It's a shame that people are dismissing Mariota, BECAUSE of his ability to run. He's so much more than that....

 

When I watch him, I don't get the sense that he's in a hurry to get out of the pocket. Unlike Johnny Manziel, he has no problem standing back there, going through his reads, and if there's nothing, there, he'll bail. I think, people are just turned off by the amount of pop plays that are incorporated into Oregon's offense. You CAN'T let those plays effect your evaluation positively or negatively. You should pretty much throw those plays out. When you evaluate Mariota on plays where he drops back, in a traditional sense, you can see him move his eyes, scanning the field. I believe he is a true drop back QB, that happens to have elite athleticism. He has the arm to make all of the throws, and the touch to drop it in to any spot, something that Bridgewater lacks when to comes to deep patterns. He is exceptional at throwing across his body when he is flushed to his left, and is more than exceptional when he is flushed to his right. For me, the ONLY flaw I see in his game is that on his short to intermediate routes, he has a tendency to throw high. But there's no reason that this can't be fixed, and at the tender age of 19, he has plenty of time to correct this.

 

Here's an example of something that may go unnoticed that makes Mariota my #1 QB:

http://pac-12.com/article/2012/09/04/tue...-look-easy 

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