The league was shocked with a suspension for the Vikings rookie QB1, Jalen Milroe, for violating league policies on gambling. The rookie wowed the league with an all time first game performance in week one against the Lions, but was forced to sit out in week two. With three veteran quarter backs, the Vikings head coach was forced to pick one of them to be their week two starter in Atlanta. The Vikings head coach made the announcement pretty much immediately following the announcement of Milroe’s suspension that Marcus Mariota would be the Vikings starter in week two. The Vikings coach made himself available to media as soon as the news broke, “Marcus gives us the best chance in this game, he has been great about offering advice to our young quarter back Jalen, and he works his tail off at practice. I know being able to start this game will mean a lot to Marcus, and we have all the confidence in the world in him to lead us to victory.” I then followed up on his statement of how much the game would mean to Mariota and asked him how much of the decision to start Mariota was based on how his stint in Atlanta ended. He provided no verbal answer, but you can interpret coach Junior struggling to hold back a smile however you want.
Marcus Mariota went on to prove his coaches decision as a great one. He proceeded to finish the game goin 10/16 for 235 yards and 3 touchdowns, and added 25 yards on the ground. This was enough to win Mariota NFC offensive player of the week. Mariota avoided any turnovers, which was a knock on him in his time in Atlanta. The play calling was focused on getting yards on the ground which can be seen by the Vikings 226 rushing yards, but Mariota when he had the chance to pass the ball was nothing short of great.