Titans QB Ryan Tannehill officially out for the season
Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill will officially be out for the rest of the 2022 season after being placed on Injured Reserve by the team on Thursday. Tannehill tweaked his preexisting ankle injury in Week 15 against the Los Angeles Chargers, and despite returning to finish that game in LA, he would later get surgery […]
Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill will officially be out for the rest of the 2022 season after being placed on Injured Reserve by the team on Thursday.
Tannehill tweaked his preexisting ankle injury in Week 15 against the Los Angeles Chargers, and despite returning to finish that game in LA, he would later get surgery on that ankle, making him likely to miss the remainder of the season.
The Titans signedJosh Dobbs to their active 53-man roster and turned to rookie Malik Willis as the starter against the Texans, but the team choosing to not place Tannehill on IR immediately after the surgery left a sliver of hope that he could return to play in Jacksonville.
That hope is now gone. With Tannehill officially being placed on Injured Reserve by the Titans, he will be required to miss a minimum of four games, effectively ending his season.
Willis and Dobbs will be the quarterbacks for Tennessee as they play for their season in Jacksonville, and would continue to be under center should the team find a way into the playoffs. From what we've seen so far from Willis, who will presumably be the starter down the stretch, that doesn't seem to be a recipe for success.
Tannehill's Future
With his 2022 season under wraps, all the attention now turns to Tannehill's future with the Titans and his contract situation.
Tennessee will owe Tannehill $18,800,000 in dead cap money regardless, but if the team chooses to keep him on the roster next season, he will come with a $27 million base salary and $36.6 million cap hit.
That's less than ideal for a team looking to have some roster turnover with a new GM this offseason, but the Titans might not have a choice. Willis has not shown enough in his rookie season to inspire belief that he can be the guy in 2023, and unless they conduct a fire sale and enter a full rebuild with a new stadium on the way (unlikely), perhaps they settle with an overpriced, league average quarterback for another season.
It's time to wonder if we've seen Ryan Tannehill in a Titans uniform for the last time and intently ponder if that's what's best for the future of the franchise.
Image via George Walker IV / Tennessean.com-USA TODAY NETWORK
