Mariota's growth a promising sign

— -- I thought Marcus Mariota had a good overall workout at his pro day on Thursday, although not an exceptional one. Here are my biggest takeaways from his performance, including what he did well, the areas in which he still needs to improve and the NFL teams I think are the most logical fits for him among the top 10 picks.

For my complete scouting report on Mariota, click here.

1. It's clear he's been working on improving his footwork and accuracy.

One of the biggest concerns I have with Mariota as a prospect is his ability to tie his feet together with his eyes and his upper body on his throws, and it's clear he's been working on this area of his game (he also mentioned it when I asked him after the workout what he's most looking to improve). His quickness with his dropbacks was very good, and for the most part, he looked comfortable at the top of his drops and did a really good job of marrying his feet with his eyes and upper body. The result was that on those throws he was on time and threw a really beautiful ball (more on that later).

2. He's still a work in progress in both areas -- although his potential to improve is promising.

The toughest part of Mariota's transition is that in  Oregon's up-tempo offense, he was often in the shotgun and making quick reads that required him to get the ball out as fast as possible. He mentioned to me when we spoke that he developed a bad habit of getting too tall and keeping his feet close together. While he's clearly improved in working on his drops from under center, there were a few times it seemed like he was thinking too much about his footwork and was less natural, which caused him to be late on a few throws.

The good news is that this flaw is correctable, and it's clear he's been working on it. The other concern I have about his game is he doesn't have much experience with throwing with anticipatory accuracy, nor did he have a ton of success the times he did have to make throws that required it. It isn't something he was asked to do often at Oregon, and as he gets introduced to more of a pro-style, timing-based NFL offense, he'll have to put in a lot of practice time to develop that part of his game.

The promising thing for NFL evaluators is that Mariota's offensive coordinator at Oregon, Scott Frost, mentioned how coachable Mariota is. Every college coach wants to say good things about his players, but Frost's comment that he could count on one hand the number of times Mariota missed a throw and then wasn't able to immediately correct it with his next attempt. For teams considering drafting Mariota with the understanding that he'll have some improving to do, that's a good thing to hear.

3. It's clear from seeing him in person that he has all the physical traits teams are looking for.

A few things to point out here: (1) He carries his weight really well and could easily add 10-15 pounds to his 6-foot-4, 222-pound frame. His movement skills are excellent, as he almost reminds me of a point guard; (2) he really has a quick, smooth, natural, over-the-top stroke. I compared it to Aaron Rodgers' during our television broadcast; (3) When his timing was right and everything about his mechanics were in rhythm and he properly transferred his weight from back to front, he threw a beautiful ball. He perfectly dropped a couple of passes in to his receivers on vertical sideline routes, which isn't something he had to do much of at Oregon. He is capable of making all the NFL throws.

4. The  Buccaneers, Titans, Redskins and Jets all make sense for him -- and I think the Rams  could be the dark horse to land him.

The Bucs (No. 1 overall pick), Titans (No. 2), Redskins (No. 5) and Jets (No. 6) should all be considered in the mix to draft Mariota. All of those teams had their general managers in attendance on Thursday, and they make sense in terms of draft order and positional need.

But the team that intrigues me most right now is the Rams, current owners of the No. 10 overall pick. My biggest takeaway from the trade that sent Nick Foles to St. Louis and Sam Bradford to the Philadelphia Eagles was that it could open the door for the Rams to move up to draft Mariota. I don't have any inside info on that, and I haven't heard anything, but it gets interesting when you connect the dots: They're now free of Bradford's huge contract, they have a good bridge quarterback in Foles, they added a 2016 second-round pick and they have a good, young roster that is more equipped to take the hit resulting from the loss of the multiple draft picks it'd take to move up to draft Mariota.

Lastly, I know from talking to people around the organization last season that they had some interest in Johnny Manziel because of the added dimension he could bring to their running game. It's no secret Jeff Fisher wants a physical dimension to his football team, placing an emphasis recently on building up the offensive line and defense. Mariota could likewise bring a running element to the quarterback position, and he's a much better, more polished and cleaner prospect than Manziel was coming out of  Texas A&M.

Again, I don't know that the Rams are interested, and they didn't have much of a contingent at Mariota's pro day. But I do think they're a team to keep an eye on as we look for possible landing spots for Mariota.

5. Mariota's performance Thursday shouldn't change any opinions, for good or bad.

That's the way it should be for all pro day workouts, and it's particularly true in Mariota's case because he already threw -- and performed well -- at the combine last month. Interested teams are going to get much more value out of talking to his coaches here in Eugene, Oregon, this week and in their one-on-one meetings with Mariota if they bring him to their building.

It's like the combine in that the fans focus more on what they see in the workouts on TV, but the most important work for NFL teams is going on behind the scenes.