Marcus Mariota vs. Rams: Stats, Reaction and Updated 2015 Fantasy Advice

All aboard the Marcus Mariota hype train. 

The defending Heisman Trophy winner led the Tennessee Titans to a 27-14 victory over the St. Louis Rams in Sunday’s preseason contest. He also caught the eye of potential fantasy football players in the process with these numbers:

	Pass Completions	Passing Yards	Passing Touchdowns	Interceptions	Rushing Yards	Rushing Touchdowns
Marcus Mariota	5-of-8	59	0	0	1	0

While the numbers are solid, Mariota demonstrated his potential on the field simply by handling a difficult situation. The communicator device in his helmet stopped working during the first drive, but he maintained his composure, as coach Ken Whisenhunt said, per the team’s official Twitter account:

Sports Illustrated’s Peter King also praised Mariota for his composure in that moment:

"

Liked how he: 1 threw it. 2 lost coach-2-QB contact on 1st series, just played. 3 hard-counted Rams into an offside. https://t.co/QNu5dleXUy

— Peter King (@SI_PeterKing) August 24, 2015"

The fact that Mariota “just played” after losing contact with the coaching staff and drew the Rams offside doesn’t technically do much for fantasy players banking on statistical production, but it does show the quarterback's growing comfort level with his role as the Titans’ leader.

More comfort will naturally turn into better statistics once the season rolls around, so positive signs like this are worth noting in mid-August, even if it is just preseason.

The improvement also stood out since Mariota was sacked and turned the ball over twice in his first preseason game. He didn’t register a single turnover Sunday and would have notched a touchdown if Dexter McCluster didn’t drop a pass in the end zone.

The game-to-game development mirrored the progress fans saw in that first preseason contest when he recovered from two turnovers on the first two possessions to finish 7-of-8 passing for 94 yards.

It is easy to put too much stock in a preseason performance, especially for rookies who don't have regular-season numbers for context, but constant improvement is exactly what the Titans and fantasy players are looking for from the young Mariota.

The only real downside from Sunday’s game was the fact he only rushed for one yard, but it is a safe assumption that Mariota will provide fantasy rushing numbers during the regular season based on his career at Oregon. After all, he notched 770 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns on the ground alone in 2014 on his way to the Heisman.

It is unrealistic to expect video-game numbers like that because he won’t be facing overmatched college defenses in the NFL, but the proven rushing ability is there and should provide peace of mind for fantasy players even though he only ran for a yard Sunday.

That rushing ability also helps him avoid pressure and extend plays, which we saw Sunday, per the NFL:

Ultimately, this was just one preseason game in the arc of Mariota’s season, but Zac Jackson of Pro Football Talk pointed out why it was still important: "In two series Sunday, the Titans moved the ball and Mariota looked to be in control of the offense. He’s still transitioning from spread quarterback in college to professional being asked to command the huddle and be the face of the franchise, so every bit of work against a real opponent counts."

That work against real opponents leads to the improvement needed for a rookie to contribute in fantasy circles.

Mark Zaleski/Associated Press

Just like it was irresponsible to write Mariota off after early struggles in his first preseason game, fantasy owners should still proceed with caution after one solid performance. After all, he is still a rookie quarterback without a single regular-season NFL snap on his resume, and the preseason is a mixed bag of playing time for starters on the opposing defenses.

Mariota should be seen as a backup fantasy quarterback at this point. Storing the rookie on the bench will also provide fantasy players the option of inserting him into the starting lineup if he delivers on his high upside in the first few weeks.

The Titans play the Cleveland Browns, Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins in three of the first five games. They were all in the top 10 defenses against the pass last year and are difficult secondaries for quarterbacks to face when it comes to fantasy football. 

If Mariota shows consistent improvement against those solid secondaries, he will then face the Atlanta Falcons, Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints in Weeks 7-9 with a renewed sense of confidence. Houston was 21st, New Orleans was 25th, and Atlanta was dead last against the pass in 2014.

Fantasy players should target those ideal matchups for Mariota if Sunday’s performance was an indication of what is to come this year. That allows some time to judge the rookie based on more than a couple of preseason games.