Inside Blitz: Marcus Mariota is Too Nice, But Who Cares?
By Jason McIntyre
No pressure, Marcus Mariota. You’re only 21, but you’re probably going to be the No. 1 pick in the 2015 draft, and asked to be the savior of a miserable NFL franchise like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or the Tennessee Titans, which have a combined zero playoff wins in the last decade.
Former Colts coach Tony Dungy said this week he sees Marcus Mariota as having Aaron Rodgers-type potential.
UCLA coach Jim Mora, whose defense was shredded by Mariota each of the last two years – 38-of-55, 440 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs – agreed with the Rodgers comparison, and added: “But Marcus is a bigger, faster, stronger Aaron.”
The obvious, first-glance Mariota comparisons are to Colin Kaepernick, the QB of the 49ers who came from obscurity to take San Francisco to the Super Bowl and NFC Championship game in back-to-back seasons.
Mariota’s searingly intelligent Heisman Trophy speech left many with the same feeling: What a nice guy.
“The 1st time you meet him, you think, ‘oh, this is just an act,'” John Canzano, a columnist at the Oregonian told Inside Blitz this week. “The second time you meet him you think, ‘oh, he’s just showing us what he wants us to see.’ By the 3rd time, you start to understand – this is just who he is.”
I’ve been reading and watching Mariota over the last three years, and Canzano wrote the piece that has stuck with me most. It happened in November 2013, when Oregon was pounded on the road by Stanford, 26-20 in a game that was 26-0 before a late, futile Ducks’ rally. Mariota fumbled and was ineffective on scrambles, and Oregon’s quest for a trip to the BCS title game ended.
Canzano set the scene after the game:
"When the door opened, and Marcus Mariota saw his father standing there, the Ducks quarterback burst into tears. The two men hugged, and sobbed as if they never wanted to let go."
When you get caught up in the hype of the Heisman, and the stats, and the NFL potential, sometimes you forget: Marcus Mariota just turned 21. (The list of NFL QBs who started at 21 is not an impressive one.) He had just turned 20 when the Ducks were pounded by Oregon. He may be 6-foot-4, 215 pounds and run like the wind, but he’s still a kid.
Does Mariota make a lot of first-read throws? Of course. What college football QB doesn’t? If his first and second reads are taken out, does he scramble from the pocket, using his speed to outrace overwhelmed defenders? Certainly. Will he be able to pull this off at the next level? Probably not. And the team that gives him millions isn’t going to want him taking hits like RGIII.
The key to Mariota’s NFL success, scouts say, isn’t anything ground-breaking: What are you going to surround him with? Matt Ryan got Julio Jones, the Colts keep adding talent around Luck, and the 49ers have done all they can to get skill position players to help Colin Kaepernick. Andy Dalton got AJ Green.
Tampa Bay, with two more losses, would secure the No.1 pick in the draft. The Bucs have a decent stable of running backs, a fine rookie receiver in Mike Evans, a solid veteran in Vincent Jackson, and a talented young tight end in Austin Seferian-Jenkins. Tampa is also not New York, which obviously is a plus. The ravenous New York media loves to build up athletes, only to viciously tear them down. Which leads to the biggest knock on Mariota: He may be too nice.
Can Marcus Mariota be an asshole? Perhaps more importantly, does he need to be?
“He’s got this perspective that nothing is more important than people,” said Canzano. “I don’t think he can be an asshole. That’s just not who he is. But he can beat your ass at checkers or horseshoes or whatever you want to play. He’s so fucking grounded, he’s got concrete in his cleats. I covered the 49ers and I watched Joe Montana and I never saw him lose it. He was always poised and calm. Marcus has that same feel about him. No moment is too big for him.”
Like I said, no pressure, Marcus.
LOCK OF THE WEEK
Took four early bowl games last week, and today I’m picking games that are taking place between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. For the season, I’m 26-26.
LSU -7.5 vs. Notre Dame. The NFL regular season ends on the 28th. I wouldn’t be shocked if Brian Kelly appealed to a few teams (Raiders, Falcons, 49ers), and was having informal talks with teams now. That, plus the ND QB issues, plus LSU’s running game … smells like a 38-13 romp.
Boise State +3.5 vs. Arizona. Slow start for the Broncos, fast finish (winners of eight straight). I’ll project a hangover from the Wildcats listless performance in the Pac-12 Title game.
Mississippi +3.5 vs. TCU. Gary Patterson’s a very good coach, but will the Horned Frogs be into it after getting snubbed from the Playoff? The Rebels had one of the best defenses in the country by several metrics, but don’t have the offense to hang with TCU. It should be evident early if Ole Miss can win this, or if TCU wins by 4+ TDs.
Texas A&M +3.5 vs. West Virginia. The Mountaineers were ordinary away from home this season. I’ll take Kevin Sumlin if you give me four weeks to prepare for an opponent.
Miami -1.5 vs South Carolina. The Gamecocks opened as the favorite (SEC!) but all the money has come in on the Hurricanes. The guess here is Miami and QB Brad Kaaya put on a show, kind of like Oklahoma last year against Alabama, and the Hurricanes open the season as a sexy Playoff Sleeper.
ODDS & ENDS:
Sources tell Inside Blitz that ESPN has reached a 7-year contract extension with TV host John Saunders. ESPN had no comment … Fox made its golf debut over the weekend with Joe Buck, and if you missed it, here’s a recap … because the comments section can’t get enough of the collapse at the New Republic! … how much credit does Bill Simmons deserve for all the heat on Roger Goodell? … Phil Mushnick’s angry diatribe of the week: Look at all those ESPN NFL announcers with checkered histories! … Fox announced this week it hired Alexi Lalas away from ESPN to beef up soccer coverage … Mike Wise is going to ESPN to write for Jason Whitlock’s new website, and here’s his final column at the Washington Post … fascinating database shows just how much every university gets from Under Armour, Nike and Adidas.