TAMPA Bay needs a QB, and the smart money is on them taking Oregon QB [Marcus Mariota]. With this not being a great draft for QB’s, and with one of the top two options electing to stay in college, Chip Kelly won’t be able to land Mariota unless he can swing a trade with Tampa Bay. But what could we offer Tampa Bay that would get them to part with that pick? This is where McCoy comes in.
Now before anybody starts crying about how stupid that would be, let me tell you I don’t like the idea either. However I look at ALL of the angles and the more I consider it, the more likely this scenario seems.
I’m thinking the Eagles could decide to package RB LeSean McCoy, QB Nick Foles, and our first round pick (20th overall) in exchange for Tampa’s 1st rounder (1st overall), and maybe a 3rd rounder or RB Bobby Rainey instead.
Seems like a lot at first, but let’s take a closer look shall we?
There is no way Tampa trades that pick without satisfying their QB need. This is where Foles comes in. Remember the glowing votes of confidence (Exhibit A and Exhibit B) that Kelly and Jeff Lurie gave Foles about being the starter in 2015? No you don’t because neither man would even say he’d be back for OTA’s. If the decision has been made to move on from Foles, then moving him to help get his replacement is no big deal at all.
So why would Tampa Bay want Foles if we don’t? He and Mariota would be coming out of similar versions of one system. The difference is, Foles has shown he can be an NFL QB, while Mariota has yet to. While the point of Kelly drafting Mariota would be to have QB better suited to Kelly’s system, Tampa Bay wouldn’t be running that system, and therefore would just need a QB who could be a viable NFL starter.
Tampa needs a pass rusher, but we don’t have one we can spare that would help trigger this trade. However, they also could use a RB. Doug Martin had a great rookie season, but since then has missed 15 of 32 games with injuries and has been inconsistent when he has played. Generally he’s been less effective than his back-up, the aforementioned Rainey. Dangling McCoy would seriously sweeten that pot, and it would also save us some serious cap space.
I’m not crazy about trading McCoy, but I first mentioned that it might happen, back in June. Most fans dismissed it and said I was nuts, only to find themselves back here asking me about it again by November, because of all the rumors swirling by late October. By the way: If we did pull the trigger, replacing McCoy wouldn’t be as hard as most may think. (I won’t get into that now though.)
Now here is why Tampa might want to do this deal: They still get a 1st round pick and could then use it on a pass rusher. One trade and they address three needs in a way they couldn’t with that pick or by trading with any other team in the NFL. It’s an offer they almost couldn’t refuse.
If this is going to happen I think it should happen sooner rather than later. If we drag our feet Tampa could address their pass rusher need by signing FA DE Brandon Graham away from our OLB spot in March, since he wants to play in a 4-3 anyway.
The more you look at it as a business decision, the smarter this seems for both sides.
So who could we replace McCoy with: How about one of these guys ?
EAGLEMANIACAL.com 
Personally, I like the idea! I think Shady will soon regress due to age. Don’t get me wrong he still has another two really good years left in him. If Chip thinks Mariota will develop into a NFL quarterback than why not pull the trigger? You can find good running backs in the late rounds of the draft. I think QB and secondary is the only thing holding this team back.
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You make some good points here. I guess I’m only leery of it because while I don’t thing replacing Shady’s production will be hard, he has a swagger that most of our roster lacks.
With the Eagles getting rid of Cary Williams, and Brandon Graham almost out the door, I just don’t want us to become a team of guys who are too nice.
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Wow. When you say sooner rather than later; what time frame are you talking Eagle? I hate this idea but only cause What if Mariota is a bust? Then what? And, please expand why you feel replacing Shady won’t be that difficult. Interesting stuff my friend.
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The sooner the better. Draft picks only get more expensive as you get closer to the Draft.
If Mariota is a bust we still won’t have a QB who can beat teams with a winning record.
When people think of replacing a player, they think of it in terms of “Who can do what he can do?” It’s why people doubted Upstart McCoy replaing BWest, smallish Brian Westbrook taking over of Duuuuuuce!, workhorse Duce Staley, for explosive Ricky “Running” Watters.
People want the guy coming in to be the guy going out. Fact is this is a RB friendly scheme. It’s the Run and Shoot specifically adapted to feature the run. Since Chip Kelly got here only 1 RB (Kenjon Barner) has looked bad running the ball. Everyone else has looked great.
BTW: It’s also why I mentioned tryingto steal away Bobby Rainey as part of that trade. Skillwise he’s poor man’s BWest (runs, catches, picks up blitzes well). He doesn’t run as hard, or run routes like a WR, and he has fumbles in his past. He’s got a solid all-around game that would be highlighted in this system though.
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This article is spot on. I wouldnt be opposed to giving up Mccoy, Foles, and our first for Mariotta. Like you mentioned, this would free up some cap space. Lets also not forget that Demarco Murray and Adrian Peterson could be on the open market as viable replacements. If Foles doesn’t pan out this year for us then we will be in the same position next year with another year of wear and tear on Mccoy.
