Derek Carr sprinted to his right on third-down-and-goal, looking for a clear path toward the end zone. The Raiders quarterback never found one, forced to run out of bounds with Chargers defenders bearing down.
Carr came up hobbling, hindered by a strained groin that wouldn’t let him continue.
It also put Marcus Mariota on red alert.
Las Vegas’ backup quarterback had just one short Chargers series to get ready for action. He ended up with 2 minutes, 26 seconds total game time to wrap his brain around what was to come in a tight game against an AFC rival. There was no time to take in the moment, to acknowledge this Week 15 contest was his first of 2020, just his second since getting benched by the Titans early the previous year.
The restorative time between that moment in Tennessee and this one didn’t flash before Mariota’s eyes, recalling all he had learned about his game and maybe, more importantly, about himself. He didn’t pause to ponder, as he previously had, whether he wanted to keep playing football at all.
Mariota flushed his mind completely, focused only on one thing. Just go play.
“When you have to go out there at a moment’s notice, you don’t have time to think about it,” Mariota said in an interview with AtlantaFalcons.com. “You’re just reacting and playing the game you’ve always played.”
Rarely has Mariota played better than he did on that series. After a handoff to open things up, Mariota escaped the pocket and threw an on-the-run laser complete for 22 yards down the left sideline. Then came a handoff, followed by an in-rhythm throw over the middle for 13 and another first down. Mariota then faked a handoff, tucked it and ran around the right end for 11 more. And, after a no gain by a back, Mariota launched a perfect deep shot to Darren Waller for a 35-yard touchdown strike.
Unstoppable. Efficient. Signature Mariota.
The former No. 2 overall draft pick was excellent during that game, becoming the first quarterback since 1958 to accumulate over 200 yards passing and 75 yards rushing after entering in relief. Mariota had 226 through the air, with a touchdown and a pick. He had 88 more on the ground, with a rushing score that tied it late in the fourth quarter.
The Raiders ended up losing in overtime, but Mariota’s performance off the bench, nationally televised in primetime, was well recognized.
“I think that this kind of puts an exclamation point on why we signed him,” then Raiders coach Jon Gruden said via Sporting News. “Just wish we could’ve won the…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at News…