NASHVILLE – 2024 is a big season for Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis as he looks to prove to the NFL world that he's a franchise quarterback worth building around.

Levis is going into the second year of his four-year rookie contract with the Titans, and after all the offseason moves Tennessee made to help Levis succeed, showing significant growth and reliability this season is essential. If he fails to do so, there's a chance Levis won't be the starter in Tennessee by this time next year. 

At the end of the day, every NFL team knows that quarterback is the most important singular position in all of professional sports. Every week, teams want to go to battle knowing they have the advantage over their opponent at the quarterback position. 

Some teams like the Kansas City Chiefs have that luxury every single week. Others like the Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns have been chasing that edge for decades. 

We already know that the Titans are only favored in one game during the 2024 season…but how many games can the Titans currently look at on their schedule and feel like they have the advantage at QB? I went down the list and got the answers.

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Week 1: Caleb Williams

All signs point to Williams here. He's one of the best quarterback prospects of the last decade. He was just selected first overall in the 2024 NFL Draft and his rare escapability fits the modern NFL perfectly.

That being said, the Titans will get to see Williams in his regular season debut. While the game will be played in Chicago, the rookie may be overwhelmed by his first bit of NFL action. For example, even C.J. Stroud struggled in his debut and lost to the Ravens 25-9 last season. 

If you were asking me who I'd rather have for the entire 2024 season, I'd go with Williams hands down. But for this particular game, I'll say the Titans have a (very) slight advantage over the Bears here due to experience alone. 

Week 2: Aaron Rodgers 

Advantage Rodgers. He's one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time. I don't care if he's 40 years old and coming off a torn achilles. At 37 and 38 years old, Rodgers won back-to-back MVP awards with Green Bay and there is not enough evidence to support claims that he's fallen off his game.

This is a polished veteran that should still give the Jets an advantage over the Titans in their Week 2 matchup.

Week 3: Jordan Love

After years of sitting behind Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay, Jordan Love played like a Top 10 quarterback in his first year as a starter. 

The Packers not only made the playoffs with Love under center, but they actually won a playoff game in which Love threw three touchdowns and completed 76 percent of his passes. 

Despite being in the league for three years, Love is also the same age as Levis. Until I see more from Levis, I'd give Love and the Packers the early advantage in this Week 3 matchup.

Week 4: Tua Tagovailoa

I'm not as big of a believer in Tua Tagovailoa as most. In fact, I'd consider myself a doubter of Tagovailoa despite his league-leading 4,624 passing yards and 11 regular season wins in 2023.

In my eyes, much of Tagovailoa's success can be credited to his head coach Mike McDaniel and the receiving corps making plays around him. 

But I only have issues with the Tagovailoa support when I begin hearing his name thrown out as a Top 5 quarterback or MVP candidate. He is not either one of those things. I consider him to be slightly better than league average, and yet even if he's in that ballpark, that's still a tier Levis has not reached firmly yet. Miami has the advantage here.

Week 6 & Week 16: Anthony Richardson

I'll give Levis two big wins here over Anthony Richardson and the Indianapolis Colts. Richardson's athletic ability and unique tools are inarguable, but he didn't do enough for me as a passer in his rookie year to make me feel like he'll hit the ground running in 2024.

Gardner Minshew's 2023 success showed how strong the roster around Richardson was as a rookie. But in his last two (of 4 total) games as the starter, the Colts offense got life once Richardson was out of the game.

I just think Richardson is still a little bit raw. His ceiling is ridiculously high, but right now in 2024, I think I'd rather have Levis under center.

Week 7: Josh Allen

Josh Allen wins this one. Enough said. One of the game's elite quarterbacks that is a good reflection of what Levis' ceiling looks like in a perfect world. No debate needed here.

Week 8: Jared Goff

If this was 2020 Jared Goff we were talking about, I might give Levis the win. But the resurgence of Goff in Detroit has been a really cool thing to watch and he has fully established himself as a well above-average NFL quarterback who can win in the playoffs.

Goff played the best football of his career in 2023. He earned a career-best 85.2 passing grade from PFF and had a big-time throw percentage of 3.4%.  He wins this head-to-head battle without seeing what Levis is in year two.