Im not sure Mariotta is the answer, but i would feel comfortable with him and Sanchez on the roster. I believe the key there is keeping Sanchez. We would have to have someone on the team that is familiar with plays and routes.
Tampa Bay should have a lot of cap space and could easily make this happen. The more I think about all the angles here, the more I think this could be a good idea…
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This answers the needs of both teams in a neat and tidy way that could mostly be resolved before the Draft, so there wouldn’t need to be any uncertainty for anyone.
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Yes, let’s just start rebuilding forever. ……no rain to replace L M and a guess work qb who could flop and if he became good in 2-3 years the O line and D lines need to be re-tooled…..by then our new qb will be over 30 along with our receivers and we can start to replace them. ….see a pattern here
..
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But we ARE in a state of rebuilding.
The Secondary will be overhauled, QB, LT and both Guards, ILB, OLB…
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Stephen… thats kinda how the NFL works…..
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NOT HAPPENING. Why would they do that when they could just get Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson or Demarco Murray and sign Mariota. If Tampa screws up they are wearing egg on their face. Trade for a scrub McCoy or a giraffe named Foles. Really ? I seriously doubt it.
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Tampa Bay isn’t giving up that pick sorry get over it,
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Maybe not, but it’s almost a given that Kelly is going to make a run at them for that pick. If he does, this is just one offer he might make.
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The Bucs drafted Sims as a RB in the 3rd round last year so we don’t need a RB badly. We need aQB and OL. If the Bucs want to hope to be a .500 team in a couple of years they’ll trade the pick for a QB like Foles, a very good OL and several picks. If they want to be a playoff contender they’ll draft Mariota and get OL as free agents.
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Yes, Charlies Sims looked like a game changer when he played last year.
I’m kidding of course. You need a RB.
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Im pretty sure no one had Sims on their fantasy team last year…. Lets just say Mccoy may be a sliiight upgrade.
Im not convinced Lovey will know how to use Mariotta right. I bet he will take Winston since he is a more traditional QB.
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Also my thinking now that Winston has decided to come out.
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I was a fan of the Eagles since they practiced in Hershey, PA years ago…now I know why they will never win a Super Bowl, by doing stupid business like this. They never let a team gell together before they start breaking them up, just like the 76ers. What’s wrong with Philly?
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To be fair, they haven’t actually done this. Yet.
This is just an article discussing (in-depth), one of the rumors circulating.
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I dont believe the Eagles are doing anything. This is where there PR dept goes into full gear grabbing headlines. McCoy will be back and Foles will be the QB. Nobody is rating these Eagle players as high as Eagle fans rate them.
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First and foremost the Bucs would be incredibly stupid for doing that. Let’s look at the near future with the Washington / St Louis trade to move from #6 to #2 spot in the draft it cost the Skins (3) 1st round and a 2nd…….that was to only move 4 spots. St Louis went on to trade again from #6 to #14 and gained an additional 1st and 2nd from Dallas. So in reality it cost (4) first and (2) 2nd round picks to move from 14 to 2. I like Shady as much as the next guy but if think TB would not only trade our #1 and a 3rd and/or Bobby Rainey for Shady, Foles (shown this year to not be a star) and your #20 spot in the draft is absolutely laughable. Stick to Madden folks because this isn’t happening your far to low in the draft to even begin to have the needed picks to move up. Chip Kelly will have to join Marcus in Tampa once you bums run him out of town.
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Yes. Because 2 proven Pro Bowlers is somehow worse than 3 first round picks.
Personally I hope MY team (rather the coach) isn’t so taken with Mariota that he attempts this trade, because I’m too afraid your team WOULD bite.
More than anything though, when this was written the Florida QB hinted he would stay in college. Since then it’s been said that he’ll declare. Being a more pro style ready QB, odds are that your team will pick him and leave Mariota. That means NOW we don’t even need to trade with your team.
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I have to ask are you a teenager? I will give you Shady is an all-pro, but RB’s are dime a dozen. Plenty of options in Free Agency that are plug and play. To call Foles a Pro Bowler is laughable. Keep living in your fantasy world b/c this trade isn’t happening.
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Foles was last year’s Pro Bowl MVP….
And RB’s being a dime a dozen? Look at the teams that make the playoffs regularly. Overwhelmingly, they have a bell cow RB.
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The Bucs need to draft a franchise qb. They have never had one before and this is their rare opportunity to get one. I don’t think a trade happens. Mariota seems like the logical choice at 1 for them.
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You guys are nuts! As a Bucs fan I’ll tell you what I’d ask for, and it’s a lot.
2015 1st round
2015 2nd round
2015 3rd round
2016 1st round
2016 2nd round
OG – Mathis
C – Kelce
Keep Foles we don’t want him. You guys would receive the 1st overall pick and I’d throw in our center Dietrich-Smith since I just gutted the center of your offensive line.
