Marcus Mariota was the last quarterback to take the field for the Tennessee Titans against the New England Patriots — but plenty has changed since that meeting.
Mariota was 16-of-24 passing for 228 yards and two touchdowns on the 34-10 home win.
With Ryan Tannehill having secured the starting position, Mariota’s role has changed quite a bit.
This week, he’ll be imitating one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play the game in Patriots signal-caller Tom Brady in practice.
“Marcus is going to have to be able to maneuver like he does in the pocket and try to re-create the mannerisms that (Brady) has,” coach Mike Vrabel said ahead of Tuesday’s workout.
Mariota has embraced his new role with the team, and has been a class act in handling his demotion.
“I just try to give them the best look possible,” Mariota said. “That’s the most important thing. That’s kind of my role. Whatever they need, whatever little things we can see [about Brady and the Patriots] from tape, I’ll do my best to emulate that.”
The Titans and Patriots are set to kick off at 7:15 p.m. CST on Saturday.