Former Oregon Ducks Quarterback Marcus Mariota continues to see the spotlight in his Rookie season with the Tennessee Titans. Despite a poor record, the former Oregon signal caller is putting up big numbers and setting records of his own this season.
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It has not been a very good season for the Tennessee Titans as a team. They are 2-9 on the season, but Quarterback Marcus Mariota, despite the learning curve to the National Football League from his time with the Oregon Ducks is having a pretty good rookie season. While his former team mates are finished with their regular season, Mariota must trudge on for another month of likely misery as the learning curve will continue to narrow and his decision making will get better as the Titans look toward 2016.
On Sunday, Mariota and the Tennessee Titans welcome Jacksonville to town for a Division matchup that saw the Jaguars win last month. The former Oregon Quarterback had a chance in the end to win the game but was sacked on the final play adding to the loss column. The growing pains this season have included several missed opportunities including a handful of interceptions thrown in the final minutes that if they would have fallen in the Titans favor could have easily flipped the script on the 2015 season. We could be talking about a .500 team in the playoff hunt in a bad division vs a team likely playing for Draft position and 2016.
What Marcus Mariota has shown this season is he can play at the next level. Last week he broke the record for most passing yards by a rookie and according to TitansOnline, he has the highest Red Zone passer rating in the National Football League between the 1 and 19 yard line. Detroit’s Matthew Stafford ranks second. Mariota’s decision making has gotten better as the season has gone on and that is the key to his success in the red zone. He will need that to continue on Sunday.
Jacksonville is not much better than Tennessee on the stat sheet and come in at 4-7, however in a weak AFC South are a win or two away from being a contender for a playoff spot. The Jaguars have won two of their last three games and Quarterback Blake Bortles is on the cusp of a 3000 yard season, which he will get to today against the Titans. On the other side. Mariota has thrown for over 2200 yards and 16 touchdowns. As it did last month, the Jacksonville Defense will look to set the tone early.
Telvin Smith and Paul Posluszny lead the team with over 200 tackles combined. Aaron Colvin, Jared Odrick and Roy Miller lead the Jaguars with 11 combined sacks this season. Andre Branch ended the game last month with a sack on Mariota on the final play in regulation. Tennessee needs to have the push up front to give Mariota an opportunity to find his receivers. As the game has gone one the last few weeks, the Titans Offensive line has broken down. A special teams play in the Titans favor may help alleviate some of the pressure on the Tennessee Offense.
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Jacksonville and Tennessee kickoff at 10am Pacific Time Sunday on CBS.