Getty Las Vegas Raiders QB Marcus Mariota.
It seemed like a big deal when the Las Vegas Raiders signed Marcus Mariota in the offseason but he’s yet to make any kind of impact. He was put on the injured reserve to start the season and the team doesn’t seem all that eager to activate him right now. While he hasn’t been busy on the field, it looks like he’s been busy off of it.
Mariota’s Foundation posted on Instagram recently that the quarterback decided to make a shocking change to his hairstyle.
Based on the fact that Mariota has usually kept his hair pretty simple, nobody could’ve seen braids in his future. It’s definitely a unique look but it remains to be seen how long he keeps it. Mariota doesn’t seem to be the type of guy who wants to attract attention with his hair.
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Is Mariota Nearing a Return?
Though Mariota was put on injured reserve earlier in the season, he’s been eligible to return since Week 4. He’s been at practice but the Raiders have yet to activate him. It’s unclear if the team is holding him off the active roster right now because he’s still hurt or because he’s not playing well.
The reports were that Mariota had a very bad training camp so the Raiders may just be holding him off so they can keep that extra roster spot for a different position. Derek Carr has been excellent this season and Jon Gruden is a fan of Nathan Peterman. They don’t really have a need for Mariota right now. However, at some point, they’re going to have to make a decision on him. Considering they guaranteed him a lot of money, he’ll probably be back on the roster relatively soon. Whether or not that leads to Peterman getting demoted to the practice squad remains to be seen.
Mariota Contract Looking Really Bad in Hindsight
The Raiders’ decision to sign Mariota right at the start of free agency was interesting but what was even more interesting was the decision to make him the highest-paid backup quarterback in the NFL. Several months into his Raiders tenure and the decision to give him all that money looks really bad.
Mariota didn’t show much promise in training camp. The Raiders would never admit it but they probably signed him to at least compete for the starting job. He never even came close to making Carr feel some heat. All the money that they’re paying Mariota could’ve been used to sign a pass rusher like Jadeveon Clowney or Everson Griffin. Instead, they have an injured backup who is getting paid way too much money and will probably not even play a snap this season.
General manager Mike Mayock has done a good job since taking over the job but this is probably his worst move yet. The Raiders would be wise to move off of Mariota after the season or significantly reduce his pay.
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