Black Monday. The first Monday after the final NFL regular season game. While some coaching staffs begin preparation for their upcoming playoff matchups, others will undergo serious changes. Black Monday marks the day that a large number of coaches and executives from non-playoff teams around the league are fired.

Unfortunately, the Tennessee Titans are among those teams this year.

One thing was made clear by the seven-game losing streak that ended Tennessee's 2022 season prematurely: Changes need to be made. Changes to the personnel, changes to the organization's philosophy, and changes to the coaching staff.

General Manager Jon Robinson was already fired mid-season by Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk, but with Strunk committing to head coach Mike Vrabel moving forward, what does Vrabel need to change about his supporting staff? Here's a look at the Titans' assistant coaches, and what I believe should be the fate of every coach as the offseason begins.

Should they stay or should they go?

*UPDATE: Per team release, the Titans have fired offensive coordinator Todd Downing, offensive line coach Keith Carter, and secondary coach Anthony Midget*

Coordinators

Todd Downing, Offensive Coordinator: Go

The elephant in the room as the Titans enter the offseason will be the status of Titans' offensive coordinator Todd Downing, who led an offense that finished in the bottom five in both yards per game and points per game.

While the Titans' offensive talent in 2022 left something to be desired, any criticisms of Downing are warranted. Tennessee scored just 37 points in the fourth quarter of games this season (2.1 points per game), and 94 points after halftime all season long. It's hard to see a scenario where the Titans can turn the page as an organization and go the "next level" Amy Adams Strunk desires with Downing remaining as the OC.

Shane Bowen, Defensive Coordinator: Stay

Nobody was impacted by injury issues quite like Shane Bowen, who had just two players start every game for his defense this season (Kevin Byard and Roger McCreary).

Star linebacker Harold Landry, coming off a 12 sack campaign in 2021, missed the entire season with a torn ACL suffered in training camp. Projected starters Caleb Farley, Elijah Molden, Amani Hooker, Bud Dupree, Zach Cunningham, and Denico Autry all played less than 50 percent of the defensive snaps this season.

Despite all that adversity, Tennessee's defense held opponents to 20 points or less in 11 different games this season, but went 6-5 in those games. That's an applaudable coaching job.

There should be no doubts that Bowen returns to the Titans staff next season, provided he is not given a head coaching job elsewhere.

Craig Aukerman, Special Teams Coordinator: Stay

The status of special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman is a bit of a toss up for me. On one hand, the Titans' allowed an average of 10.78 punt return yards per kick, fifth worst in the NFL, and over 200 more return yards than every other team.

Tennessee also tied for the league lead with seven fumbled punts on the season, and rarely had a return that positively impacted the game. The Titans' kick return unit was bottom 10 in average return yards on the season as well.

On the flip side of things, rookie punter Ryan Stonehouse became the single-season record holder for punting average, finishing the year with 53.1 yards per punt. Aukerman took a risk by moving on from veteran Brett Kern, and it seemed to pay dividends this past season.

Ultimately, Aukerman was the coach on staff responsible for leading practices when Mike Vrabel had COVID during the 2021 season. He has always been given Vrabel's trust and built strong relationships with a vast majority of the players on the roster. He is highly thought of within the organization, and even with the special teams struggles in 2022, I think those get chalked up to personnel issues and Aukerman returns in 2023 for his seventh season.

Offensive Staff

Tim Kelly, Passing Game Coordinator: Stay

One full season under his belt in Tennessee, and it's still unclear exactly what Tim Kelly does on the Titans staff. He can be seen during daily practices working in with Luke Steckel and the Titans tight ends on blocking and route-running, but the level of responsibility he has had as a play caller has been kept close to the vest.

Some believe Kelly is the "offensive coordinator in waiting" should the Titans move on from Downing. Whether that be true or not, Vrabel brought him in from the division rival Texans for a reason. There's no reason to think he'll be gone.

