Andy Reid 'helped solidify' Titans' decision to draft Marcus Mariota
Several teams wanted to move up to No. 2 to draft QB Marcus Mariota. And then Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt remembered something Andy Reid had told him earlier in the day.
By
Ryan Wilson
•
2 min read
Back in 1999, Andy Reid was in his first year as the Eagles' coach. The team was coming off a three-win season with Bobby Hoying, Koy Detmer and Rodney Peete all starting games at quarterback. So for Reid, finding a passer was paramount.
Even if that meant passing up an incredible offer from then-Saints coach Mike Dikta, who was willing to part with New Orleans' entire draft class to move up and take running back Ricky Williams. Instead, the Eagles stayed put and drafted Donovan McNabb, who played 11 seasons in Philadelphia.
We mention this because the Titans found themselves in a similar situation on Thursday night. Tennessee was sitting at No. 2 and several teams -- most notably, the Eagles -- were eager to move up for quarterback Marcus Mariota. And then Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt remembered something Reid had told him earlier in the day.
We recap the first round of the 2015 NFL Draft on the latest Eye on Football Podcast (never miss an episode by subscribing via iTunes).
“I was talking to Andy today,’’ Whisenhunt told TheMMQB.com's Peter King on Thursday night. “He told me the story about Ditka offering a whole draft for his [Reid’s] pick. I understood what Andy was saying. It certainly helped solidify what I was thinking—that’s for sure.”
Put another way: Reid, who was run out of Philly after the 2012 season and now coaches in Kansas City, inadvertently stuck it to his former team, one that desperately wanted Mariota. Whisenhunt was so convinced, in fact, that the Titans reportedly let interested parties know that trading up would be more costly than what the Redskins gave up to get Robert Griffin III three years ago.
Eagles coach Chip Kelly conceded that it was even too rich for his blood.
"It was just a really steep price," he said. "It's like driving into a nice neighborhood and looking at a house and saying, ‘That's really nice,' and then they tell you the price and you turn around and drive away. We didn't walk in the front door. We didn't take a look around."
So while the Eagles finally appear ready to move forward with Sam Bradford, the Titans hope they've finally found their franchise quarterback (Tennessee drafted Jake Locker in the first round back in 2011).
"Every minute we spent with him it just felt better and better," Titans general manager Ruston Webster said of Mariota, via the Tennessean. "I think our whole room, coaching staff and scouts, the whole group, was extremely excited. … In the end, I think to a man, in the draft room, with our coaches, it was unanimous.
"There were several teams (interested in trading for the No. 2 spot). At the end of the day, we just felt strongly about Marcus and that was the direction we needed to go. There wasn't enough reason for us not to take him."
And Chip Kelly has Andy Reid to thank for that.
