There’s a lot of eyes on Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota as he enters the fifth and final year of his rookie deal.
Mariota still has a lot to prove, but he’s shown flashes of potential and has generally been solid for his team when healthy.
How does the former Oregon Duck compare to other Titans quarterbacks of the past?
Titans team writer Jim Wyatt recently compared his stats to those of other signal-callers like the great Steve McNair.
Here’s a look at how the two stack up in each category over their first four NFL seasons, with stats from TitansOnline.com.
Passing
Steve McNair (45 games, 38 starts from 1995-1998)
Stats: 634-of-1,130, 7,659 yards, 56.1 %, 6.8 pass yds/att, 170.2 pass yards per game, 38 TDs, 28 INTs, 78.0 rating, sacked 79 times, 23-22 record.
Marcus Mariota (56 games, 55 starts from 2015-2018)
Stats: 1,015-of-1,605, 12,004 yards, 63.2 %, 7.5 pass yds/att, 214.4 pass yards per game, 69 TDs, 42 INTs, 89.4 rating, sacked 130 times, 28-28 record.
Based on these statistics alone, Mariota has found much more success on the pass than McNair initially did. This is interesting to look at, considering how widely Mariota has been regarded as a mobile, running quarterback.
With an offensive line which looks to be improving, and a host of new targets to throw to, it’s reasonable to expect these numbers to increase for Mariota.
Rushing
Steve McNair
Stats: 220 attempts, 1,440 yards, 6.55 rush average, 14 rush TDs.
Marcus Mariota
Stats: 218 attempts, 1,270 yards, 5.83 rush average, 11 rush TDs.
Mariota may be known for his running abilities, but McNair outdid him by a small bit over his first four seasons. It will be interesting to see how these numbers compare at the end of Mariota’s fifth season.
