Matt Nagy pulls back curtain on his tight relationship with Mike Borgonzi right before Titans head coach search kicks into full gear

The most controversial Titans head coach candidate has a stronger relationship with Mike Borgonzi than you realize.

Easton Freeze — Tennessee Titans Beat Writer
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The Tennessee Titans are less than one week away from diving headlong into their head coaching search, and the man everybody can’t stop talking about is Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy.

Since the moment Brian Callahan was fired in October, Nagy’s presumed relationship with Titans GM Mike Borgonzi kept his name front of mind for everybody theorizing who the next guy might be. He’s an undoubtedly controversial option in the eyes of fans, who saw his first stink in Chicago end unceremoniously and his role in Kansas City be just ambiguous enough to be unsure of how much praise or dismissal he deserves. And now on top of it all, a coaching cycle profile on Nagy just came out at The Athletic that shares two very interesting nuggets about Nagy’s next move.

Matt Nagy’s connection to Tennessee and his plan for his next job

The Athletic’s Dan Pompei, one of the best storytelling writers in sports media today, published this feature on Matt Nagy this week that I encourage reading in it’s entirety. In it, Nagy’s humanity is explored throughout the process of becoming a head coach, finding immediate success, crashing hard, and learning a lot during his time back under Andy Reid’s wing. “I believe going to Chicago is going to end up one of the best things that ever happened to me,” Nagy told Pompei for the piece.

It’s no shock to see the initial reaction to the possibility that Tennessee could be Nagy’s second chance isn’t exactly glowing from fans. Retreads are typically a harder sell at first in general, since their first stop usually ends poorly. They don’t fire you for killing it down the stretch!

But Nagy’s tenure in Chicago has aged better than you might remember it. His Bears teams from 2018-2021 were .500 or better three out of four years, and went to the playoffs twice. His final record as a head coach was 34-31. And his reputation amongst the coaching community is a whole lot stronger than it is amongst fans.

The reason he’s been so strongly connected to Tennessee is the fact that he has a working relationship with Mike Borgonzi. I’ve made a point to repeatedly explain how most of the betting odds outlining him as a clear frontrunner for the job are all guesswork. It’s based on a single connection, one that this very Titans regime has a recent history of proving doesn’t mean everything. That being said, Pompei’s article included this detail behind Nagy and Borgonzi’s relationship:

“Nagy tries to develop young assistant coaches on the staff, sharing mistakes he made and conducting mock job interviews. He has helped Chiefs executives, too. When then-assistant general manager Mike Borgonzi prepared to become a general manager, he and Nagy talked through scenarios and bounced ideas off one another. Borgonzi became general manager of the Titans in 2025. The Athletic’s Dianna Russini has reported that Nagy is a serious candidate for the Tennessee job.”

Does this sound like a detail included intentionally given the upcoming interview cycle? Yes, naturally. But assuming it’s a true story, it’s a valuable window into just how close these two men might actually be. And however the Titans might safeguard against preexisting relationships dictating their decision, it will still absolutely count for something.

Here’s another interesting detail from the piece: if and when Nagy every gets another shot, he won’t call plays.

How would hiring an offensive play caller who doesn’t call plays be received by the masses? I think it would largely hinge on who the OC is, of course. For those who aren’t a big fan of Nagy at first, perhaps bringing a more sellable OC into the mix makes the hire more palatable.

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