Per ESPN’s Michael Rothstein, Falcons QB Marcus Mariota “appears to be far ahead” of QB Desmond Ridder. Unsurprisingly, Rothstein says it would be “a stretch” for Ridder to start the opener. Our current QB projections have Mariota for 12 games; the rookie for 5. Note that Atlanta’s bye week doesn’t arrive until Week 14.

Josh Kendall of The Athletic says the "Falcons seem to have [Marcus] Mariota firmly penciled into that starting role now." He adds that he expects to see rookie QB Desmond Ridder get a shot before the end of the season. "Firmly penciled in" seems like deliberate language in that it points to Mariota being the heavy favorite at the moment -- but also that Ridder could change things if he simply outperforms the vet. We'll keep watching the competition, though the fantasy impact is minimal given what should be 1 of the league's worst offenses.

Falcons QB Marcus Mariota has been working with the 1st team in the first few days of training camp, per The Athletic's Josh Kendall. Rookie QB Desmond Ridders has been with the 2s. "Obviously, we’ve got a plan for each of them. Marcus is the starter,” QBs coach Charles London said. “I expect those guys to compete. Right now, Marcus is the starter, and he’s doing a great job.” Consider Mariota a comfy favorite to open the season as Atlanta's starter -- but there's still a good chance we see Ridder at some point.

The Falcons announced Monday they have agreed to a 2-year deal with QB Marcus Mariota. He's likely a step down in passing from Matt Ryan. At the least, Mariota will have to prove otherwise after he washed out with Tennessee and then spent the past 2 years backing up Derek Carr. But his rushing ability makes him a far more attractive fantasy option than Ryan. Mariota has experience with HC Arthur Smith from their Titans days, which can only help speed his acclimation to the offense. The QB's arrival might be negative for Cordarrelle Patterson's target upside, but we'll let the situation play out a little further before making any significant change to the RB-WR hybrid's outlook.

Raiders QB Marcus Mariota will miss "multiple weeks" with a quad injury, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Mariota entered on Vegas' 3rd offensive snap on Monday night, ripped off a 31-yard run -- and then hurt his quad. We won't need to worry about Mariota stealing snaps from QB Derek Carr for a while.

The Raiders are placing QB Marcus Mariota on IR with a pectoral strain. Because of this year's COVID-altered rules, that could knock Mariota out for just 3 weeks. Of course, his availability won't matter that much unless starting QB Derek Carr goes down. Nathan Peterman will back up Car until Mariota returns.