Despite the coronavirus pandemic that has stopped most of professional sports in its tracks, the NFL continues to churn on as the league’s legal tampering free agency period kicked off on Monday.
Several blockbuster moves were made within the first hours, most notably the Arizona Cardinals landing star receiver DeAndre Hopkins from the Houston Texans in exchange for running back David Johnson and draft picks.
For the Las Vegas Raiders, they were able to address one of their needs on the defensive side of the field by signing former Chicago Bears linebacker Nick Kwiatkoski. The middle of the field was a liability for the Raiders during the 2019 NFL season and signing Kwiatkoski was a solid first move to address that hole.
Now it appears that Las Vegas is shoring up their backup quarterback position as Mike Garafolo of NFL Network is reporting that the team is nearing a deal to land former Tennessee Titans signal-caller Marcus Mariota:
The #Raiders are pushing to close out a deal with QB Marcus Mariota, sources tell me and @RapSheet. Mike Mayock's No. 1-ranked QB in his @nflnetwork coverage leading up to the 2015 Draft could soon be on his roster.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 17, 2020
Mariota’s contract is a two-year deal and will have some incentives built in:
#Raiders gave Marcus Mariota a two-year, $17.6 million deal that includes $7.5m in the first year as a fully-guaranteed base salary.
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 23, 2020
Mariota gets up to $2.4 million if he plays 60% of the snaps in 2020. Another $1.5m is available in per-game playing time and win incentives. Has $10m in those incentives available in 2021. Also $2 million in playoff/Super Bowl incentives each year + $12m in 2021 salary escalator
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 23, 2020
Mariota, who was benched during the 2019 season for Ryan Tannehill, has long been rumored to be a target for Raiders general manager Mike Mayock and it appears he and Jon Gruden will get their guy. The former Heisman Trophy winner and No. 2 overall pick may have lost his starting job with the Titans, but he is still worth a flier given his age and the rest of the quarterback market.
Of course, a move like this will raise some eyebrows about Derek Carr’s job status, but it is safe to assume that Mariota is just insurance in the event that the former suffers any kind of injury during the year. Although Carr played every game last year, it is always good to have a capable backup in the event of a disaster and Mariota fits the bill.
Additionally, Mariota could perhaps push Carr if he struggles the same way that Tannehill did for him last season.
With the second-string quarterback position locked up, the Silver and Black can now continue filling out other positions on the roster.
