Marcus Mariota’s chemistry with new WRs
Quarterback Marcus Mariota is in the best position to succeed he’s ever been in after four years in the league with the Tennessee Titans.
Despite having a new offensive coordinator, Arthur Smith’s offense will use the same verbiage as the 2018 version and it should be similar to what Mariota ran last season.
Mariota has some new weapons to throw to in 2019, with the additions of receivers Adam Humphries and second-round pick, A.J. Brown. While it’s nice to have these players added to a group of pass-catchers Mariota is more familiar with, developing chemistry with Brown and Humphries will be vital.
The Oregon product has a historically poor passer rating to the slot (81.7), which is mostly a result of not having a lot of talent in the receiving corps. in years past.
Humphries presents the best talent Mariota has seen in the slot, making it more than likely he’ll improve upon that 81.7 career mark. The former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver will be a huge asset on third downs especially, helping Mariota move the chains.
Brown will be a bit more of a wild card. Not only do you want to see Brown and Mariota hooking up successfully in training camp, but you want to see the Ole Miss product progressing in the right direction as he tries to nail down his role on the outside across from Davis.
Mariota has been working with his receivers outside of the practice facility during the offseason, including Brown and Humphries, so there should already be some familiarity with them ahead of training camp.