Commentary: Mariota's best makes the rest so confounding

It is performances such as the one he authored Sunday in Atlanta that make Marcus Mariota so maddening.

No one is saying the Tennessee Titans quarterback has to go 18-27 for 227 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions (a 129.3 passer rating) every time out. It’s just that if he can be that good – and those statistics are an accurate reflection of how he played in the 24-10 victory over the Falcons – he ought not be as far off that standard as he so often is.

It was not just the numbers either. Mariota showed awareness, command and understanding as he threw the ball away under duress and, for the first time this season, did not take a sack. He hit receivers in stride so that they could run after the catch. And he generally performed as the centerpiece of the offense, which every NFL quarterback ought to be.

“I just approach every week the same,” he said. “I don’t get too high with the eyes. I don’t get too low with the lows.”

Good thing, or he would walk around with a constant fear that he could lose his lunch at any moment. The swings in his performance are that extreme.

This, after all, was not the first time we’ve seen him play that well. In fact, there have been instances when he has been even better. Remember his NFL debut, when he completed 13 of 15 throws for 209 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions, all of which equated to a perfect 158.3 passer rating?

This actually was the 10 time in his career (59 starts) that he has thrown at least three touchdown passes in a game. He made it through six of those contests without throwing an interception.

He has had seven outings that resulted in a better passer rating. He also has had 10 games in which his final passer rating was 66.0 or worse.

Before Sunday, there were two straight games in which his throws sailed high and/or wide of open receivers, he couldn’t see or react decisively to the pass rush and he played in a way that made it seem he was holding back the offense.

So here we are. It is more than four years into his NFL career and the debate rages about whether he is a quarterback who can lead a team to the Super Bowl or whether the Titans ought to sign him to a long-term extension following this season.

Heck, there are times when the discussion centers on whether he should even be Tennessee’s starting quarterback right now or whether it was a mistake to pick up the fifth-year option on his contract, under which he currently plays.

Anyone who has listened to sports talk radio anywhere, anytime in Nashville in recent weeks can tell you just how enduring the discussion is. Everyone who backs Mariota is right … and wrong. Everybody who believes the Titans are stuck in futility as long as they stick with him is right … and wrong.

That’s because each side has so much evidence to support its case. There is very little middle ground in the discussion because there is very little middle ground in Mariota’s performance.

“For me, I can always improve,” Mariota said. “I feel like we left some points out there. That’s just kind of the mentality that I’ve always had. If we can continue to get better, we can score some more points and win some more games.”

It’s OK if he never gets much better than he was Sunday. That level of play is plenty good enough to win games. Just ask the Falcons.

It just seems that it’s too much to ask for him to play consistently close to that standard. And that’s what drives people nuts.