Tennessee Titans quarterback Zach Mettenberger. Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Titans have been searching for a franchise quarterback for 10 years — ever since they traded Steve McNair to Baltimore in 2005. Marcus Mariota, drafted second overall in the 2015 NFL Draft on Thursday, comes to town as the new face of the franchise.
Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt quickly said Mariota moves to the top of the depth chart ahead of Zach Mettenberger, who asked to be traded according to a report. The Titans said there is no validity to the report.
“We just talked before I came in (to Thursday’s press conference), so he’s up for the challenge,” general manager Ruston Webster added. “I think one of the things that was important for Zach to understand is that he built up a lot of good equity with what he did. There’s a lot of potential there, and we’re excited about Zach.”
The Titans, dogged by injuries at quarterback for the past several seasons, and Whisenhunt are not likely to blink should Mettenberger ask to me moved. Whisenhunt used 11 starting quarterbacks as head coach of the Arizona Cardinals and in 2014 with the Titans.
But first, of course, they will test Mariota’s football acumen as he and Whisenhunt will have to find the right mix of the coach’s vertical passing system against the spread offense that Mariota operated at Oregon.
“You’ve got to push him,” Whisenhunt said. “You’ve got to challenge him, but obviously there are some things he does well and we’ll incorporate those into what we’re doing.
“It’s gonna be a little bit of blend, but he’s a talented young man. He has a very good feel for the position and how to process those things, and we’re excited to get a chance to work with him.”
Mariota, too, is eager to get started and find common ground within the Titans’ offense.
“For me, I’m gonna to my best to try and do some of everything. I’m gonna be the player that I’ve always been and do whatever is asked of me,” Mariota said. “Coach Whisenhunt is going to have his offense and his complexities of his system and I’m gonna do my best to execute it. I won’t change the type of player I am. Hopefully, we’ll continue to find success and execute well.”
Mariota immediately becomes the face of the franchise after winning the Heisman Trophy in 2014. Tennessee has to hope that he can adapt quickly to being an NFL quarterback after first-round misses on VinceYoung in 2006 and Jake Locker in 2011.
“I think any question that you’re going to be faced when you’re talking about a quarterback is how they process things,” Whisenhunt said. “To me, the hardest thing about playing that position is being able to diagnose what a defense is doing, what you have do to try to counter that and then be able to do that all within a matter of a few seconds and get the ball accurately to the right spot if you’re throwing it.”
As for what Whisenhunt will do to make Mariota fit, he said, “We’ve already started working on that. We’ll have a plan.”
