Denver Broncos: Free agents to steal from division rivals in 2021
QB. Raiders. 3. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. MarcusMariota. player. 28
Alright, so Marcus Mariota is not currently a free agent (at least, not at the time this post is being written).
With that being said, the Raiders have completely washed their team clean of offseason acquisitions made over the past couple of offseasons and with only just over $17 million in available cap space to show for it, Mariota figures to be the next guy on his way out with a cap hit in 2021 of $11.35 million.
The Raiders can free up all of that space by cutting him.
When the Denver Broncos faced the Tennessee Titans in the 2019 season, they absolutely owned Marcus Mariota. Actually, the Tennessee Titans should be sending Vic Fangio and the Denver Broncos a thank you note on an annual basis at this point. It was the Denver Broncos’ utter domination of Mariota that caused the Titans to replace their former top draft pick with backup Ryan Tannehill, who has now taken the team to two straight playoff appearances and has played like a former first-round pick.
Ironically, it’s Mariota who is now a possible Tannehill-like reclamation project option for some other team.
The Denver Broncos figure to bring in a quarterback to “compete” with Drew Lock in the 2021 offseason, and if that simply means they’re bringing in someone better than Jeff Driskel, they should be casting a pretty wide net.
Should Mariota become available, he’s as intriguing as anyone.
Athletically, Mariota has a ton of upside. He’s got a big arm. He’s going to have a chip on his shoulder. He’s still only 27 years old. He’s a former second overall pick (2015).
There is no question that Mariota would fit the description of what the Denver Broncos are looking to bring in this offseason to push Drew Lock and if they could get him on a two-year deal, he could be a great hedge option.