NASHVILLE — Quarterback Ryan Tannehill has a fascinating offseason ahead of him. The future of the Tennessee Titans is very much in-flux, particularly at the sport's most important position.

Will Tannehill be quarterbacking in Tennessee next season?

The veteran's future with the Titans is anything but certain. Tannehill signed a four-year, $118 million contract with the Tennessee back in March of 2020. The deal, per spotrac.com, included a $20 million signing bonus, $91 million guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $29,500,000. This coming season, Tannehill will earn a base salary of $27 million while carrying a cap hit of $36.6 million and a dead cap value of $18.8 million.

The dead cap charge drops to $9.6 million should the team choose to release Tannehill after June 1.

Does Tannehill have any leverage?

The quarterback market in this year's free agency would certainly indicate so.

Tom Brady's retirement creates a domino affect with league-wide implications. Removing the best available player at the position with so many clubs in a reevaluation mode creates real momentum for trading Tannehill in 2023. Depending on what an offer from another team might look like, it also puts a fair amount of pressure on new Titans general manager Ran Carthon to get the quarterback position right in his first offseason at the helm.

Rolling with Tannehill as a known commodity is the safest option, but a chance to totally reboot the quarterback situation in Tennessee may be too good to pass up.

"If (the Titans) start talking (Tannehill) pay cut or release, then what the agent's going to do is he's going to engage in tampering is technically what it will be," said former NFL agent Joel Corry this week on 104.5 The Zone. "He's gonna go around and get an idea of the lay of the land. If there's a team that's willing to make (Tannehill) whole and give him an extension, then he's going to tell (Tennessee) to kick rocks."

The Titans could also choose the path of least resistance and restructure Tannehill for a more cap-friendly future to keep him on the team.

The Jacksonville Jaguars currently preside over the AFC South. Both the Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts are poised to pick quarterbacks in the Top 5 selections of this year's NFL Draft. Keeping Tannehill in Tennessee seems to make the most sense, but all options for former first-round pick's future should be, and are, on the table.

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