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When the Raiders signed quarterback Marcus Mariota this offseason, there was a belief around the league that he was brought in to compete and potentially replace Derek Carr. But after a few weeks of practice, it appears that is no longer the case.
In a recent article by Tashan Reed of The Athletic, Mariota hasn’t quite clicked yet with the Raiders. While there are still moments of brilliance and talent, he lacks consistency from day to day in practice. Take a look at what Reed thinks of Mariota during camp:
“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.”
In Mariota’s defense, he dealt with a few injuries last season and he didn’t really have an offseason to learn the offense. Growing pains were expected, but it’s fair to say there is quite a difference in camp between the top two passers.
According to Levi Damien of the Raiders Wire, Mariota did have a better day on Friday, showing off his arm talent on a deep pass to Keelan Doss for a touchdown. But it’s worth noting again that Damien saw some accuracy issues, as well, missing wide receiver Nelson Agholor on a screen pass.
The hope is that in time, the Raiders can get Mariota up to speed where he could be an eventual starter if needed. But as of now, this is Carr’s job all the way and nothing in training camp should suggest that anything will change any time soon.
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