NASHVILLE — Ran Carthon strategically stayed out the spotlight in his first season as general manager of the Tennessee Titans. With former coach Mike Vrabel fired at the end of the 2023 season and a vacancy to be filled, Carthon has no choice but to take a more front-facing role.  

The task: finding a more collaborative coach in Tennessee. 

"The one thing that has been a constant is he's someone who is aware of what he doesn't know," said NFL Network chief national reporter Steve Wyche on 104.5 The Zone in Nashville. "This is where I think he's going to be great during this coaching search: he will rely on very astute people to help him. He is one of the best relationship-builders in the NFL in that realm, in terms of the personnel department."

Carthon's diplomacy skills have been heralded as one of his better qualities since landing the Titans job last January.

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Relationship-building in the NFL is more than just about serving as a liaison between players' agents and the team in contract negotiations, however. Carthon's ability to draw on on interactions with former coworkers and colleagues serving at the executive level around the league and applying those experiences to Tennessee's coaching search is critical. Fans should want Carthon and controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk casting as wide a net for candidates as they can as the franchise looks to evolve.

The current list of Titans interviewees reflects just that.

As of Friday morning Tennessee has completed or scheduled meetings with 11 different candidates for their head coaching vacancy. Defensive coordinators Mike Macdonald and Dan Quinn, Raiders interim head coach Antonio Pierce and offensive coordinators Mike Kafka, Brian Callahan, Thomas Brown and Bobby Slowik have all met with the Titans virtually. Former Stanford head coach David Shaw, offensive coordinators Brian Johnson and Ben Johnson and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn have all been requested by the team to do the same.

In-person interviews cannot be conducted until Jan. 22, and Callahan is the only one of Tennessee's candidates to have been scheduled for a follow-up, according to multiple reports.

"We're going to run an exhaustive process to find our next head coach," Carthon said last Tuesday. "It's going to involve a lot of people. Obviously, I'll be a part of that. Miss Amy will be a part of that and others. But we want to make sure that we're getting the right people in here. I think it's going to be well documented. 

"And I know (media) will do your due diligence and let us know what you think of every candidate, that comes out. But we also have to make sure that we're getting the right people in here and people that everyone in this building wants to come in and work for."

Carthon with assistant general managers Anthony Robinson (personnel) and Chad Brinker (strategy) will be able to cover more ground as they try to find the next person to lead the Titans on the field.

12 clubs in the NFL have never won the Super Bowl. Three of those teams (Lions, Texans, Bills) are currently still alive as we prepare for the league's Divisional Round of the postseason this weekend. Tennessee is one of the remaining nine, having famously come up just one yard short of victory in Super Bowl XXXIV. 

Strunk's expectations are to break that trend of futility.

From winning seasons under Mike Mularkey, to regular playoff berths with Vrabel, the Titans are in search of a coach who can help them take the next step. Carthon's role will be pivotal in making the franchise's most important decision of the last 15 years. 

Mike Vrabel bet on himself and lost the Titans head coaching job

A strained relationship with Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk created an untenable situation for Tennessee.

Featured Image: USA TODAY Sports.