The idea of Johnny Manziel playing in a Chip Kelly-designed offense for the Philadelphia Eagles would be interesting, no question, and there even is a rumor making the rounds that the Eagles are trying to trade up from No. 22 to grab Manziel.
But not everything you hear at this time of the year can be taken at face value, and the Eagles/Manziel rumor apparently is one of them, Sports Illustrated's Peter King wrote Monday in his "Monday Morning Quarterback" column.
"I wouldn't pass (the Manziel-to-Eagles rumor) along if the person who told me wasn't smart and, to this point, reliable," King wrote. "But I just can't see it, and I have someone who would know better than the rumor source telling me it absolutely won't happen. ... I just put it out there as an example of the kind of stuff that makes the rounds when so much of what happens at this time of year is designed to be a misdirection play."
King cited an interview by Buffalo Bills GM Doug Whaley as an example that teams use "a misdirection play."
"It's finally one time where we can use you guys (reporters) to our advantage," Whaley told reporters on Friday. "There are things that you put out there to see if someone bites, and there are some things you put out there that are true. You have people read between the lines and you don't want to show your hand. I'm sure everyone is doing the same thing."
That's not to say that teams aren't interested in Manziel. King wrote that one NFL offensive coordinator -- who works for a team that King says will not be choosing a quarterback high in this draft -- told him, "If I had the first pick in the draft, I'd take Manziel."
King also wrote that "I absolutely buy Dallas' interest in Manziel." He wrote that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones "could be sorely tempted at No. 16 overall if Manziel were there," and that a big reason is that Tony Romo turned 34 last week and has had two surgeries on his back.
Not everyone is buying the Manziel/Cowboys talk, however. Last week, NFL Media senior advisor Gil Brandt dismissed rumors that Jones would take Manziel if he were to be available when the Cowboys pick in the first round.
And more on Manziel: King mentioned a 15-minute team interview the signal-caller did at February's NFL Scouting Combine where the entire period was taken up by the team asking Manziel about his personal life. King wrote that Manziel asked if there were any football questions, but the team had none.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
