Falcons will try to revive Marcus Mariota’s NFL career

Mariota (6-foot-4, 222 pounds) was benched in Tennessee six games into the 2019 season, when Falcons coach Arthur Smith was the offensive coordinator. Mariota has not started a game since. He served as the Raiders’ backup the past two seasons.

Mariota, who signed a modest two-year contract, has a chance to revive his once-promising career. He knows what’s on the line. If he performs well, he can re-establish himself as a starting quarterback. If he falters, he’ll likely revert to being a baseball cap-wearing backup.

“I feel like I’m in a good spot,” Mariota said. “I think what it comes down to is communication with the staff on things that we like, things that I see and maybe things I don’t like.”

His comfort in working with Smith from their times in Tennessee should help.

“What’s nice is I really think that our relationship is at that point,” Mariota said. “It’s nice to have Art, somebody that I’ve been around. It’s been cool to know Coach Rags (offensive coordinator Dave Ragone). Get to know (quarterback coach Charles) London. I think we’re all kind of speaking and talking the same way.”

Mariota felt that his time on the bench with the Raiders was time well-spent.

“When you have to sit down and watch, it’s a different perspective,” Mariota said. “So, with that being said, those experiences have allowed me just to come out here and just kind of use those as tools.”

Smith, who now has a year under his belt as a head coach, stressed that he’s in a different place than in 2019.

“He’s been a head coach now for just like a year,” Mariota said. “So, to be able to kind of take those experiences that we both learned, has really allowed us to come out here and I think just play better and to play quote, unquote free.”

One of the issues in Tennessee was how much shotgun formation to use with Mariota. He thrived in the formation in college, but in the NFL, quarterbacks who play under center have advantages setting up the rushing attack and the play-action passing game.

There are some pass-protection benefits to using the shotgun, though, and the Falcons’ offensive line has given up 40 sacks or more in each of the past four seasons.

Mariota said the team spent the offseason getting a feel for what they wanted to do and what they didn’t like.

“You get to go out there and do a bunch of stuff,” Mariota said when asked about the shotgun formation. “I don’t think there’s really something specific. ... We were just trying to get a feel for what the scheme can fit and where it’s going to allow our guys to go out there and play well.”

London and Ragone spent a lot of time helping Mariota reconstruct aspects of his game over the offseason.

“Play free, play what you see and trust your eyes,” Mariota said.

The Falcons also revamped their wide receiver group. Mariota has to learn a mostly new collection of receivers, although the team did trade for Bryan Edwards, a teammate of Mariota’s with the Raiders.

“I don’t think it’s necessarily a hard thing,” Mariota said of adjusting to his new receivers. “It is nice because we have a lot of volume. We were throwing a lot of reps. We were throwing a bunch of balls. So, from that standpoint, I think we feel good with everybody.”

Ridder, who patterns his game after Mariota’s, has been a good understudy thus far.

“It’s kind of funny, like for me he’s just a little bit younger than my younger brother,” Mariota said. “So, it makes me feel old talking to him a little bit. ... I think Dez has a bright future in front of him, but at the same time, I think it’s fun to come out here and compete. I think we’re both making each other better.”

No matter who’s at quarterback, the Falcons plan to rely heavily on their rushing attack.

“It’s huge, and especially the way the game that Arthur has brought to us is obviously a heavy-run, a heavy play-pass game,” Falcons wide receivers coach T.J. Yates said. “The more that those guys can sell the blocking game and running game and how those match up, the better that we can be. That physicality doesn’t just come in the passing game, it comes in the running game as well.”

The plan is to get Mariota and Ridder as many practice repetitions as possible.

“The rules are what they are,” Smith said. “You don’t have the two full practices. It’s harder to manage those reps.

Ridder, who signed his four-year, $5.4 million contract Tuesday, was the second quarterback taken in the draft. Mariota has never played all regular-season games in a season in his career, so the Falcons need to have Ridder ready to play.

Ridder need to follow a strong offseason with a good training camp.

“Behind the scenes the things that he’s done to impress me as a rookie really from the neck up (stand out),” Smith said. “How he’s operating when we do these rookie walk-throughs, installations on the field and his command.”

The Falcons are hoping Ridder’s physical tools will catch up to his strong mental preparation.

“He’s light years ahead of most young quarterbacks I’ve been with from the neck up,” Smith said. “I will give him that compliment.”

