If the Las Vegas Raiders had any plans on turning the starting QB reins over to Marcus Mariota late in the season, those plans have just taken a hit.
Ian Rapoport, an NFL insider, reports that Mariota has been placed on the reserve/COVID-19 roster by the Raiders. He will not be playing today against the Denver Broncos.
Mariota has only played in a handful of snaps during the entire season, while Derek Carr is enjoying another solid season. He hasn’t thrown a pass and has instead rushed for 48 yards and a touchdown.
Early this season, rumors circulated that the Raiders might switch from Carr to Mariota. Carr’s strong play, or simply the wheels not falling off at this point in the season, has meant that nobody other than Carr has thrown a pass.
The #Raiders placed WR Bryan Edwards and QB Marcus Mariota on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, while activating QB Nathan Peterman and WR Dillon Stoner.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 26, 2021
There was a reasonable expectation that Marcus Mariota would replace Carr when he was signed by the Las Vegas Raiders in 2020. It was a good decision because he is younger than Carr and has more playoff experience.
Mariota has struggled to even get on the field. In a late season loss against the Chargers, he only played in one game last season. He threw for 226 yards.