Pat O'Hara, Quarterbacks: Stay

The assessment of quarterbacks coach Pat O'Hara this season is a multi-layered one. An injury-ridden roller coaster season for Ryan Tannehill, the development of rookie Malik Willis, and the late season surprise of Josh Dobbs are all pertinent.

When speaking to O'Hara, Downing, Vrabel, and even Willis himself during training camp, the consensus seemed to be that Willis needed to improve on his footwork and timing from the pocket. His athleticism was a clear plus, but he needed to get his body in sync with his brain in order to deliver the football with consistent accuracy. Rookie season down, and that story hasn't changed much.

Willis flashed on occasion and made some positive strides, but was hurt by a lack of weapons and pass protection from his offensive line. He still needs to improve on his timing and footwork from the pocket and still needs more reps from under center. He's still raw. So much so that Dobbs, fresh off the Detroit Lions practice squad, was turned to for the final two games of the year with limited preparation.

Like Willis, starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill was also hindered by the poor offensive line play as he battled through an ankle injury for most of the year.

Overall, O'Hara did a sufficient job with the situation he was given. After working tirelessly with Dobbs over the past few weeks, the former Vols QB was serviceable in his two starts at the end of the season. That's a testament to both Dobbs' intelligence and O'Hara's coaching. He should be back for 2023.

Rob Moore, Wide Receivers: Stay

While Titans wide receivers struggled to produce this season, that should not be used as an indictment of Rob Moore.

Injuries to Kyle Philips and Treylon Burks during their rookie seasons really forced the Titans into an uncomfortable situation with their pass catchers. Week 7 against the Colts, Tennessee had Robert Woods, Cody Hollister, Mason Kinsey, and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine as their only active receivers.

Moore should be back next season as he continues to develop Burks and Philips in the Titans' offense.

Tony Dews, Running Backs: Stay

This one is pretty simple. As long as Tony Dews does not receive a job elsewhere, he should back next season.

Running back Derrick Henry eclipsed 1,500 rushing yards for the third time in his NFL career. Tennessee also got positive contributions from Dontrell Hilliard, Hassan Haskins, and Julius Chestnut throughout the season.

Keith Carter, Offensive Line: Go

The Titans' offensive line was the achilles heel of their 2022 season. In defense of Keith Carter, losing Taylor Lewan for the year to an ACL surgery didn't help the situation, but Carter's unit was not good enough this season.

Questions need to be raised about the way the Titans have evaluated and developed offensive line talent over the years. Isaiah Wilson in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Dillon Radunz in the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Even as recently as the pro scouting of Dennis Daley in 2022 and then sticking with him at left tackle for the entire season.

Tennessee allowed the sixth most sacks in the NFL this season, and its not like they have fresh talent waiting in the wings.

Something needs to change with how the Titans handle their offensive linemen. That should include both personnel changes and coaching changes. Tennessee will have a big opportunity to bring in offensive line help with the 11th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, but it's time they get fresh eyes on that talent and try to rebuild their identity up front.

Luke Steckel, Tight Ends: Stay

Luke Steckel is an easy stay for the Titans at tight ends coach. Veteran tight end Austin Hooper was a big contributor late in the season, and rookie tight end Chig Okonkwo flashed some real superstar potential as a big-play threat.

Hooper and Okonkwo combined for 50 first downs on 73 catches this season.

Okonkwo is sure to be a massive piece of what the Titans try to do on offense in 2023, and Steckel returning to assist in his growth is a no brainer.

Defensive Staff

Jim Schwartz, Senior Defensive Assistant: Stay

Just finishing his 29th NFL season, Jim Schwartz is one of the most experienced defensive minds in the league today. He has four years of head coaching experience and 14 seasons as a defensive coordinator under his belt.

The Titans brought him in for a reason, and have seen great success on the defensive side of the ball since he joined the team.