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Again, conditions have changed since this was written. We may not even need to trade up that far for Mariota.
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http://www.pewterreport.com/forum/index.php/topic,1321396.new.html#new Here’s whatBuc fans think of this article….we’re screwed!
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A) This is just some spit-balling to kill time in the offseason and B) Things have changed since this was written, so we likely wouldn’t even need their pick.
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Mariota is going number 1 to TB. If they want Mariota they will have to trade up to number 1 but it will cost a lot more than what is proposed here.
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What changed exactly?
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When I wrote this, word was that Winston was staying in college. Since then it’s been said that he’s declaring.
With both QB’s coming out and A) Winston being more suited to a pro-style offense, and B) Mariota possibly not doing some pre-draft stuff (hurting his stock in the process), the landscape has changed somewhat. How much it’s changed we’ll see over the next few months.
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Getting rid of Foles and McCoy would be the single dumbest idea in sports. The Eagles Offense can put points on the board the way they are tooled now. They have NO problem doing it. What needs to happen is that we need a defense that can stop the other teams from putting points on the board. This offense is fine. Foles will be an elite QB one day. Fix the defense…you have fixed the biggest problem.
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Aside from Foles being elite, I agree with everything you wrote here.
I wrote to a friend earlier that I think to get Marcus Mariota, Chip Kelly would be willing to mortgage the house to buy a new couch.
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Foles will be elite. His work ethic and intelligence already have him leagues beyond other greats at this point in his career. He is 14-4. He has better numbers (even interceptions) than many elite QB’s have had at this point in their career (Luck, Griffen, Eli, Peyton etc. He just played his second full year…almost. If it were me, I would give him 2 more years to prove his worth and have no doubt that he would. Once again, we can put points up….the defense just cant stop the other teams from doing so.
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I would more consider trading McCoy for a 2nd rounder and maybe a later pick. With that early 2nd round pick we take Melvin Gordon or Todd Gurley. 1st round go Trae Waynes/Marcus Peters, use our second 4th round pick and our own 2nd round pick to trade up into early second round and take Eric Kendricks or possibly Dupree. 3rd round get OG, or a safety. 4th round WR. And so on with our other picks. FA get Byron Maxwell and DaNorris Searcy(amazing pass defender SS, allowed like a 21.0 passer rating) our secondary woes would be fixed, a younger OLine, younger RB, and Mychal Kendricks lil bro playing alongside him at inside linebacker. Younger and faster talent!
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I thought you stated Mariota wouldn’t be a top pick? Truth be told I think there’s a better possibility we could get that 2nd pick, and Tampa takes Winston (since the Florida ties), but if he doesn’t go number one he could fall to at least five maybe even to ten if the Jets still believe in Geno Smith. If he falls to seven or 8 I think the Eagles could be in a better position to get him.
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I said Oregon QB’s don’t go high and that no team except the Eagles would be willing to draft him high. (Of course I didn’t realize that the Draft would be THIS QB poor either. YIKES!)
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If I’m Tampa I want no part of any players on the Eagles roster in a trade not named Cox, Kendricks, or Johnson. The only way we are getting to the number one spot is with giving up draft picks or one or more of our legit core young players. It’s a pipe dream at best. I hope Chip realizes this early enough to focus on what he should be focussing on. Getting some legit secondary help, some linebacker help, and developing a young offensive line.
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I have no idea what he’s actually offering, but there is VERY strong and consistent scuttlebutt that he’s trying to move up to grab Mariota, which I still think is premature.
I’d wait until the Combine at least. Something in the workouts or interviews might drop his stock a bit. If he falls out of the top 5 for instance, trading for the 1st overall would cost us more than the 5th. There’s no sense in giving up to much in any trade.
Ain’t that right Vikings?!
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I agree with you here, but some of Chips recent comments are troubling to me. He was talking about how he believes teams were dumb to wait for guys who they believe will be there later.(a not so failed shot at Howie too) he feels if you believe a guy is talented you draft him wherever and whenever you can. I also believe he blames Howie (somewhat justifiable) for the debacle of last season’s draft. Howie assumed he could get one of their six can’t miss players by waiting in the draft. After the Packers took HaHa they were left scrambling and ultimately reached to take Smith. When you consider the year prior Chip was snubbed by Miami in his quest for Dion Jordan you have to think he’s felling burned by how the draft is conducted. Now Chip is going to try to do everything he can to get his guy. I just hope he doesn’t bolt on us in two years leaving us with a system QB that can only run his system.
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See THAT is why I’m concerned about Mariota. I see the production and the ability to run, but when I see him play I don’t see a leader, or a fighter or a competitor. I don’t see a thinker or a guy who moves Safeties with his eyes. he’s essentially a ball delivery system that runs. When you look past his numbers,nothing about him says first round.
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A motivating discussion is definitely worth comment. There’s no doubt that
that you ought to write more about this topic, it may not be a taboo
matter but typically folks don’t talk about such issues.
To the next! Kind regards!!
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