Top-2 Pick Agrees to Contract With Commanders

Marcus Mariota, Commanders, Agree to Contract

Mariota entered the 2025 season as the primary backup to Jayden Daniels but ended up playing a decent amount of football. Filling in for the former second-overall pick, Mariota appeared in 11 games (eight starts) and completed 61.2% of his passes for 1,695 yards, 10 touchdowns, and seven interceptions while adding another 297 yards and one touchdown on the ground. While he did as you could expect of a backup, the team still went 2-6 in his starts and finished the year with an unimpressive 5-12 record after reaching the NFC Championship Game in 2024.

Marcus Mariota originally entered the league as the second-overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. Selected by the Tennessee Titans, the Oregon product earned the Week 1 starting job and looked like the real deal early in his career. Starting and appearing in 12 games, the rookie finished his inaugural season completing 62.2% of his passes for 2,818 yards, 19 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. He built on that in 2016, going 8-7 while throwing for 3,426 yards, 26 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.

Mariota remained Tennessee’s primary starting quarterback until the 2019 season. While he began the year under center, he suffered an injury after six games and turned the keys over to Ryan Tannehill. The former Miami Dolphin never looked back, stealing the starting job and helping the team reach the AFC Championship Game. Mariota then spent two years as a backup with the Las Vegas Raiders before earning another starting job with the Atlanta Falcons. Unfortunately, he only lasted one year there before losing the job to a rookie quarterback in Desmond Ridder.