Report: Marcus Mariota 'no threat' for Raiders' starting QB role

Marcus Mariota was signed by the Las Vegas Raiders this offseason in order to push Derek Carr to new heights, but the former Tennessee Titans signal-caller hasn't necessarily lived up to expectations. 

While Mariota has been dealing with lingering problems with his head and shoulder, he finally has returned to training camp after missing time ... and he hasn't looked great. According to The Athletic's Vic Tafur, Mariota is "no threat" to take over the Raiders starting quarterback position from Carr. 

General manager Mike Mayock and head coach Jon Gruden now see Mariota as a "rebuilding project," Tafur adds. While both say that Mariota has been impressive in camp, Tafur says otherwise. 

"Mariota has not been impressive throwing short passes at camp and that has nothing to do with his footwork or ankle issues," Tafur writes. "His windup looks too long and uncomfortable."

Mariota signed a two-year, $17.6 million deal with the Raiders during the offseason, and that includes $7.5 million in the first year as a fully guaranteed base salary. When comparing that contract with what other quarterbacks signed during the offseason, it makes Las Vegas look silly. 

Cam Newton signed a one-year deal with the New England Patriots worth $1.05 million in base salary while Jameis Winston signed a one-year, $1.1 million base salary deal with the New Orleans Saints. 

With Carr essentially now locked in as the Raiders starting QB for the long haul, he'll look to improve on his 7-9 record from last season. In 2019, the 29-year-old completed 70.4% of his passes for 4,054 yards and 21 touchdowns against eight interceptions. 

Quite clearly, Carr is doing his job, and that can be seen with the numbers he put up last season. The $7.5 million used to sign Mariota could've been used to improve the Raiders roster in other areas, but, apparently, the club still thinks Carr needs to be better.