Where in the world is Marcus Mariota's contract? The Tennessee Titans have a lot of expectations for the first time in a few years and it all centers around Mariota. However, will their new star be on the field when the Titans open up training camp in a few weeks? As the quarterback and the franchise remain in a stare off with certain contract terms, the fact that a deal is not done is certainly not hurting the confidence of Mariota's teammates.
Early returns on Mariota are good. The quarterback has been meeting expectations and exceeding them. The Titans made several moves to upgrade their offensive weapons to assist Mariota in his first season in the league. Justin Hunter and Kendall Wright are joined by Harry Douglas, Hakeem Nicks and Dorial Green-Beckham and so far the wide receivers like what they see out of their new quarterback.
"If you have an accurate quarterback, it allows us to get more yards after that catch," said Harry Douglas, via ESPN.com. "And that's one thing that makes a receiver dynamic -- first being able to catch the ball and then being able to do some things with it after you catch it. I feel like [to this point] Marcus has done everything he needs to do to get the ball to his receivers."
The Titans will have a battle for the starting rotation once training camp opens up. Green-Beckham has been impressing in workouts while Douglas and Nicks will likely battle for the no.3 slot spot. The Titans are unlikely to release anyone in the rotation simply because they need as much depth as possible. Green-Beckham and Nicks both have injury history that will make players like Douglas and Washington important. Mariota made it clear that he was not planning on buying into a position battle with the receivers.
The Titans also plan on focusing heavily on the run game in 2015. According to ESPN NFL Insider Dan Graziano, the Titans want more balance on offense than in previous seasons. Shonn Greene, Bishop Sankey and Jalston Fowler will be battling for playing time while Delanie Walker returns as the top tight end and Tennessee's best receiver last season. However, none of this matters if the Titans cannot sign Mariota. According to ESPN, offset language is an issue, but general manager Ruston Webster does not believe the issue will linger.
"It's going like most contract situations go about this time of year," Webster said on "The Midday 180" on Nashville's 104.5 The Zone. "We have had good conversations. We'll continue to have good conversations. Looking forward to getting that done and him being in here for camp. I personally don't see there being a major issue. ... I don't concern myself too much with it if a guy misses a few days. We've had good talks. We're motivated. Marcus is motivated. So I would expect that we would be able to get something done. As you said, we have plenty of time right now, so we'll just see where it all goes."
