Marcus Mariota is back on the Raiders’ active roster. The Raiders activated the former Heisman Trophy winner from IR on Tuesday, and he will resume his backup role in Week 7.
Derek Carr is coming off one of his best games as a pro, when he led the Raiders to a 40-32 upset win over the Chiefs. While Mariota was given a lucrative QB2 deal in March, he no longer looks like a threat to take over for Carr. But this will certainly help Las Vegas’ depth.
The former No. 2 overall pick landed on the Raiders’ IR list prior to Week 1 because of a strained pectoral muscle. Mariota has battled injuries since his Christmas Eve 2016 leg break — the same day as Carr’s — and saw his starter status end when the Titans demoted him for Ryan Tannehill last year. But the longtime Tennessee starter will begin backing up Carr this weekend; the team hosts the Buccaneers on Sunday night.
The Raiders gave Mariota a two-year, $17.6MM deal to back up Carr and likely push the six-year incumbent. But Carr has made incremental strides under Jon Gruden, despite constant rumors of these parties separating. He ranked 10th in QBR last season, leads the NFL with a 73.1% completion rate and has an 11-1 TD-INT ratio. Carr threw for 347 yards and added three touchdown passes against the Chiefs.
Jon Gruden is still scared too draft his ‘own QB’. So the Raiders will rely on ‘grizzled vets’ (Fitzpatrick next up!). Even though Jon LOVED every QB coming into the drafts while commentating. Point being, he doesn’t a have clue as to what a franchise QB is. Enjoy another half decade of losing Raiders.
Not exactly any game changers available for the Raiders in the draft these past two years when it’s clearly not the biggest issue. He will draft a QB in the next couple of years when the opportunity is there and it’s apparent it’s the next piece of the puzzle.
What’s your problem with Carr? Sure, the dude struggled in the past, but he has been a reliable game manager thus far this season. Top ten in QBR and definitely not the issue with this team, as bowserhound pointed out