Titans' Marcus Mariota progressing, still feeling leg stiffness after offseason surgery

At 23, Marcus Mariota isn't exactly a grizzled veteran.

But you don't have to be a 30-something, 15-year starter to feel the toll the NFL  takes your body. Especially when coming off of a fractured fibula like the one Mariota suffered in December. 

"It takes me a little longer to warm up," Mariota said when asked about his leg at Thursday's Titans training camp practice, slightly laughing. "It gets stiff once practice kind of stops and we're done for the day. But that's just how it is. That's what's going to happen. If I gotta spend an extra five to 10 minutes to get my body prepared, I'll do that."

The third-year pro isn't too worried about his progression. 

Neither is one of Mariota's newest targets, wide receiver Eric Decker. He's been impressed with his quarterback in the early stages of training camp and his Titans career. 

“Marcus has done a great job of making it easy," Decker said. "He has great instincts. It seems like he’s very comfortable with the system. He puts us in spots to be successful and makes the right reads, and our job is just to be at those spots that he expects to be."

Mariota hasn't hesitated to roll out. He's throwing on the run and planting on that surgically repaired right leg that has a metal plate. 

"It's feeling better with every day," Mariota said. "We haven't had a setback or anything like that. So, you know, a lot of credit goes to the training staff here for helping me get warmed up and helping me once the practice is done getting prepared for the next day."

Reach Colton Pouncy at cpouncy@tennessean.com or on Twitter @CTPSports.