While the Titans should absolutely hope to bring him back for the 2023 season, Schwartz has already received interest from the Cleveland Browns regarding their defensive coordinator vacancy. His name is likely to be in the mix for any jobs that come available, and there's no guarantee the Titans will be able to retain him.

If they have their way, though, Schwartz stays.

Ryan Crow, Outside Linebackers: Stay

Titans outside linebackers coach Ryan Crow is one of the up-and-coming names in coaching ranks across the NFL. His demeanor and hands-on coaching style fit perfectly with Vrabel's Titans, and the results speak for themself.

After Crow moved to outside linebackers coach in 2021, Harold Landry posted his career-high 12 sack season. Defensive end Denico Autry, who also works with Crow on a regular basis, tied his career high and finished second on the team with nine sacks in 2021. He then posted eight sacks in 12 games in 2022 as the heartbeat of the Titans' pass rush.

Crow should not just be back in 2023, he should be considered for any internal promotions that are available in the future.

Bobby King, Inside Linebackers: Stay

Another close call for me is inside linebackers coach Bobby King. Two months ago, I would have told you that an underperforming inside linebackers group meant that the Titans should go in a different direction, but the final stretch of the 2022 season changed things a bit.

King lost both of his preseason starters, David Long and Zach Cunningham, for a majority of the season to injury. It was Joe Schobert, Dylan Cole, Monty Rice, and Jack Gibbens filling in to combine for 17 defensive starts. Rice and Gibbens, two young and inexperienced linebackers each took advantage of opportunity, showing their abilities against the run game.

King didn't have much to work with, and the development of younger players in his unit is enough to earn him another season with the Titans.

Scott Booker, Safeties: Stay

Titans safeties coach Scott Booker returning next year is one of the easier decisions of this entire group. Booker helped Kevin Byard earn his first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors in 2021, and has developed Amani Hooker into an everyday starter on the Titans defense.

Hooker's development earned him a three-year, $30 million contract extension earlier this season. Titans' safety Andrew Adams who joined the team two games into the 2022 season, had a big year in the secondary as well.

Safety is one of the few positions that the Titans seem to have figured out for the foreseeable future. Booker should continue to be a part of that.

Anthony Midget, Secondary: Go

After a strong defensive effort by the Titans this season, most of, if not all of the staff will likely be retained. But if it were me , secondary coach Anthony Midget would be the one move I'd make.

The Titans had the worst passing defense in the NFL in 2022, allowing 274.8 passing yards per game. Caleb Farley and Kristian Fulton, two players relied on to have a big role in the secondary this season, dealt with injuries, but failed to take major steps forward in their development.

Tennessee struggled to prevent explosive plays all season. A lot of that was due to poor execution in the secondary and busted coverages. In the critical moments late in games, it was the Titans corners that got picked on for game changing plays.

With all that zigging, perhaps Midget is the one zag for Vrabel on the defensive side of the ball.

Terrell Williams, Defensive Line: Stay

Terrell Williams is another coach that managed to do more with less for a majority of the season. The Titans pass rush fell off a cliff at the end of the year, but Williams was able to get significant production and development from players that were nothing more than depth pieces at the start of camp.

Teair Tart took a huge step forward, and DeMarcus Walker had a career-high seven sacks that will net him a big payday on the open market this offseason.

Jeffery Simmons was never truly playing at full strength with his ankle injury, and a return to health paired with Autry, Landry, Tart, and Weaver next season should have this defensive front in good shape. Even without many of those pieces, Tennessee had the best run defense in the NFL in 2022, and the second best run defense in franchise history.

Mike Vrabel told media on Monday that coaching decisions had not yet been made, as today is being used to meet with his players. Vrabel believed that decisions on his staff will be announced as conversations progress throughout the week.

"I will look at each and every phase of our team, as it relates to the coaching staff, and as it relates to the players. That process has started," said Vrabel. "I just finished up meeting with the players and thanked them. Then I will have conversations with the coaches throughout this week and next week."

Image via George Walker IV / Tennessean.com-USA TODAY NETWORK