The Las Vegas Raiders seemed to be poised to have a busy offseason as not only do they have a war chest of draft picks, but they also have more than $50 million in cap space as they look to improve their roster for the 2020 season.
One of their biggest focuses seems to be on the quarterback position as although Derek Carr remains under contract, general manager Mike Mayock and head coach Jon Gruden have made it clear that they will look to upgrade all positions.
The biggest name that they have been linked to, of course, is future Hall of Famer Tom Brady. The Patriots are letting Brady test free agency for the first time in his career, and the Raiders are one of the teams with reported interest in the 42-year-old.
If the Raiders are not able to land Brady then they will likely stick with Carr as their starter. The backup position is up for grabs though, and Gruden has indicated that they are looking for someone young with the potential to compete for a starting job in the future.
One name who could fit the bill is former No. 2 overall pick Marcus Mariota. The former Titans starter was benched in favor of Ryan Tannehill midway through the past season and now is likely to depart in free agency. According to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, the Raiders are among the teams with interest:
Mike Mayock's No. 1 ranked QB in 2015. Of course, Mariota will have other options and the Raiders will explore other QBs so no guarantee it comes together. But he's in the mix for sure. https://t.co/lSlxMLcT2z
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) March 6, 2020
Mariota was highly-touted as a former Heisman Trophy winner coming out of Oregon, but to this point, he has not been able to live up to the hype.
In seven games last season (six starts), he threw for 1,203 yards with seven touchdowns and two interceptions, completing 59.4 percent of his passes, which was a career-low. He did rush for 129 yards on 24 carries though, so if the Raiders were to sign him they could find ways to use him other than as a conventional quarterback à la Taysom Hill in New Orleans.
There are also a number of talented young quarterbacks in the draft this year, so the Raiders could also go that route if they don’t sign a veteran like Mariota. Regardless though, it seems that changes will be coming to the quarterback room in 2020.
