Mike Vrabel was ‘not very’ close to pulling Marcus Mariota for Ryan Tannehill

Marcus Mariota has yet to prove that he can play at a consistently high level in the NFL, and it may not be long before he loses his starting job. However, Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel insists he did not consider benching Mariota during Thursday night’s loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Backup quarterback Ryan Tannehill was seen on the sideline with his helmet on during the second half, and Vrabel was asked if that meant the backup was close to having his number called. He said it was only so Tannehill could hear the plays being called.

Mike Vrabel was asked how close back-up QB Ryan Tannehill was from entering the game: "Not very," Vrabel said. Tannehill had his helmet on in the second half because "he can hear the calls when he puts his helmet on," per Vrabel. @Titans

— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) September 20, 2019

Tennessee’s offense looked stale for the majority of the night in the 20-7 loss. Penalties played a significant role in that, but Mariota was also off-target on numerous throws, completing just 23-of-40 passes with an uninspiring QB rating of 81.7. The offensive line did him no favors, as he took a whopping nine sacks, though several were due to poor pocket presence.

Mariota has not thrown an interception in three games, which had become a problem for him over the past couple of years. The main issue seems to be that the Titans’ offense lacks any sort of spark, and they were unable to sustain drives. Not all of that was Mariota’s fault, but there was already speculation before the season that he was in danger of losing his starting job. Even if he isn’t the biggest issue the Titans have on offense, a few more results like Thursday night’s might force Vrabel’s hand.