Titans sign second-overall pick Mariota

The Tennessee Titans announced they have signed quarterback Marcus Mariota to a contract, the final NFL first-round pick to sign this year.

“We are glad to have the deal with Marcus done, and I’d like to thank both Marcus and his representatives for their diligence in working with us to finalize this contract,” Titans GM Ruston Webster said in a statement on the team's official website. “We were confident that Marcus would be under contract before training camp, and we look forward to him starting his career on time with his teammates when we open camp next week. This is an exciting time for the Tennessee Titans organization, and we look forward to a bright future.”

We explored why it has taken so long to sign the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 NFL draft, and it came down to "offset language" in his contract. In short, adding offset language protects teams from having to pay out the full guaranteed portion of a player's contract if they happen to decide not to pick up the final year of his five-year contract. Without offsets, a player can collect the full money from the team while also "double dipping" by signing and collecting money from his new team as a free agent.

The Titans sent a firm stance publicly (and likely told Mariota's camp this the second they drafted him, or perhaps before): They would insist he'd take the offsets in the contract and that it was a precedent they were not willing to bend on. They hadn't given it up to previous first-round picks, and they were not about to start with Mariota, as much as they apparently like him.

Although it's odd that a team would turn down a war chest of draft picks and players in a trade on Draft Day for that second overall pick and then try to protect themselves in case he doesn't pan out as expected, that's apparently what the Titans did in this case.

The Titans might be a franchise without a strong infrastructure right now, with an unclear ownership group, an unstable front office situation and a head coach who could be on the hot seat, they held firm on Mariota and appear to have gotten what they want.

Now the narrative changes to whether Mariota can pick up an NFL-geared offense and become the Titans' savior. It will be a fascinating process to watch play out.