With the latest NFL season drawing to a climactic closure, it's time to turn our collective attention to the NFL Draft's 2015 edition and the high-gear rumor mill soon to kick into motion.
The first team to have their names tossed around in connection with a fairly juicy draft nugget is the Philadelphia Eagles and head coach Chip Kelly.
The Eagles and Kelly could be in the market for a quarterback fairly high in the draft, and despite the obvious connection to quarterback Marcus Mariota from Oregon, Kelly's former star pupil; it may be UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley that Kelly has his eye on.
"For months, there has been speculation that Philadelphia wants to trade to get Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota and reunite him with Chip Kelly. However, there are rumors going around that the Eagles love UCLA quarterback Brett Hundley," writes Charlie Campbell of Walter Football. "From an athletic skill set perspective, it makes all the sense in the world, as Hundley is a great athlete with mobility to hurt defenses with his feet. He also has a strong enough arm to disrupt the ball throughout the field. The rumor mill is saying that the Eagles are hot for Hundley and would target him much earlier than other teams, as in he could be in play for their first- or second-round pick."
Hundley is an athletic marvel with prodigious skills that don't always translate to production on the field. He's thrown or run for a touchdown in every one of his 27 career games, but it's his mental makeup that has NFL teams wary. Campbell notes that he's spoken with a number of franchises who view Hundley as a third-day draft pick.
Tommy Lawlor of Iggles Blitz outlines the current view of Hundley in conjunction with draft day valuation.
"If you could draft him with a mid-round pick, Hundley would be a no-brainer (which would be fine even if he turned out to be a no-brainer). The problem is that a guy with his physical potential won't last that long. EJ Manuel wasn't nearly as good as Hundley and went in the mid-1st. I doubt he makes it out of the 2nd round, if he falls that far."
An unnamed scout told The Milwaukee-Wisconsin Journal Sentinel recently that he does not view the 6-foot-3, 227-pound Hundley's NFL future as a bright one.
"He's going to be a bust," the scout said. "He's one of those guys who seems to lock in right away. His shortcoming is accuracy."
Hundley finished this season for the Bruins with 3,155 yards passing, 22 touchdowns and five interceptions. His career numbers are 75 touchdowns, 25 interceptions and 9,971 yards.
His talent is undeniable, and for a team like the Eagles with an unsettled quarterback position, taking a flier on a guy like Hundley would be an almost perfect fit with the still uncertain future of Nick Foles.
But if it takes a high pick to get Hundley, a player who sorely needs time to develop as a signal-caller, the idea of him in Midnight Green becomes harder to fathom.