Week 9: Drake Maye

Just like Caleb Williams, Drake Maye is another highly-touted quarterback prospect on the Titans' schedule that will be fun to watch exchange blows with Levis. But unlike Williams, Maye will have a chance to get comfortable in the NFL before taking on Tennessee…or will he?

I'm not necessarily out on Maye as a prospect. I love the physical tools. But I think life is going to be really difficult for him in New England this year. The Patriots roster is in rough shape and they may have the league's worst offensive line. 

That's uncomfortable for any quarterback, but especially a rookie. I won't be surprised if Maye struggles to start the year and the Titans have a distinct advantage at quarterback for this game played in Nashville.

Week 10: Justin Herbert

People can never seem to agree on where Justin Herbert ranks among NFL quarterbacks. Some believe he's firmly in the Top 5 while others have him outside the Top 10. His career up to this point has had some serious ups and down. 

But similar to Tagovailoa, whether Herbert is 5th or 12th doesn't really matter. Titans fans would be elated if Levis developed into the QB that Herbert is. That tells you all you need to know here. Herbert wins.

Week 11: J.J. McCarthy 

Of all the rookie quarterbacks selected in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, Minnesota Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy is definitely the least NFL ready. 

While McCarthy gained experience playing in big games at Michigan, the Wolverines played a brand of football that relied on the run game and defense. McCarthy was asked to do very little with his arm on the football field. He's also still just 21 years old. 

Advantage goes to Levis here. McCarthy has a lot to learn and Levis has already shown flashes of dominance in the league.

Week 12 & Week 18: C.J. Stroud

It should shock nobody that I'm giving the advantage to C.J. Stroud and the Houston Texans when it comes to quarterback play. 

The Titans had Stroud at the top of their draft board ahead of the 2023 NFL Draft and even made calls about trading up for Stroud before the Texans took that chance away from them. That's a draft pick that will forever change the dynamics in the AFC South.

Stroud was named to the Pro Bowl, selected as the AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, and almost won the MVP Award in 2023. He also led the Texans back to the playoffs and put up 45 points in his playoff debut. 

I like Will Levis a lot, but Stroud is the best young quarterback in the NFL right now and he ahas already proved it on the big stage. 

Week 13: Jayden Daniels

Jayden Daniels did it all at LSU and put up some video game numbers in the process. The Heisman Trophy winner threw 40 touchdowns and just four interceptions while rushing for 1,000+ yards and 10 more scorers.

Daniels is the kind of dual-threat QB that could have a lot of success in the NFL, but there are too many unanswered questions for me right now to give him the edge over Levis. Like Maye, I think Daniels may suffer from having a bad supporting cast and offensive line this season.

Week 14 & Week 17: Trevor Lawrence

Titans fans may not want to hear this, but as things currently stand, the Jaguars have the advantage at quarterback with Trevor Lawrence under center. But I'll admit it's very close.

Lawrence and Levis struggle with many of the same things. They both show flashes of brilliance and make silly mistakes. Lawrence ranked in the top five in both big-time throws (33) and turnover-worthy plays (24) in 2023. He also led the league in big-time throws on passes of 20-plus yards downfield by a wide margin.

While 2023 was a step back for Lawrence and the Jags from the momentous 2022 season they had under Doug Pederson, injuries played a factor in that decline.

I give Lawrence the edge because…well, we've seen him do it for longer. We now have two full season of Lawrence being an above-average NFL starter with a very high ceiling. We can't say the same thing for Levis just yet, but I'd love to revisit this one after the season is done.

Week 15: Joe Burrow

When healthy, Burrow is one of the game's best. He has led the Bengals to the Super Bowl and been one of the NFL's most efficient passers from the moment he entered the league.

Burrow's career completion percentage (68.0) is nearly 10 percent better than the numbers Levis posted as a rookie (58.4). This is a landslide, although I am curious to see how Levis will improve with Burrow's former offensive coordinator now calling plays in Tennessee.

Results

Based on my analysis heading into the 2024 season, the Titans have an advantage at quarterback in 6 of 17 games on the schedule. 

Sportsbooks currently list the Titans over/under at 5.5 wins this season. 

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