Spread Offense vs Pro Style Quarterbacks in the NFL Draft
2015: Marcus Mariota vs Jameis Winston
Marcus Mariota threw for an amazing 4,454 yards, 42 TDs and only four INTs in 2014 at Oregon. He also beat Jameis Winston in the Rose Bowl in 2015 to raise more eye brows. But you can put Mariota’s throwing numbers right up there with Ware and Klingler.
All the slants and bubble screens producing yards after the catch inflated his stats. From the very beginning, I knew that Mariota would take longer to get there than Winston and wrote about it. Winston, taken No. 1, already made checks at the line and went through progressions.
He also threw it down the field into tight windows with anticipation in college. I know Mariota is a smart kid so he would make checks at the line and call his plays soon enough. But he struggles with accuracy down the field, his progressions and staring down targets.
Mariota beat Winston again as an NFL rookie but Winston threw for over 4,000 yards and 22 TDs. And in the season opener, the threw four TDs while Mariota cost his team a win with two turnovers. Mariota still struggles with accuracy down the field and staring down targets.
Next: Jared Goff vs Carson Wentz