Las Vegas Raiders Place Quarterback Marcus Mariota On Injured Reserve

The downward spiral of one Marcus Mariota took another turn on Monday after his new Las Vegas Raiders team placed the former No. 2 pick on injured reserve.

It’s not yet known what type of injury Mariota is dealing with. However, this adds another layer to the belief that the quarterback is on the verge of becoming a bust.

Las Vegas signed the 26-year-old Mariota to a two-year, $17.6 million deal with $7.5 million guaranteed at signing back in March. At least initially, the expectation was that he might compete with Derek Carr for the starting quarterback job during training camp. That obviously could not be further from the case.

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Prior to Monday’s news, reports out of Henderson were that Mariota had struggled big time.

“Mariota was brought in to push Carr for the starting job at some point, but has not been sharp at training camp and is no threat for the starting role,” Vic Tafur of The Athletic noted recently.

The No. 2 overall pick of the Tennessee Titans back in 2015, Mariota performed well early in his career. The former Heisman winner tallied 45 touchdown passes and just 19 interceptions in his first two seasons.

It’s been completely downhill since. A combination of lacklsuter play and numerous injuries has limited Mariota 31 touchdowns and 25 interceptions over the past three seasons. He lost his starting job to veteran Ryan Tannehill last season, which led to the Titans moving on from their former franchise quarterback following the 2019 campaign.

New injured reserve rules around the NFL in the era of COVID-19 allows teams to activate a player off the list after just three weeks. For now, this means that Nathan Peterman will act as Carr’s backup starting Sunday against the Carolina Panthers.

In a related move, Las Vegas signed former Cleveland Browns second-round pick DeShone Kizer to the practice squad on Monday. Kizer was released by these very same Raiders earlier in the summer. He’ll act as the No. 3 quarterback until/if Mariota returns.

Other Raiders News

This past weekend saw Las Vegas shockingly trade rookie third-round pick Lynn Bowden Jr. to the Miami Dolphins. The former Kentucky standout had not performed well at running back during camp. Miami is expected to move Bowden to wide recever, where he played for the Wildcats back in 2018.

The move was pretty surprising in that experts concluded Bowden could play both running back and wide receiver. Given that the Raiders placed No. 1 pass-catcher Tyrell Williams on season-ending injured reserve last week, that’s magnified further.

Raiders Finalize Practice Squad

In addition to Kizer, there’s some other notable names on the Raiders’ 16-man practice squad.

Marcell Ateman, wide receiver: A seventh-round pick of the Raiders back in 2018, this Oklahoma State product has caught 20 passes in two seasons, including five last year.

Theo Riddick, running back: Las Vegas took advantage of the ability to have vested veterans on practice squads by signing this seven-year pro. Riddick racked up 3,261 total yards at a clip of 5.6 yards per touch during his career with the Lions.

Kyle Emanuel, linebacker: A fifth-round pick of the Chargers back in 2015, Emanuel started 32 games in four seasons with the club. His best performance came back in 2016 when the North Dakota State product recorded 58 tackles.

Datone Jones, defensive end: Yet another former first-round bust, Jones fell out of favor in Green Bay after the Packers made him the 26th overall pick back in 2013. Jones, 30, has recorded 87 tackles and 10 sacks in his career.

Las Vegas Raiders Place Tanner Muse On Injured Reserve

Much like Mariota and Bowden, this former standout at Clemson struggled big time during training camp. Selected in the third round this past April, Muse was highly unlikely to have any real role for the Raiders as a rookie.

This decision adds to the belief that Las Vegas overdrafed the college standout. Muse performed well at Clemson, playing both linebacker and safety. But he lacks the attributes needed to be anything more than a special teams performer in the NFL.

Raiders Sign Kyle Wilber And Sam Young To Active Roster

Both of these veterans were part of the final cuts this past weekend. Wilber, 31, returns to the Raiders after he racked up 21 combined tackles over the past two seasons. He’ll be a depth and special teams option at linebacker.

Meanwhile, Young is entering his 11th season in the NFL. The former Notre Dame offensive tackle has started 21 games throughout his career.