The Titans have a different head coach now than they did when they drafted quarterback Marcus Mariota last season, but Mariota hasn’t needed a total reboot in his second NFL offseason.
Mike Mularkey was the assistant head coach and tight ends coach before getting bumped up to the top job upon Ken Whisenhunt’s dismissal last year and the Titans opted to stay the course rather than find a new head coach. That decision was met with some criticism, but Mariota says “a lot of us feel comfortable” with the continuity from last season.
Without the need to learn a new offense, Mariota said he’s able to concentrate on improving things about his game as he heads into his second season.
“For one, turnovers. Fumbling was kind of a bad habit that even I had in college that I need to continue to fix,” Mariota said, via the Tennessean. “To me what’s most important alongside of that is stepping up as a leader, being more vocal and then just finding ways to win. I think that’s kind of been the tone for the last few months here, is just finding ways to win, however that may be. Just find a way to get it done.”
It may take Mariota and company more than one offseason to fix all that was wrong with the Titans last year, but getting the quarterback right is a good step toward better days. If Mariota makes the tweaks he’s talking about making, that step is one the Titans can feel confident about taking.