Despite speculation amongst media and fans, Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr’s firmly entrenched as the starter. That said, Marcus Mariota is the best insurance policy the Silver and Black can have.
Raider Nation heard it all this past offseason, from Tom Brady conjecture to “reports” the team would draft a quarterback early on. In the end, Carr is still the man and instead, Raiders brass decided to bring in Mariota after his Tennessee Titans tenure ended. With a reloaded offensive arsenal and in his third year under head coach Jon Gruden, all signs point to Carr having a good year.
Optimism aside, anything can happen in the NFL from injuries to player regression. If anything of that nature were to befall Carr, the Raiders are in a good position with Mariota. This is true even if Mariota has been struggling with his new team.
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Mariota Not Impressing In Raiders Camp So Far
Coming into a new situation and adapting to a complex offense such as Gruden’s is no easy task. Also, we must factor in the unique circumstances of this offseason, which changed how teams prepared this year. Regardless, it’s safe to say Carr’s job isn’t in jeopardy any time soon, at least not right now in camp. Tashan Reed of The Athletic shared his observations on Mariota earlier in the week.
“Marcus Mariota has been struggling. It’s been a rough training camp for the $7.5 million backup quarterback. His worst practice may have been Thursday. He threw a bad interception and missed a few easy throws by a wide margin. Starting quarterback Derek Carr and coach Jon Gruden have praised Mariota every chance they get, but he’s having a difficult time right now. While I never thought Carr’s job would be in jeopardy, I’m sure of it now.”
Be that as it may, the Raiders still have one of the best two backup situations in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus. Coming at number one ahead of Mariota is Jameis Winston, who sits behind New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees. Most Raiders fans just want to see their team succeed, and they should rest easy knowing that if something were to happen to Carr, Mariota is no slouch. In the meantime, this is still Carr’s show and we all need to wait and see how the season plays out.
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*Top Photo: Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports