Philadelphia Eagles v Indianapolis Colts

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - SEPTEMBER 15: Quarterback Nick Foles #9 of the Philadelphia Eagles looks to pass against the Indianapolis Colts during a game at Lucas Oil Stadium on September 15, 2014 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

(Andy Lyons)

When the Eagles host the Washington Redskins this Sunday, it will be a battle of third-year quarterbacks -- Nick Foles for the Eagles and Kirk Cousins for Washington.

If not for the stubbornness of former Eagles head coach Andy Reid, it might have been the other way around.

Here is the story of how Cousins very nearly ended up with the Eagles.

As the third round of the 2012 NFL Draft got started, the Eagles began to look for their next quarterback, according to a person who was in the team’s draft room that day.

Russell Wilson was the name on the top of the Eagles list at that point, but he went to Seattle at pick No. 75 -- 13 selections ahead of theEagles 88th overall pick.

Now it came down to Cousins, who went 22-5 and won a Big 10 title for Michigan State, or Foles, who lead the Pac 12 in passing his senior year at Arizona.

According to the person who was in the room that day, the majority of the Eagles scouting staff, along with general manager Howie Roseman, had the 6-3, 214-pound Cousins rated slightly ahead of the 6-6, 240-pound Foles.

Reid, however, did not.

The head coach, along with his offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg, liked Foles better. Mornhinweg apparently liked Foles a lot better.

When Cleveland took defensive tackle John Hughes of Cincinnati with the 87th pick, the Eagles were still in debate mode between the two quarterbacks, with the scouts on one side and the head coach on the other. Reid, of course, won the battle and the pick was Foles.

One member of the organization, who left the room at the time, was shocked when he came back and saw the team didn’t take Cousins, and instead had selected Foles.

It’s not the first time Reid has been on an island during the draft. Some have worked out in his favor, and some turned into taking wide receiver Freddie Mitchell over wide receiver Reggie Wayne in the first round of the 2001 draft.

Cousins would go 14 picks and a day later to the Redskins early in the fourth round. If the Eagles took Cousins, and Foles fell, who’s to say he wouldn’t be wearing Burgundy and Gold right now -- or that the team wouldn't be better off?

The early results for Foles were not great. He started six games as a rookie in 2012 under Reid, and went 1-5 with a passer rating of 79.1 as the team crumbled to a 4-12 season in the head coach’s final season.

Last year, in Chip Kelly’s offense, Foles -- after losing the starting job to Mike Vick in the preseason -- flourished. He threw 27 touchdown passes and just two interceptions for a passer rating of 119.2. He tied a NFL record with seven touchdown passes in a game and earned a trip to the Pro Bowl.

Cousins, on the other hand, has not had a real chance at the starting job. With Robert Griffin III out for an extended amount of time, that chance might finally start on Sunday. It is fair to wonder if Cousins, who will make his fifth career start this Sunday, could put up the same numbers as Foles is if Kelly was his head coach.

While Foles certainly has the huge early edge over Cousins in this one, it’s not over -- and Sunday's matchup provides a good glimpse at what could have been.

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