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Marcus Mariota didn’t play on Saturday night, after all

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Raiders QB Derek Carr wants to play until he's 45 years old, but the bigger question is if there would still be interest in him 15 years from now.

Derek Carr got his wish. Backup Marcus Mariota had no chance to showcase himself for other teams on Saturday night.

After not playing in the preseason opener, Mariota was expected to play on Saturday night against the Rams. He didn’t.

“He’s just not ready to go, physically,” coach Jon Gruden said after the game. “He competed against the Rams [in joint practices], but he’s limited. We’re not calling plays for him right now with the lack of limitation. He’s got a quad strain. We think he’s got a chance to play against the 49ers. The way he plays, we do not want to get him out in a live situation and let him cut it loose. He’s just not ready to go. He was ready tonight on an emergency basis, but right now he’s just not ready to go.”

As a result, Nathan Peterman took all 50 offensive snaps for the Raiders against the Rams. He completed 16 of 24 passes for 172 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 66.7. He ran for 35 yards on five attempts.

Mariota has a no-trade clause, but if he believes that being on another team would him a better opportunity to play, he’d be foolish not to consider it. In Las Vegas, he won’t play unless Carr gets injured -- or undergoes a dramatic and unexpected regression.