Per sources, Raiders agree to terms with Marcus Mariota

The Athletic’s Vic Tafur tweeted late on Monday that the Las Vegas Raiders are closing in on a contract with quarterback Marcus Mariota. Tafur notes that he had linked the Raiders to Mariota early on Monday and so it would be interesting to think he’d double down on that without confidence that a deal would be announced soon.

Later on Monday, it was confirmed by Vincent Bonsignore that the Raiders were signing Mariota.

While rumors had swirled around about Las Vegas targeting a quarterback to replace or compete with starter Derek Carr, the Mariota signing would point closer to the approach of giving the team a high-end veteran backup to add to the fray. Mariota was the second overall pick in the 2015 draft but he was never able to build on an encouraging two-year start with the Tennessee Titans.

After a pair of horrendous games against the Buffalo Bills and Denver Broncos, plus an injury, Mariota was replaced by Ryan Tannehill and never recovered his place with the starters. Tannehill recently agreed to a four-year, $118 million contract with the Titans. Whenever a Mariota deal is announced, it will be for less than that.