The overhaul in New Orleans already began. 

General manager Mickey Loomis perpetrated a fire sale at the onset of free agency. All-Pro tight end Jimmy Graham, former Pro Bowl guard Ben Grubbs and last year’s leading receiver Kenny Stills were all traded. 

The organization needed to make these moves in an attempt to get under the salary cap.

No franchise entered the offseason with a worse salary-cap situation. The Saints were $20-plus million over next year’s salary cap. Drastic measures were taken to ease the team’s financial burden. 

In order to build long-term financial stability, though, Loomis and head coach Sean Payton need to reassess the quarterback position. 

As good as Drew Brees still is, his combination of age and cap hit are debilitating. 

The quarterback turned 36 years old in January, and the organization doesn’t have any type of long-term plan to replace the Texas gunslinger. Backup Luke McCown turns 34 years old in July. 

The Saints should still expect at least one or two years of top production from Brees, but his diminishing skills were already seen last season. The team can’t enter next season without a replacement plan on the roster.

Furthermore, Brees owns a $26.4 million cap hit this year, according to Spotrac.com. That number increases to $27.4 million in 2016.

For comparison, the No. 2 overall pick in last year’s draft class, if the Saints were to trade up, owned a $3.869 million cap hit during his rookie campaign. 

Unfortunately, the Saints can’t do anything about Brees’ cap situation this year unless he’s willing to renegotiate. Otherwise, the franchise should be prepared to move forward without him the following season. 

By potentially acquiring Mariota, the Saints would finally have a long-term quarterback plan in place.

Perhaps no other team in the NFL is looking to get out from under a current quarterback contract more so than the Chicago Bears. 

The organization signed Jay Cutler to a seven-year, $126.7 million contract prior to the 2014 campaign. 

The quarterback rewarded his team with an 18-interception season, and Cutler was eventually demoted as the starter. A Jimmy Clausen concussion allowed him to eventually become the starter during the last two weeks of the season. 

Rumors swirled that the team attempted to trade Cutler this offseason, but Bears general manager Ryan Pace denied that ever happened (via CBS Chicago’s Dan Durkin). 

Pace even proclaimed (via the Chicago Tribune‘s Brad Biggs), “We’re moving forward with Jay Cutler as our starting quarterback.”

The team doesn’t have any other choice. Cutler’s albatross of a contract makes it nearly impossible to move this year. The quarterback’s cap hit this season is $16.5 million, according to Spotrac.com. If the Bears decided to cut ties with him, Cutler would account for $29.5 million in dead money against the salary cap. 

Pace and new head coach John Fox aren’t tied to Cutler in any way. They’re simply biding their time to atone for the sins of the previous Bears regime. 

The process could be expedited by acquiring Cutler’s replacement in this year’s draft. As owners of the seventh overall selection, Mariota could be potentially available without having to trade up for his services. 

The Oregon product could then take over in 2016 after the Bears finally rid themselves of Cutler.

It’s easy to envision what Chip Kelly is doing at the quarterback position. 

Thoughts of Sam Bradford at Oklahoma slinging the ball over the field with precision in an up-tempo spread offense made him an intriguing target for Kelly’s system. 

However, an opportunity to trade for the coach’s former protege shouldn’t be completely ruled out considering Bradford’s status. 

Three reasons can be given why Mariota remains an intriguing possibility for the Eagles. 

The first came when Bradford tore his left ACL during the 2013 season. The second occurred when he re-tore the same ACL in Week 3 of the 2014 campaign. Finally, Bradford is in the last year of his rookie contract. 

Bradford’s scary injury history and an expiring contract are enough for the organization to consider all of its quarterback options. 

There is no better fit for Kelly’s system than Mariota. The native Hawaiian proved to be the ultimate weapon in the scheme, whether it was under Kelly’s or Mark Helfrich’s supervision. 

During his three seasons as a starter at Oregon, Mariota threw for 10,786 yards, 105 touchdowns and only 14 interceptions. The signal-caller also ran 2,237 career yards and 29 more touchdowns.

He won a Heisman Trophy, too.

