FOXBORO — Stats are for losers, and the Patriots want to turn Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota into another statistic.
Rookie quarterbacks are 5-17 against Bill Belichick’s Patriots since 2001, and the second overall pick will have a heck of a time trying to overcome those odds today at Gillette Stadium, particularly against a cruising Pats defense that is ranked eighth in scoring.
But the Patriots defense isn’t taking the challenge lightly.
“You’re talking about a quarterback with inexperience, but I don’t see Marcus Mariota being a young, rookie quarterback,” defensive end Chandler Jones said. “I’ve seen him make some great throws and great reads, and I’ve also seen him make some great decisions as far as pulling the ball down and running. With a guy like him or any quarterback, you want to have a good, solid game plan. A lot of our success with rookie quarterbacks just comes from just good game plans.”
Generally, rookie quarterbacks don’t have much success against anyone, as they’re either a high draft pick taking over a rebuilding team like Mariota or a backup whose drop-off in talent has put his team at a disadvantage. Mariota has shown some potential by completing 62.4 percent of his passes for 2,786 yards, 19 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, but the Titans have failed to score more than 14 points in six of his 11 starts.
The Patriots know they have to get after Mariota to have a successful day. Their 42 sacks are the second most in the NFL, and the Titans’ 44 sacks allowed are the second most in the league. Mariota has been sacked 35 times.
“To be honest with you, that (sack total) is appetizing to look at, but we still have a game to play,” said Jones, who leads the Pats with 10.5 quarterback takedowns. “They are where they are (in terms of) giving up sacks, but those guys are going out there and actually getting the sacks. You can’t just show up and think you’re going to go out there and sack them 50 times. You’ve got to go out there and actually sack them 50 times.”
And Jones reinforced Mariota’s age won’t mean a thing today. The outcome won’t be decided by anything other than how the Patriots handle their own business.
“I don’t want to go into the game thinking about his lack of experience,” Jones said. “It’s more about what we do and less about what he’s doing.”
License to ill
Quarterback Tom Brady’s status didn’t change yesterday and he’s still expected to play today despite an illness, according to sources. Brady is officially listed as questionable on the injury report.
Brady missed Friday’s practice, but a source told the Herald there was no reason to be concerned about his health. That was reaffirmed by a source yesterday.
Barring some type of drastic, unforeseen setback overnight, Brady will be good to go today.
Nothing afoot
Wide receiver Julian Edelman will not play today, according to a source.
Edelman is listed as doubtful but has participated in the Patriots’ last four practices on a limited basis.
Edelman will miss his fifth consecutive game with a broken foot that he suffered in the first quarter against the Giants. At the time of the injury, which required surgery, the absolute earliest Edelman could’ve returned was Week 16 against the Jets, but the possibility existed that he could miss the remainder of the regular season.
It’s still too early to know whether Edelman could return next Sunday against the Jets.
Second helping
Cornerback Leonard Johnson had an impressive debut last week when he broke up both passes thrown his way against the Texans, including third- and fourth-down stops that were huge for the Pats’ momentum.
“I just know I want to do the same thing,” Johnson said. “I want to come out and play the same exact way if not better. There are definitely some things I need to do better, but I definitely want to be as productive as I was this upcoming Sunday.”
Roster moves
The Patriots promoted fullback Joey Iosefa from the practice squad and waived linebacker Eric Martin with an injury designation.
Source: bostonherald.com
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