The Las Vegas Raiders added reinforcements to their defense in the offseason. Offensively, quarterback Marcus Mariota might have as much an impact.
The purpose of the Raiders signing Mariota was to have an experienced and capable backup behind Derek Carr. This was twofold as the team picked up an insurance policy, but also a quarterback that’ll hopefully push Carr to excel.
It may be unbeknownst to fans not familiar with Mariota’s old team, the Titans, but the former first round pick was of great help to the scout defense. There’s no reason to believe he can’t do the same for the Raiders.
The Raiders And Marcus Mariota
Josh Schrock of NBC Sports recently highlighted what happened when Mariota lost his starting job in Tennessee. It was Mariota’s former teammate, Logan Ryan, who said via “The Double Coverage” podcast that “he started killing us every single week, Like, he started ripping us in practice. Marcus Mariota was the practice quarterback and he was destroying us. And it made us better.”
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If Logan’s praise is any indication, Mariota can certainly help the Raiders defense, particularly, the young secondary. Damon Arnette and Amik Robertson haven’t faced an NFL quarterback yet, Mariota can push these rookies right out of the gate. This will be crucial as there’s a lot of pressure on the Raiders defense this year after heavy investment during this offseason.
No matter how you feel about Carr or the Raiders bringing in Mariota, the team is doing all it can to get this organization back on top. Signing the former second overall pick is indicative of that.
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*Top Photo: Mark Humphrey/Associated Press