Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota is the hottest name in the 2015 NFL draft. He's expected to go second overall in the draft, with a number of teams - the San Diego Chargers, the Cleveland Browns, the New York Jets and the Chicago Bears included - reportedly interested in trading up for the Tennessee Titans' No. 2 pick.
With Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston seemingly a lock to go No. 1 to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Mariota has become the most talked about prospect of the 2015 draft. On Thursday ESPN analyst Mel Kiper offered the latest report on Mariota, whom he believes is a lock to be taken with the second pick.
"(In) talking to people inside and outside the league, my sense is that Mariota is likely to be taken here - it's just hard to say which team is making the pick," Kiper wrote Thursday in his latest mock draft. "Yes, it could be Tennessee, but it could be a handful of other teams if a deal gets done. (San Diego, the Jets, Chicago, St. Louis ... many have been named as possible fits.)
"As I've said before, I think Mariota has done as much as he can to show he wasn't just a system guy at Oregon. I wouldn't want to start him right away in 2015, but you can't question Mariota's physical profile or his potential to improve and grow as an NFL quarterback given his attitude and work habits."
The biggest question heading into the draft is which team will trade up for him. Tennessee is seemingly open for business and, with a huge market for Mariota, will have its pick of the litter in terms of trade offers.
Two teams in particular, though, stand out. The first is Cleveland. The Browns need a quarterback, and more importantly, they have the assets to at least catch Tennessee's attention: two 2015 first-round picks, Nos. 12 and 19. A report from ESPN painted Cleveland as reticent - what team wouldn't be? - to surrender two first-rounders for Mariota. If the Browns were willing to give up the two picks, though, it'd be hard for another team to match that offer.
The second is the Philadelphia Eagles. Mariota played for Eagles coach Chip Kelly at Oregon, and there were whispers last month that Kelly only traded for Sam Bradford because he knew the Titans were interested in the former St. Louis Rams signal caller.
