As Free Agency Approaches, Odds Show Mariota Not Expected To Be Starter In Week 1 Of 2020

One of the most quickly forgotten players of the 2019 season was Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota. He had a rough start for the Titans, leading them to a 2-4 record in their first six games, and was then benched for Ryan Tannehill, who led the team to a 7-3 record down the stretch, a playoff appearance and playoff wins in New England and Baltimore.

The Titans no longer have any interest in the Marcus Mariota business, which means he’ll be a free agent in just a couple of weeks’ time. BetOnline has posted some NFL odds on the board that show that wherever he lands, he’s not likely to be a starter in Week 1 of 2020.

WILL MARCUS MARIOTA BE A STARTING QUARTERBACK SOMEWHERE IN WEEK 1?

YES: +170
NO: -250

RAIDERS HAVE SHOWN INTEREST

The latest news on Mariota that we have is that the Las Vegas Raiders are interested in kicking the tires with Mariota. The Raiders still have Derek Carr as their starter but reports from inside the organization feel that Carr can only take the team so far. He’s a decent quarterback when everything around him is great but he doesn’t exactly elevate the team.

It’s unclear what the Raiders feel Mariota would offer but maybe someone like Jon Gruden, a quarterback guru, feels like he can get more out of Mariota than what we’ve seen so far. We saw what a change in scenery did for Tannehill; maybe a change for Mariota could spark a change in his production. He’s never been outright bad under center and he did have the 2016 season where he had 26 touchdowns and just nine interceptions. Maybe Las Vegas sees him as an upgrade.

WOULD THE CHICAGO BEARS BITE?

Another rumor that we’ve seen making the rounds is Mariota to the Chicago Bears. Of course, the Bears continue to tell everyone that Mitchell Trubisky will be their starting quarterback in 2020 but given his implosion last season, that’s hard to believe. They’ll be adding some kind of veteran player who can come in and start – should he need to.

What’s interesting about a Mariota-Bears marriage is that Mariota might start in Week 1, if that’s the case. Chicago has a fairly complete team and just needs someone who can avoid the crippling mistakes that Trubisky is known for. Mariota has been criticized plenty but one thing he doesn’t do is turn it over a lot. He has just 10 interceptions over his last 21 games. He also isn’t as scared to throw it down the field as he has averaged 7.5 yards-per-attempt in his career, which is almost a full yard more than Trubisky, who is at 6.7 for his career.

Mariota has a very similar skillset to Trubisky, which might make him a bit of a plug-and-play situation here for the Bears. If you do think he ends up in Chicago, there’s some value here betting on Mariota to be a starter in Week 1.

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