Leaving an injured Mariota in the game might be reason Whisenhunt is now out Tom Pelissero, USA TODAY Sports 7:49 p.m. EST November 3, 2015
11-03-15-Marcus-Mariota(Photo: Christopher Hanewinckel, USA TODAY)Go back and watch the hit that injured Tennessee Titans rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota’s knee last month and what happened – or didn’t happen – in the immediate aftermath.It may have been the beginning of the end for Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt, who was fired Tuesday morning in a move that caught just about everyone around the team off-guard.Call it The RG3 Effect.Mariota didn’t miss a snap Oct. 18 after a low, late hit from Miami Dolphins end Olivier Vernon left the No. 2 overall draft pick with a sprained medial collateral ligament, even though Mariota initially was limping to the point it was unclear whether he could protect himself.Wearing a brace on his left knee after halftime, Mariota finished with four turnovers. He took another illegal, high hit from Vernon. The Titans were down 38-10 before Whisenhunt finally pulled Mariota in the final two minutes.Mariota hasn’t played since. He also has been dealing with a high ankle sprain since Week 1. And Titans interim president/CEO Steve Underwood made clear Tuesday that controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk is keeping close tabs on the situation.Asked in a media conference if there was concern from ownership that leaving in Mariota against Miami caused additional damage, Underwood said: “I didn’t hear that exact concern. (But Strunk) has repeatedly mentioned Marcus’ health to me.“I think she actually spoke to Mike (Mularkey, the Titans’ in interim coach) about it this morning. I know she he had talked to Ken about it and to Ruston (Webster, the general manager). She’s very concerned about making sure that we do everything that’s necessary, including keeping him out of games, in order to avoid making his current injuries any worse.”That quote evoked memories of how the Washington Redskins handled another No. 2 pick, Robert Griffin III, and his knee injury at the end of a stellar rookie season three years ago.Griffin suffered a lateral collateral ligament in December 2012, missed one game and then returned to the lineup – only to shred the same knee in a playoff game less than a month later. His career hasn’t been the same since.Staying in that game against the Dolphins was a leadership moment for Mariota. He wanted to show he’s tough and team-oriented and it’ll take a lot to get him out of a game. But Whisenhunt could’ve and probably should’ve taken the decision out of the rookie’s hands.The Titans didn’t need to invent excuses for firing Whisenhunt. He was 3-20 as Titans coach, 4-31 dating back to the end of his final last season with the Arizona Cardinals, and didn’t help himself Monday by taking a jab at the state of Tennessee’s personnel.But if there were any feeling Whisenhunt put one early-season game ahead of the franchise’s long-term future, that alone could’ve constituted a fireable offense.Only Strunk – the daughter of late Titans owner Bud Adams who took control in March – knows why it happened now, and she was a no-show Tuesday. In a statement, Strunk said: “We have expected more progress on the field, and I felt it was time to move in a different direction.”That apparently began with a directive to Mularkey about how to handle Mariota, whose development in general figures to be a key factor in the search for Whisenhunt’s successor.“I told (Mariota) we’d do a couple things different with him, try to make sure he stays upright,” Mularkey said. “I think obviously based on what happened the last couple of weeks with the protections, that’s imperative.”If that all sounds like excess caution, remember this: It’s tough to win in the NFL without a top quarterback and even tougher to develop into one from the training room or the bench.
