Titans hoping QB Mariota healthy enough to play against Colts

NASHVILLE, TENN. » Only Marcus Mariota’s left hamstring can save the Titans from adding yet another backup’s name to the list of Tennessee quarterbacks trying their hand against the Indianapolis Colts.

Mariota is questionable for Monday night’s game with their AFC South rivals, and how much he can move around will determine whether or not Matt Cassel starts a second straight game for Tennessee.

If there’s any doubt of Mariota’s health, Titans coach Mike Mularkey plans to err on the side of keeping Mariota available for the final 10 games of the season.

“That’s the biggest concern because of all the football that’s left,” Mularkey said. “We want to be smart. I think we’ve been very good with our guys in that regard, especially in this position and this guy, with Marcus, cannot expose him to something, that risk.”

The Hawaii native, certainly wants to start his first Monday night game in the NFL and to help the Titans end an 11-game skid against their AFC South rivals.

“Obviously, you hear about it, but all we can do is control what we do in practice every single day, focus on getting better, focus on how we can build that chemistry to be a successful team,” Mariota said of the skid. “When Monday rolls around, you just go out there and compete and hopefully get a win.”

Not only have the Titans (2-3) lost 11 straight to Indianapolis, they’ve also lost two straight this season and are coming off a 16-10 loss in Miami.

Two of Cassel’s three turnovers have been returned for touchdowns, and he has been sacked eight times compared to only two for the more mobile Mariota.

If Cassel starts, he’ll join a lengthy list of Tennessee quarterbacks to play in this series since Oct. 30, 2011, when the Titans last beat Indianapolis and Curtis Painter during Peyton Manning’s final season with the Colts.