I really thought we'd heard the last of the discussions about Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill "not mentoring" Malik Willis. I really thought the silly narrative that Tannehill was being selfish or a bad teammate died last offseason when Tannehill addressed the comments directly, clarified his position, and was an exemplary teammate to Willis during the season

But thanks to Patrick Peterson, an eight-time NFL Pro Bowl cornerback currently playing for the Pittsburgh Steelers, Tannehill is still being thrown under the bus.

On the most recent episode of his podcast "All Things Covered," Peterson rehashed the situation in Music City and said that Tannehill "rubbed him the wrong way" last offseason.

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"I'll never forget the conversation we had last year with Ryan Tannehill talking about, obviously his job was on the line, and he didn't want to… I don’t know what it was, not mentor or give information to the younger quarterback [Willis]," Peterson said on the podcast. "Man, like we’ve got so much information that these guys haven’t seen. Why would we want to keep that from them? Why would we want to hinder their career on maybe something that we can give them? Not to backtrack, that kind of rubbed me the wrong way."

Peterson is clearly misinformed and lacks the context of the comments Tannehill made if this "rubbed him the wrong way." Tannehill never said he was not going to mentor Malik and he certainly never said he was keeping information from him. All Tannehill said was that he didn't believe mentoring Willis was his job after he was specifically asked by Titans media if he felt like it was. The Titans used a third-round draft pick in the 2022 NFL Draft on Willis.

“That’s part of being a quarterback in the same room,” Tannehill replied to the question. “We’re competing against each other. We’re watching the same tape. We’re doing the same drills. I don’t think it’s my job to mentor him, but if he learns from me along the way, that’s a great thing.”

Tannehill would later clarify that he in no way meant that he wouldn't help Willis out. It was always his intention to assist Willis in any way possible. By saying that mentoring Willis wasn't his job, Tannehill was simply saying that his job was to win football games and be the starting quarterback for the Tennessee Titans. He wasn't there as a mentor, he was there to play and that was his primary focus. There's no harm in saying that.

But of course "it's not my job to mentor Malik" was the sentence plastered over every mainstream media platform without context as the NFL world frowned upon Tannehill. Now Peterson is doing the exact same thing 13 months after the situation was resolved and clarified. 

Ryan Tannehill has been the best leader and teammate a player could ask for since he joined the Tennessee Titans in 2019. That could not be more clear when you talk about Tannehill with Titans players and coaches. We need to leet this narrative die. It's inaccurate and fabricated and an experienced player like Peterson should know better.

Ryan Tannehill & Malik Willis mic’d up moment shows insight into Titans QBs relationship

Veteran Tennessee Titans Quarterback Ryan Tannehill caught unnecessary flak earlier in the off-season for his comments about mentoring rookie QB Malik Willis. Now, a new mic'd up moment from practice helps to prove that their relationship is a good one.  The video shows Tannehill commending Willis on an impressive throw as well as the two […]