It wasn’t long before the Eagles found a backup quarterback after Gardner Minshew left Thursday to sign a free-agent contract with the Indianapolis Colts.
Less than 12 hours later, the Eagles reportedly reached an agreement with 2015 draft pick Marcus Mariota. ESPN first reported the signing early Friday morning. Mariota reportedly signed a one-year deal worth $5 million and potentially worth up to $8 million to serve as Jalen Hurts’ backup.
The Eagles are also adding a cornerback and reportedly reached deals with ex-Cleveland Brown Greedy Williams, a 2019 second-round pick from LSU.
Williams played 11 games and started one last season. He was a full-time starter as a rookie until he injured his hamstring after 12 games. But Williams missed the entire 2020 season with a shoulder injury. He has served as a backup ever since, despite starting 8 games in 2021.
Williams has two career interceptions, both of which came last season. Williams, who is 6ft-2, is expected to bring depth on the outside behind Darius Slay and James Bradberry. Both recently re-signed with the Eagles.
Mariota, on the other hand, seemed destined to become an Eagle in 2015. Back then, former coach and general manager Chip Kelly, who won a power struggle with Roseman that season, made no secret of his desire to sign Mariota.
Mariota had played for Kelly at the University of Oregon and he was considered one of the top two quarterbacks in the draft along with Jameis Winston, who went first to Tampa Bay.
VIOLATE LOGIC:Amazing way Jalen Hurts pending contract helps Eagles retain most top players
ACCOMPANY:Eagles Free Agent Tracker: Minshew mania goes off; Who Supports Jalen Hurts?
So the Eagles, who picked at No. 20, were desperate to trade with the Tennessee Titans, who picked at No. 2 to draft Mariota.
They couldn’t pull it out of the deal. There were reports that Kelly offered the Titans the Eagles their 2015 first and second round picks, their 2016 first round pick, every quarterback on their roster, and every defensive player on their roster.
The defensive end was believed to be Fletcher Cox, entering his fourth season. This season, Cox was selected to the Pro Bowl for the first of six straight seasons. The quarterback could have been either Sam Bradford, whom the Eagles traded just six weeks before the draft, or Mark Sanchez.
The Eagles drafted wide receiver Nelson Agholor in the first round and defenseman Eric Rowe in the second round. Both are still in the NFL, but on different teams.
As it turns out, Kelly was fired after the season and Roseman was reinstated as general manager. The following season, the Eagles put together a big package, rising to #2 to select Carson Wentz as quarterback.
As for Mariota, he started as a rookie for the Titans early in the first week but never made it to the franchise quarterback. He spent his first five seasons in Tennessee, but an elbow injury early in the 2019 season caused him to miss several games. By the time Mariota returned, he had lost his job to Ryan Tannehill, who leveled the Titans to a 7-3 finish and a playoff berth.
The following season, Mariota signed with the Las Vegas Raiders, serving as a backup for Derek Carr. He started 2021 for 10 games in place of the injured Carr. He then went on to join the Atlanta Falcons as a starter last season after Atlanta selected Desmond Ridder in the third round of the draft.
But Mariota was benched late in the season after 13 games. He completed 61.3% of his passes with 15 TDs and 9 interceptions with an 88.2 QB rating. A week later, Mariota was placed on injured reserve with a chronic knee injury. Falcons coach Arthur Smith said at the time that the injury was unrelated to the bench press.
In his career, Mariota has started 74 games, playing 34-40. He has thrown for 15,656 yards and completed 62.6% of his passes with 92 TDs and 54 INTs.
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow @Mfranknofl on Twitter.
This article originally appeared in the Delaware News Journal: Eagles sign QB Marcus Mariota 8 years after almost trading for him
Source : sports.yahoo.com