Why wouldn’t the Eagles make a strong push for the perfect dual-threat quarterback? Kelly, however, said it wasn’t going to happen. 

“I think Marcus is a the best QB in the draft, but we’ll never mortgage our future,” Kelly claimed, via USA Today‘s Lorenzo Reyes. 

Sure, Coach. We’ll believe it once it doesn’t actually happen. 

This part sounds a little more believable: Bleacher Report’s Mike Freeman wrote, “I still cannot find anyone in the NFL who believes Kelly is satisfied with Sam Bradford. I still cannot find anyone in the NFL who believes Kelly when he says he will not make a play for Mariota. Not a single person.”

And they should not. Mariota in Kelly’s system would be a perfect marriage between a player and situation.

The last time a team spent a pair of first-round picks on quarterbacks within the same year was the Dallas Cowboys prior to the 1989 season. The team selected Troy Aikman with the first overall pick in the regular draft and added Steve Walsh via the supplemental draft. 

The Browns could follow a similar path by selecting Mariota after choosing Texas A&M’s Johnny Manziel with the 22nd overall pick in the 2014 NFL draft. 

Normally, a team wouldn’t consider such an action. It would give the previous first-round pick time to develop, but nothing about the Browns’ offseason has been normal. 

Manziel is currently in a treatment facility after voluntarily committing himself to the program. He’s already extended his stay beyond the minimal 28 days. While the Browns have remained in contact with their young quarterback and everyone hopes he emerges fully healthy, business comes first in the NFL.

The Browns would be wise to hedge their bet at the game’s most important position.

It can even be argued that the team settled on Manziel last season after having its eye on Mariota before he decided not to declare for the draft.

“Owner Jimmy Haslam has been very intrigued by Mariota for quite some time,” CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora reported. 

The Browns’ quarterback situation may be the worst in the NFL until Manziel’s future is determined.

Browns general manager Ray Farmer signed veteran Josh McCown to serve as a mentor in the quarterback room and potentially start if needed. But McCown finished 1-10 last year as the starter for the Buccaneers. Connor Shaw also started one game for the Browns last season after he originally signed with the team as an undrafted free agent. The team even inked a deal with Thaddeus Lewis as a minimal-insurance policy. 

As much as the Browns liked Manziel a year ago, the team can’t pass on a franchise-caliber talent at the quarterback position if presented with the opportunity.

The Tennessee Titans sit in the pole position to select Mariota. 

While Titans general manager Ruston Webster will certainly listen to any offers made to trade up and obtain the Oregon quarterback, the organization is in perfect position to finally add a legitimate face of the franchise. 

Tennessee might own the NFL’s most nondescript franchise. A typical football fan would have trouble naming the team’s best player, Jurrell Casey. 

This isn’t necessarily a bad thing if the team was winning. The Titans, however, haven’t reached the playoffs since 2008. The team is also 15-33 over the past three seasons. 

The team’s downward trajectory began when it selected quarterback Jake Locker with the eighth overall pick in the 2011 NFL draft. Locker didn’t pan out after the team passed on players such as Tyron Smith, J.J. Watt, Robert Quinn, Mike Pouncey and Ryan Kerrigan. 

The Titans will once again be in position to select a quarterback. Webster and head coach Ken Whisenhunt must decide whether Mariota is a true franchise talent. 

“If there are three or four teams trying to trade up for him, then there’s going to be a lot of pressure on Ken to take him if they keep the pick,” a source told CBSSports.com’s Jason La Canfora. 

The difference between Locker and Mariota is the Oregon quarterback is actually considered a top talent within his draft class. Locker’s selection among the top-10 picks was considered a head-scratching move at that time necessitated by need.

With Zach Mettenberger already on the roster, the Titans don’t need to spend the second overall pick on a quarterback. Mettenberger, however, is a former sixth-round selection who is coming off a season-ending injury. He doesn’t prevent the team from investing into another quarterback either. 

It simply comes down to a simple football axiom: If a team doesn’t have a franchise quarterback, it shouldn’t stop searching for one. 

The Titans don’t have a franchise quarterback, and they shouldn’t pass on Mariota.