The Tennessee Titans and rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota have yet to come to terms on a contract. This makes Mariota the only first-round draft pick who has not signed with his team.
Because of this, Titans general manager Ruston Webster stated recently that it would not be a problem if Mariota skipped a few days of the team’s training camp. Setting this situation straight, Mariota spoke with NFL Media’s Tiffany Blackmon while in attendance at the NFL Rookie Symposium:
“It’s the furthest thing from my mind,” Mariota said. “My agent is going to do his job. He’s going to do whatever it takes. It’s a business deal it takes some time. I’m happy to be a part of the organization and I’m sure it will work out.”
Regarding Mariota’s contract, the hold up is likely surrounding offset language. It’s reported that the deal No. 1 overall pick Jameis Winston signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers does include some offsets, which are used to protect the team from players who bomb out during their rookie deals.
With over a month before the start of training camp, there is still a lot of time for the two sides to work out a deal. In short, something should get done.
It is worth noting that Mariota is one of only three draft picks from the 2015 class that remains unsigned.
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