Born in Honolulu, Hawaii Marcus Mariota attended Saint Louis High School where he played both football and track. Early in his high school career, Mariota was more accomplished in track and field than football. He was a state track qualifier in the long jump and 4x 400 relay. During his senior season, he ran the 100 meters in 11.63 seconds and the 200 meters in 23.41 seconds. It was not until his senior season in high school that Mariota became known for his football skills. He did not start until his senior season, which is when he led Saint Louis Crusaders to a state championship passing for 2,597 yards and 32 touchdowns and adding 455 rushing yards for seven touchdowns. Mariota attended Oregon football camp which led to him being recruited by the team.
At Oregon, Marcus Mariota redshirted his freshman year. He then went on to start the next three seasons for the Ducks amassing 10,887 passing yards and 2,237 rushing yards as a dual threat quarterback. He set multiple college records in college stats such as passing yards and passing touchdowns. In his 2014 redshirt senior year he amassed 5,224 yards of total offense, a Pac-12 record on his way being the first Hawaiian born player to win the Heisman Trophy. Mariota profiled as an elite college prospect showcasing a 90-percentile College QBR and 90-percentile College YPA.
Mariota attended the 2015 NFL Combine and flashed elite athleticism running a 4.52 40 time and registering a 98-percentile, 115.4 SPARQ-x Score. He measured in at a height of 6 feet four inches tall with a hand size of 9 7/8 inches. He was selected by the Tennessee Titans with the second overall pick in the 2015 NFL Draft. Mariota played five seasons for the Titans but failed to live up to the hype of his prospect profile. His best season was 2016 when he finished as the QB12 in fantasy points per game after throwing a career-high 26 touchdowns. After his contract with the Titans expired, Mariota singed with the Los Angeles Raiders to back-up David Carr. He sporadically saw the field during his time as a Raider mostly on designed QB runs.
Marcus Mariota’s time in the NFL will likely be elongated thanks to his uber athleticism. In March 2022, the Atlanta Falcons signed Mariota to a 2-year contract contract with just $6,750,000 guaranteed. He will serve as the team's bridge quarterback between Matt Ryan, who was traded to the Colts, and whoever Atlanta selects on draft day.
