Shortly after the NFL Combine, with so many trade rumors being floated about Marcus Mariota, and the steadfast perception that Jameis Winston was a lock to Tampa at No. 1 overall- we tweeted out, that from a strategic business perspective, Tampa Bay should make all trades for Mariota go through them:

Tampa should force all Mariota suitors to go through them. Ideally, #Eagles would trade to #2 and then #Bucs force them to swap again to #1

— RosterWatch (@RosterWatch) March 9, 2015

That is now exactly what they are attempting to do.

Recently, it’s been leaked that the Bucs ownership group has concerns about Winston being the frontman who represents their franchise to the community. Now, ESPN’s Ron Jaworski is pushing the idea that Mariota will go No. 1 to Tampa.

We believe the most likely scenario is a three-team trade. Although Mike Glennon is capable of steering the Disney-World-Looking Pirate Ship, it’s clear the Bucs want (and probably need) to come away from this draft with a top-shelf quarterback prospect. This is not necessarily the case with the Titans at No. 2, who have a solid young quarterback in Zach Mettenberger (one who has Carson Palmer type potential).

The Bucs could (and the Titans, for that matter) also stand to benefit from collecting extra draft picks to improve their marginal rosters. Tampa could move back to No. 2 and still get Winston, the player they have been known to prefer all along. While the third team could trade up to No. 1 and ensure themselves Marcus Mariota. If a team that wants Mariota only trades to the No. 2 spot, it could be leapfrogged at the last minute, or Tampa could change directions and take Mariota themselves at No. 1 leaving anyone who traded up to No. 2 holding a bag of Publix crab legs it wasn’t ever interested in acquiring.

Creating that perception means a team like Philadelphia, Cleveland, or the Jets simply can’t wait for the Titans to go on the clock to make their best offers. It’s simple business.