NASHVILLE — With the Tennessee Titans holding a 3-6 record and sitting in the basement of the AFC South, the patience of the Titans' fanbase is wearing thin. That starts with head coach Mike Vrabel.

Dating back to last season, Vrabel’s Titans are 3-13 in the last 16 contest and have not won a road game in over a calendar year. Whenever you lose, tensions are high. Especially when some of the coaching decisions have left a lot to be desired.

I’ve been critical of Vrabel recently for the conservative approach he and Tim Kelly have taken with Tennessee’s offense. Tennessee has looked like they are playing not to lose more than they are to win in recent weeks. Then there’s the knocks against Vrabel for his stubbornness and old school philosophy.

But even with the Titans falling short of “Mike Vrabel football” in just about every way, the 48-year-old head coach still has an opportunity to show off what he does best over the next few months. If you’ve ever wondered what makes Vrabel such a great head coach and an irreplaceable piece, watch carefully what he does for the remainder of this season in his biggest test yet.

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Vrabel Is A Leader

Mike Vrabel is a leader of men. He is a head coach that prioritizes personal relationships and connects with his players in a special way. As a former player himself; Vrabel is well respected by every single player that puts on a Titans uniform. When the going gets tough, he never loses his locker room. 

He's the type of leader that guys want to play hard for. Vrabel does not tolerate a poor work ethic, and no matter who you are, his standard is the standard. 

Those are essential traits for a head coach that is going to lead a team through some adversity. It can be easy for any professional athlete to get caught up in the teams' record or their personal performance and quickly lose interest. Everybody wants to win. But the culture that Vrabel has established in Tennessee over his six seasons with the organization is keeping the boat steady, even at 3-6.

When I asked Derrick Henry about the culture and morale in the Titans' locker room, he cited many of those same things. "We all have a culture that has been built around here and a standard that has been set. When you feel like you're not meeting that, you do everything you can to get it to where you want it to be," Henry told me on Thursday. "Sometimes it wont happen overnight. You have to stay consistent with your message, play, and how you approach work. It's time for everybody to step up and do their jobs a little bit more."

Biggest Challenge Yet

The final eight games of the 2023 season could quite possibly be the biggest test of Vrabel since he took over as Titans head coach. There really hasn't been a season since Vrabel took the job that Tennessee has not been in playoff contention in November and December. Through Week 10, the Titans have just three wins. They have never had less than five wins at this point in the season during Vrabel's tenure.

There's really no precedent for how a Mike Vrabel team is going to respond to being in last place in the AFC South and towards the bottom of the AFC standings. But if anything, I'm looking at this as an opportunity for Vrabel to show off what he does best: Lead and maintain the standard. 

I still hold the belief that a coach with the temperament of Vrabel is going to find a way out of this storm – whether that be this season or in the future.

"Coach does a great job. At the end of the day, everybody wants to win. I think the biggest thing is controlling that anger and saving it for the next opponent," said veterans offensive lineman Daniel Brunskill when I spoke with him in the locker room this week. 

Containing the frustration and anger about results can be challenging, but it's a feeling Mike Vrabel can empathize with as a former player. Oh yeah, and he also won three Super bowl and knows the daily preparation that it takes to win at this level.

Things might be bad in Tennessee right now. But the Titans have the right man for the job. 

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