Of all the names out there on the free agent quarterback market, Marcus Mariota isn’t the one Chicago Bears fans would prefer to discuss. One can understand why. The similarities to Mitch Trubisky are just a little too numerous. A former #2 overall pick who had one really good year in Tennessee, fell back to earth after that and was eventually benched in favor of another veteran. Why should they think he is somehow a solution to the Bears’ problem?
That’s fair. However, this situation is complicated. Mariota endured four different offensive coordinators and three different head coaches in five seasons with the Titans. It’s hard for any player to have success in that environment. Especially a quarterback. Maybe in Chicago under a stat that is now loaded with QB specialists like Matt Nagy, John DeFilippo, and Bill Lazor he could experience a career revival.
One argument for this came from Mark Schofield of Touchdown Wire. He came up with a creative analogy to describe quarterbacks as two different types: bakers and chefs. The bakers are excellent at following a recipe step-by-step but struggle if forced to improvise. Chefs aren’t the best at following the recipe but can often improve upon it when they decide to create.
Schofield thinks the Bears need a baker, and Mariota is that guy.
“Nagy’s offense badly needs a baker, someone who will just work through the reads and check off the boxes and make the right decisions with the football. Trubisky’s difficulties in this area have hamstrung Nagy’s offense and held the team back to the point where they might miss out on a potential Super Bowl window…
…Mariota (for many of the same reasons I argued for Fromm to Chicago) can give the Bears that. He’s a competent, task-oriented baker at the quarterback position who might not deliver splash plays but can do enough to keep the offense operating at a sufficient level. Sexy? Absolutely not. Worth a huge free-agent contract? Probably not, given Chicago’s cap situation.
An upgrade? Yes.”
Marcus Mariota does have traits the Bears would like
Forget the mobility and all that stuff. This is about whether Mariota can execute the Nagy offense efficiently. Can he go through progressions and hit the open man with relative consistency. While this was something he did struggle with at times early on, the numbers show the 26-year old did improve in 2018. He completed over 68% of his passes that year despite averaging a healthy 7.2 yards per attempt.
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For context, Trubisky completed just 63% of his throws last year despite averaging just 6.7 yards per attempt. He threw it shorter a lot more often but completed 5% fewer passes. This shows that Mariota does have some reliable accuracy.
The question is will the inconsistencies that have followed him most of his career vanish when he finds stability in an offensive system. Bakers can’t bake until they find the right oven to bake with. He never seemed to have that in Tennessee. Perhaps Chicago can offer him what he’s been missing.
