Mariota on NFL debut: A 'dream come true'

(Photo: Jim Brown, USA TODAY)With anticipation high and expectations even higher, Marcus Mariota makes his NFL preseason debut for the Titans on Friday night in Atlanta.

Savor it, Titans fans. This could be a defining moment for a franchise in desperate need of a savior at quarterback.

Don’t blink. For all the attention focused on Mariota, the 2014 Heisman Trophy winner and the No. 2 overall pick in the NFL draft, his professional coming-out party at the Georgia Dome figures to be little more than a cameo appearance.

It is standard operating procedure in the NFL for first-teamers to trade their helmets for caps before the end of the first quarter and watch the rest of the preseason opener from…