Marcus Mariota, Las Vegas Raiders. (Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports)
The Las Vegas Raiders have reportedly received interest in quarterback Marcus Mariota. Here are three teams who should try to acquire him.
Entering this offseason, the main question football fans, analysts, and pundits will be asking, “who will be the next quarterback to be traded?” So far, the Los Angeles Rams and Detroit Lions have found new starting quarterbacks in Matthew Stafford and Jared Goff, respectively in their blockbuster trade. Not to mention there is buzz that the Houston Texans will have no choice but to trade Deshaun Watson eventually (since he already requested a move). But there is another name entering the trading block.
A report from NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport revealed that the Las Vegas Raiders have fielded calls for both Marcus Mariota and Derek Carr, but the former is more likely to be moved.
Teams were obviously impressed with his Week 15 performance against the Los Angeles Chargers, where he completed 60.7-percent of his passes for 226 yards, one touchdown and one interception, while rushing for 88 yards and a score on nine carries. As Rapoport mentions, there is hope that Mariota will have a career resurgence like Ryan Tannehill found with the Tennessee Titans.
But who should be calling for the former second-overall pick? Here are three teams that need to make a move for Mariota.
3.
Chicago Bears
NFC North
If there is one team in desperate need of a quarterback, it is the Chicago Bears.
Back in 2017, the Bears took a major gamble by surrendering draft capital to move up one spot in the NFL Draft to select Mitchell Trubisky…over Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. Yes, this angle has been done to death, but it is one of the biggest blunders in recent memory. While Trubisky shined in his sophomore season, he never lived up to his expected potential.
After declining his fifth-year option, the Bears gave Trubisky one last chance to prove his worth. While he did shine at times, his play was never consistent enough to lead the Bears to victory. He certainly did not help his case in Chicago’s 21-9 NFC Wild Card Round loss to the New Orleans Saints, where he only managed to score a touchdown in garbage time.
The Bears also brought in Nick Foles in a trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars with the hopes that he could put up a similar performance like he did in the 2017 season with the Philadelphia Eagles. Plus, he had familiarity with Matt Nagy’s offense. That never transpired in the Windy City, as he threw for 1,852 yards, 10 touchdowns and eight interceptions through nine games.
Chicago has been linked to acquiring Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, but their asking price is bafflingly high. If the Bears bow out of the Wentz sweepstakes (it would be a wise decision to make), then they should pivot to Mariota and hope he can catch on with the Bears.