NFL Draft Rumors: Chicago Bears meet with Marcus Mariota

By Patrick Schmidt | Apr 10, 2015

Feb 21, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Oregon Ducks quarterback Marcus Mariota throws a pass during the 2015 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

The Chicago Bears interest in Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota is real and met the Heisman Trophy winning quarterback earlier this month.

Rumors have swirled, as they often tend to do in the weeks leading up to the NFL Draft, about the Chicago Bears interest in former Oregon quarterback and reigning Heisman Trophy winner, Marcus Mariota. Is is a smokescreen from the Bears to get interest from a team trying to trade up with them or to take the attention away from who they are interested in or is it genuine interest?

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ESPN’s Adam Schefter was on Waddle and Silvy on ESPN 1000 on Thursday afternoon and said the Bears have already met with Mariota earlier this month.

The Bears hold the No. 7 overall pick in the draft that begins at the end of the month and that may be too late to get Mariota with the Tennessee Titans at No. 2 potentially interested in a quarterback and the Washington Redskins at No. 5 and the New York Jets at No. 6 hosting and working out the record-breaking quarterback prospect.

Jason Cole of the Bleacher Report said the Bears are exploring a trade with the Titans involving the No. 2 pick to get in position to draft Mariota and he said the Titans could be a taker for embattled Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.

The Bears were unable to find a taker for Cutler before his guaranteed money kicked in for the 2015 and 2016 seasons, so finding a taker for him now would seem like the ultimate Hail Mary, but the Bears interest in Mariota is very much real and Cutler’s presence may not prevent them from taking him.

Should Mariota be available at No. 7 and the edge rusher or wide receiver they want is not on the board, then it’s a no-brainer for the team to select Mariota.

Cutler could be the team’s starter to begin the season but if he goes on an interception bender and the Bears struggle to win games, as they likely will after a 5-11 season last year, first-year head coach John Fox could turn the offense over to Mariota and pave the way for Cutler’s exit in the offseason with Mariota serving as the team’s potential franchise quarterback for the foreseeable future.

The problem occurs if the Bears have to move up as high as No. 2 to get Mariota. The Bears have a first-year general manager in Ryan Pace who inherited a roster bereft of young talent so would it be in the team’s best interested to sacrifice a first round pick this year and likely next year in addition to other draft picks or player compensation to pull off the deal?

Mariota is far from a slam dunk to be a franchise quarterback and comes with risks like all first round picks, but is he a system quarterback who can’t anticipate throws or is he a dual-threat quarterback who can translate his record-breaking production from Oregon to the NFL?

That’s the question Pace, Fox and the Bears are asking themselves in the days and weeks leading up to the draft. Mariota may be the most important domino in this year’s draft and the Titans hold all the leverage with the No. 2 pick but the Bears are doing their due diligence in finding someone other than Cutler to be the team’s starter at quarterback.

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