Will Levis needs to make the right decision on something he botched in the past
NASHVILLE – The status of Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis for Sunday's game against the New England Patriots remains up in the air. Levis is recovering from a shoulder injury that has plagued him for weeks now, and while he has been practicing for Tennessee this week, it's unclear how capable Levis is of suiting […]
NASHVILLE – The status of Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis for Sunday's game against the New England Patriots remains up in the air.
Levis is recovering from a shoulder injury that has plagued him for weeks now, and while he has been practicing for Tennessee this week, it's unclear how capable Levis is of suiting up on game day.
The last time Levis was on the fence to play with a recovering shoulder, the second-year quarterback made the wrong call. Levis tried to power through his pain, assuring his coaches that he was good to go, but was clearly limited against the Indianapolis Colts. Levis was not able to make all of his normal throws, and as a result, the Titans lost the game.
Brian Callahan and the Titans coaching staff trusted Levis to be honest about how he was feeling. And he botched it. Levis is a natural competitor. He wanted to be out there. But that wasn't in the best interest of the team against Indy.
Levis told me on Thursday that he once again feels like his status for the game this week is "his decision." It's important that he makes the right call this time around.
"Yeah. It is [my decision]," said Levis. "I think it's hard for me to make that decision for myself. Obviously with going and playing against Indy and in retrospect, that not being the best decision to not step up and say something. But coach has made it very clear to me that I need to be honest with how I'm feeling so that the right decision can be made."
Callahan and the Titans coaching staff have been pushing Levis harder during the week of practice than they did before the Colts game. Offensive coordinator Nick Holz confirmed that for the media on Thursday morning.
Tennessee really needs to push Levis. They need to test his arm. Only Levis knows how he truyl feels, but he also need to pass the eye test in order to be cleared to play. That eye test wasn't challenging enough before the game against Indianapolis and now the staff is making the right call of increasing the difficulty. Ask more from Levis and see how he responds…then see how he's feeling.
The Titans can't get this wrong again. A coaching staff needs to protect the players from themselves. Professional athletes are competitors that want to play. And the quarterback needs to put the team before his own interests. That's the sign of a good leader.
As badly as Tennessee would like to see Levis play football and develop, it helps absolutely nobody to have him go out there and get hurt again.
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