Eagles have no firm grasp on a 'franchise' quarterback

PHILADELPHIA – Eagles coach Chip Kelly said he won't be attending the Rose Bowl game Thursday night between Oregon, the team he used to coach, and Florida State, even though the top-rated quarterbacks in the upcoming draft are Oregon's Marcus Mariota and Florida State's Jameis Winston.

But Kelly said he will be watching, and he might attend the championship game if Oregon advances.

It's not that the Eagles plan to move up from their spot at No. 20 in the first round of the draft to select either Mariota or Winston. And the logic of trading multiple draft picks to do so is debatable considering the Eagles' needs on defense.

But in many ways, the quarterback position will ultimately determine if the Eagles can progress from a 10-6 team on the cusp of the playoffs to a perennial Super Bowl contender like New England, Green Bay, Denver or Seattle, all of whom have franchise quarterbacks.

The Eagles are most likely still searching for theirs after Nick Foles and Mark Sanchez combined for 27 of the team's league-high 36 turnovers — although Kelly didn't necessarily say that when he was asked if there's a sense of urgency to find a marquee quarterback.

"I don't look at it that way," Kelly said. "We're trying to identify every single position that we can hitch our wagon to. So I think sometimes everybody puts a lot of stock in just one position. But I think everything is factored into it. Who are the outside linebackers we're going to hitch our wagon to? Who are the defensive linemen? Who's the free safety? Who's the corner[back]? The whole process.

"We're going to evaluate every single position. And evaluate everything we do scheme-wise and personnel-wise and see how we can improve this football team."

The Eagles' flaws at quarterback were evident throughout the season.

Foles threw 10 interceptions and lost three fumbles in eight games before suffering a cracked collarbone on Nov. 2. Sanchez threw 11 interceptions and lost three fumbles in nine games.

The 21 combined interceptions were the most by any team's quarterbacks.

The Eagles also finished 23rd in converting red zone opportunities into touchdowns, doing so 49.2 percent of the time. The Eagles were 8 of 23 (34.7) percent in the red zone under Foles. They were 21 of 36 (58.3 percent) in the red zone under Sanchez.

Foles said Monday that he expects to win the quarterback job in 2015. As of now, that seems likely. Sanchez can become a free agent, while Foles still has a year left on his rookie contract. The only thing that could affect Foles' status would be a trade for a starting quarterback, or getting someone like Mariota or Winston in the draft.

Foles also knows that he has to improve.

"I made some mistakes this year," he said. "But I can work on those. It's studying film, studying your flaws and not being afraid to make an error. The big thing is, if I throw an interception – you see it, a lot of people are deflated, they're down. When I throw an interception, I can't wait to get back out there to throw another pass. I believe our defense is going to get us the ball back. I believe the special teams are going to make the plays. That's how we're going to win games."

But injuries have also been an issue for Foles. He missed eight games this season. He missed another in 2013 with a concussion, and another in 2012 with a broken hand that would have sidelined him longer if the season hadn't ended.

A team can't afford to lose a franchise quarterback to injury. And for the most part, the elites like Denver's Peyton Manning, New England's Tom Brady, Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers and Seattle's Russell Wilson rarely miss time. When they do, it's devastating to their teams.

"You can count on one hand the guys that don't get hurt at the quarterback position," Kelly said.

"Those guys are going to get hit and that's why I've always said you better have two because of the nature of that position."

The Eagles are trying to determine if they even have one.

Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.