Getty Indianapolis Colts QB Carson Wentz.
The Indianapolis Colts were hit with some very bad news at the start of training camp when starting quarterback Carson Wentz suffered a foot injury. While the team held out hope that he could recover, it’s just not going to happen. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Wentz is getting surgery and will miss five to 12 weeks in recovery.
That’s not great for a team with Super Bowl aspirations and it’s even worse for Wentz who was hoping to rehabilitate his career in Indianapolis. The Colts could sit tight while he gets healthy or they could look to add a quarterback. The Las Vegas Raiders should be a team they give a call to. According to Mike Kaye of NJ.com, the Colts previously showed interest in Marcus Mariota and could do so again.
The Colts did have interest in Marcus Mariota before trading for Wentz, per league source. While Nick Foles is an obvious option, he might not be the only one for Indy.
Mariota is set to be Derek Carr’s backup in Las Vegas. The Raiders could have plans to put Mariota on the field in some packages but that’s not a guarantee. Though it’s great to have a strong backup quarterback, the team would be smart to trade Mariota if the Colts make a good offer.
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Mariota Looking Good in Training Camp
This time last year, stock on Mariota was not high. He was coming off a season with the Tennessee Titans in which he got benched in favor of Ryan Tannehill. He came to the Raiders to compete with Carr for the starting job and was completely outclassed in training camp. Things changed when Mariota was forced into the Week 15 game against the Los Angeles Chargers and ended up playing well.
This offseason, there was chatter that the Raiders could trade him for a decent draft pick. That didn’t end up happening as the team reworked his contract and decided to keep him. However, the Colts’ desperation could work in the Raiders’ favor. Plus, Mariota has been looking a lot better in training camp this year, according to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
FYI: Marcus Mariota dealing at @Raiders camp
Mariota may actually be the best backup quarterback in the NFL but that’s not worth much when you have a durable starter like Carr.
Raiders Should Consider Trade With Colts
Having a quarterback like Mariota as an insurance policy is a great thing to have. If an injury to Carr were to happen, the Raiders would feel good with their backup running the offense. However, desperate teams are often good to take advantage of.
The Colts are a playoff team with a decent quarterback at the helm. An old Philip Rivers led them to an 11-5 record. Mariota could almost certainly replicate that in a weak AFC South. If Indianapolis comes to the Raiders with a second or third-round pick to offer, they should listen. Now, anything less than that may not be enough for Las Vegas to play ball. General manager Mike Mayock isn’t known to pull off a lot of big trades but he should at least take a call from the Colts.
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