoming NFL Draft. The Tennessee Titans have the pick, but that doesn't mean Mariota should be house shopping in Nashville.
La Confora believes a number of teams are in the mix, and several of them are eyebrow-raising.
"I could see any number of a half-dozen teams using this selection on the Oregon quarterback, including the Titans, who currently have it," La Confora wrote. "But Tennessee doesn't seem married to that idea by any stretch and the Rams, Saints, Eagles, Browns or Chargers could end up in this spot to take the quarterback. Regardless, I hold firm to the belief that quarterbacks go 1-2, as they did in 2012. It's a two-quarterback draft and need prevails."
While teams like the Titans or New York Jets seem like fits because their quarterback situations are in flux, Mariota may not be an elite option right out of the gate because of his lack of experience with pro-style offenses. La Confora's speculation lends to a train of thought that's more old school-letting the young gun sit on the sidelines with a clipboard and learn the game.
The New Orleans Saints were mentioned by La Confora even though they have former NFL MVP Drew Brees at the helm. Brees has seen this story unfold before; the Chargers drafted Philip Rivers with Brees as the starter, then sped up the transition when Brees injured his shoulder late in the 2005 season.
The Chargers, who have to decide whether or not to lavish Rivers with another massive contract that will likely take him to the end of his career, might decide to not go down that path, draft Mariota, and party ways with their nine-year starter. In those nine years since assuming the starting job, Rivers has never missed a start.
The Eagles present a different scenario; Chip Kelly was Mariota's coach in college and still runs the same system, so Mariota would be a plug-and-play option. For the Jets and Titans, however, they'd be foolish to expect something approaching the 42-touchdown, four-interception showing he had at Oregon this past season because of the vast difference in speed of the game, and in the system he'll be running.
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