Tight end Kyle Pitts has been impressed, too.

“I think that Desmond did a great job,” Pitts said.

Ridder, who’s 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, led Cincinnati to a 44-5 mark as a starter. Learning how to call NFL plays was his toughest offseason challenge. He used a voice recorder at night to help him learn how to call plays.

“So just being able to pick them up and spit them out has been my challenge,” Ridder said. “That’s where I needed to grow the most throughout this entire thing. I feel like I’ve done a great job of that. I feel like I’ve done a great job of preparing, learning and understanding the offense. The terminology and verbiage comes out a lot easier.”

Ridder is looking forward to working with Pitts and first-round pick Drake London.

“It definitely makes my job a lot easier,” Ridder said. “They are smart guys and big guys. Just being able to go put up and give them a chance to go get it. Playmakers go make plays, and that’s what they do best.”

Mariota and Ridder, while competitors, appear to have a mutual respect for one another.

“Just the way he approaches the game,” Ridder said of Mariota. “Meeting with him in the morning and just going over the script, how he talks about learning the plays and to the simple way of how he takes care of his body ... picking up little tips and tricks on how he manages coverages and different things like that.”

Ridder has been pleased that their situation has gone smoothly, thus far.

“He’s like a big brother to me,” Ridder said. “He’s taken me under his wing. He’s taught me some of the nuances of not only becoming an NFL quarterback, but just an NFL player in general. So, I’m excited to keep learning from Marcus and keep growing.”

Credit: Miguel Martinez

Credit: Miguel Martinez

Falcons’ 90-man roster analysis:

Part 1: Defensive line

Part 2: Linebackers

Part 3: Secondary

Part 4: Special teams

Part 5: Wide receivers / tight ends

Part 6: Offensive line

Part 7: Running backs

Part 8: Quarterbacks

The AJC’s projected depth chart

OFFENSE

WR – Bryan Edwards, Cordarrelle Patterson, Frank Darby, Cameron Batson, KhaDarel Hodge, Stanley Berryhill

TE – Kyle Pitts, Brayden Lenius, Tucker Fisk

LT – Jake Matthews, Rick Leonard, Tyler Vrabel, Leroy Watson

LG – Jalen Mayfield, Elijah Wilkinson, Colby Gossett, Justin Shaffer

C – Drew Dalman or Matt Hennessy, Jonotthan Harrison

RG – Chris Lindstrom, Drew Dalman, Ryan Neuzil

RT – Kaleb McGary, Germain Ifedi

TE – Anthony Firkser, Parker Hesse, John Raine, John FitzPatrick

WR – Drake London, Olamide Zaccheaus, Geronimo Allison, Auden Tate, Damiere Byrd, Jared Bernhardt, Tyshaun James

RB – Cordarrelle Patterson, Damien Williams, Qadree Ollison, Caleb Huntley, Avery Williams, Tyler Allgeier

FB – Keith Smith

QB – Marcus Mariota, Desmond Ridder, Feleipe Franks

DEFENSE

DE – Grady Jarrett, Marlon Davidson, Jalen Dalton

NT – Vincent Taylor, Anthony Rush, Timothy Horne

DE – Ta’Quon Graham, Nick Thurman, Bryce Rodgers, Derrick Tangelo

OLB – Lorenzo Carter, Jordan Brailford, Arnold Ebiketie

ILB – Deion Jones, Mykal Walker, Troy Andersen

ILB – Rashaan Evans, Dorian Etheridge, Nick Kwiatkoski, Nathan Landman

OLB – Adetokunbo Ogundeji, Quinton Bell, Rashad Smith, DeAngelo Malone, Kuony Deng

LCB – A.J. Terrell, Darren Hall, Mike Ford, Corey Ballentine, Cornell Armstrong, Lafayette Pitts

FS (Left) – Jaylinn Hawkins, Erik Harris, Dean Marlowe

SS (Right) – Richie Grant, Teez Tabor, Tre Webb

RCB – Casey Hayward, Isaiah Oliver, Dee Alford, Matt Hankins

SPECIAL TEAMS

K – Younghoe Koo

P – Bradley Pinion, Seth Vernon

LS – Liam McCullough

H – Bradley Pinion, Desmond Ridder

PR – Avery Williams, Cameron Batson

KOR – Cordarrelle Patterson, Avery Williams, Cameron Batson

The Bow Tie Chronicles