2015 NFL Draft: Top 5 Players in the Draft
By Chris West
Feb 21, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Oregon Ducks quarterback Marcus Mariota does the shuttle run during the 2015 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Marcus Mariota
College Team: Oregon
Size: 6’4″, 222lbs.
Speed: 40yd-4.52, 10yd-1.57
Measurements: Arms-32″, Hands-9 and 7/8″
Marcus Mariota has the athletic ability and intelligence to adapt to any NFL offensive system. A smart HC or offensive coordinator will seek to make the transition to an NFL offense smooth for Mariota by using his athletic ability to help him adapt.
Mariota ran Oregon’s fast-moving spread offense to near perfection. He won the Heisman trophy in 2014 and started since he was a redshirt freshman in 2012.
Strengths:
Mariota has excellent pocket presence and evades the pass rush very well. He has good arm strength with passes to all areas of the field. He has a very soft touch when needed and threw only 14 interceptions over his three-year career.
Mariota has a very humble personality that will fit well on any team
Mariota can transition well from passer to runner and from runner to passer very quickly. He gives defenses problems trying to defend all areas of his game. Mariota has a very humble and loyal personality that will fit well on any team.
Weaknesses:
Mariota will need high level NFL coaching to make a quick transition to the NFL. He has some mechanical flaws that will develop in an offense such as Oregon runs. His accuracy can be erratic when he doesn’t set his feet properly.
Because of the pace of the Oregon offense, Mariota tends to look to run too quickly. He will need to work on going through progressions in the NFL and will not have wide open receivers as he did in college.
Redskins fit:
The chances of the Redskins drafting Mariota are slim as he is expected to be taken in the first two picks. Even if he was to drop to the Redskins at the fifth pick, the trade offers the team would receive would be too good to pass on.
If Mariota was drafted by the Redskins, he could be given the opportunity to sit and learn the offense for a year. Although it is doubtful that the Redskins would keep both Robert Griffin III and Kirk Cousins with Mariota on the team, he would have at least one of them to learn from while watching.
The trouble that Redskins head coach, Jay Gruden had in adapting Griffin to his offense and his offense to Griffin seems to indicate that Mariota may not be the ideal QB for him in his second year. If they were to draft a QB for Gruden to mold, it will probably be a more NFL ready player.
Next: Number Five Redskins Draft Prospect