Marcus Mariota is a Philadelphia Eagle, Finally

Marcus Mariota is a Philadelphia Eagle, finally. With the stache, Gardner Minshew, heading to the Indianapolis Colts this offseason, the Birds were in the market for a reliable backup quarterback. The Eagles signed Mariota over other options including Jacoby Brissett (CLE) and Teddy Bridgewater (MIA). On paper, Mariota is the best quarterback to play behind Jalen Hurts, but that’s not what makes this signing interesting.

A Chip Down Memory Lane

8 years ago, Chip Kelly was coming off of his second consecutive 10-win season as coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. Heading into his 3rd year, Kelly had an opportunity to be reunited with his star QB from the Oregon Ducks, the team he coached before jumping over to the NFL. That QB was none other than Marcus Mariota.

Kelly tried everything to move up in the 2015 draft to select Mariota at #2 overall. Here’s what he was willing to give up:

• Eagles first round pick in 2015 – #20 overall
• Eagles second round pick in 2015 – #47 overall
• Eagles first-round pick in 2016
• Any quarterback and/or defensive player on their roster including Fletcher Cox

Fortunately for us, Tennessee decided to keep the 2nd overall pick and draft Mariota. Funny thing–our 1st and 2nd round picks in 2015 ended up being Nelson Agholor and Eric Rowe, respectively. Neither of whom are still on the team.

Failed to Live Up to the Hype

Marcus Mariota has been inconsistent as a starting quarterback in the NFL. His first stint as a starting QB was after being drafted by the Tennessee Titans. Mariota went 29-32 in the regular season (with 1 playoff win) over 5 years as the Titan’s starter before ultimately losing his job to Ryan Tannehill. Mariota got a second shot as a starting QB last year with the Atlanta Falcons where he went 5-8 before being benched for rookie Desmond Ridder. Overall, Mariota is 34-40 as a starter in the NFL, not great.

A Great Fit as QB2 for the Eagles

Jalen Hurts is the franchise quarterback and future of the Philadelphia Eagles. So much of the offense revolves around him making it critical for the Birds to have a solid backup in place should Hurts miss a few games. The Eagles believe Mariota can come in and win a few games in relief and are paying him as such with 1-year, $5 million, deal.

Furthermore, Marcus Mariota already has ties with the Eagles:

• Eagles tight ends coach Jason Michael was Mariota’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in Tennessee for a total of 4 seasons
• Eagles quarterbacks coach Alex Tanney was Mariota’s teammate on the Titans in 2015
• Eagles wide-receiver A.J. Brown played with Mariota during his rookie season on the Titans in 2019 (fun fact: Brown’s first career TD came from a Mariota pass)
• Eagles special teams coordinator Michael Clay was Mariota’s teammate at Oregon in 2012

Lastly, Mariota fits the formula. Like Hurts, Mariota is a dual-threat quarterback. Last year, during his 13 games as starter for the Falcons, Mariota rushed for 438 yards and 4 touchdowns. If Hurts misses a few games next season, Mariota should be able to run the offense with little to no adjustments. While Hurts is the better passer of the 2 quarterbacks, Mariota shouldn’t have too much difficulty finding open receivers. After all, he’ll be behind one of the best offensive lines in the league and supported by a stout running game lead by Kenneth Gainwell and Rashaad Penny.