Eagles News: Jeffrey Lurie weighs in on Marcus Mariota trade possibility

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NFC Hierarchy-Obituary (power rankings): Pre-draft edition - PhillyVoice
Now there are two ways to look ahead to the 2015 season: The optimist will say that there's no way the Eagles will lead the league in turnovers, give up as many big plays as they did, have as much bad luck with OL injuries, get equally bad QB play, and continue to see a drop in big plays. The pessimist will say that they have way too many things to fix to be considered legitimate contenders.

Ali Marpet - Iggles Blitz
One of my favorite players in the upcoming draft is OG Ali Marpet. I think he would make a terrific Eagle and he could step in and challenge for the RG spot right away. But he’s from D3 Hobart College. What kind of value do you put on him? Are there any fears he won’t be able to handle the NFL? In the 2 drafts with Chip Kelly as part of the equation, the Eagles have been a big school team. The closest thing to a pick from a small school is someone from Vanderbilt or Utah. Is that on Chip, Howie, or just how things worked out?

Lurie: Mortgaging the Future Can Make Sense - Birds 24/7
Lurie had some very nice things to say about Sam Bradford, but towards the end of his 40-minute session with reporters, the Eagles owner was asked if he agreed with Chip Kelly's proclamation that the team would not mortgage its future for Marcus Mariota. "It’s great to mortgage the future for Peyton Manning," Lurie said. "It’s not very good to mortgage it for Ryan Leaf. It’s great to mortgage it for Donovan McNabb, but not for Tim Couch or Cade McNown. Again, it comes back to people. It’s not a system. If the Redskins had traded for Andrew [Luck], we’d all be saying what a great trade. So, you tell me."

It's all on Chip now, but Lurie made right choice in demoting Roseman - Inquirer
Did that mean Lurie had to give unprecedented power to a coach for the first time in his 21-year tenure as owner? No. He could have forced Kelly, as he did with Andy Reid, to work with Roseman in a Joe Banner-like role. Or he could have had Kelly hire a general manager with more authority than Ed Marynowitz has as vice president of player personnel. But Lurie was pot-committed with Kelly. He gambled on hiring a college coach with zero NFL experience two years ago. And with Roseman, whose track record as GM was unexceptional at best, in the way, the 63-year-old owner had little choice but to double down on the "football guy."

Buffalo Bills' Rex Ryan says trade with Eagles for LeSean McCoy took only 30 minutes - NJ.com
At first, Buffalo Bills head coach Rex Ryan couldn't believe what he was hearing. "We were just kind of stunned," Ryan said. Stunned is a word plenty could use to describe the trade that went down between the Bills and Eagles earlier this month, a trade that sent running back LeSean McCoy to Buffalo in exchange for linebacker Kiko Alonso. Speaking at NFL Annual Meetings on Tuesday, Ryan said he couldn't believe McCoy was available, and that once he found out he was, it took him only 30 minutes to make the trade happen.

The Big Question: What's Next At CB? - PE.com
But of course the real question is who we expect to start opposite Maxwell. It seems like this is a three-man competition between Thurmond, Brandon Boykin and Nolan Carroll, though I wouldn’t necessarily count out Jaylen Watkins from making a 2015 impact. What’s interesting to me about that group is that all four have experience playing in the slot, which theoretically should give Davis the flexibility to move his corners around depending on matchups. As for the draft, I think it would be a surprise if the Eagles don’t address the position at some point but I also am not expecting any kind of immediate dividends from a rookie. To me, we’re heading towards a true "training camp battle," which should make July and August all the juicier.

Who else might the Eagles trade this offseason? - The 700 Level
Boykin is in a similar boat as Kendricks and specifically Curry heading into his final year. Thus far, the Eagles haven’t seen fit to give Boykin a shot to start, even while Cary Williams and especially Bradley Fletcher struggled mightily. Boykin is an excellent nickel cornerback, and Kelly recently said he could compete for a job on the outside this summer for whatever that’s worth. However, if Boykin isn’t going to get a serious look because of his height (5’10") or something else, he has to have value to another team—at least a mid-round pick.

Part of the Plan: How Teams Make Free Agency and the NFL Draft Work Together - Grantland
We’re a month and a half removed from Revis, playing on a one-year deal, helping the Patriots win a Super Bowl. Michael Bennett and Cliff Avril were free agents who played a significant role in the Seahawks’ championship run the year before. Free agency will never be the basis for a high-quality NFL roster, but if used the right way, it can be the final touches for one.

NFL approves in-booth 'injury spotter' as part of new player safety rules - SB Nation
The new "injury spotter" position was inspired by the Super Bowl, during which Julian Edelman appeared to play while suffering concussion symptoms.

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