The NFL world has a misconception about the Tennessee Titans 2024 offseason
NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans have had one of the busiest offseasons of any team in the NFL. Tennessee hired a new head coach in Brian Callahan, subsequently brought in a new coaching staff around him, and have completely turned over the roster through free agency, the trade market, and the 2024 NFL Draft. The […]
NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans have had one of the busiest offseasons of any team in the NFL.
Tennessee hired a new head coach in Brian Callahan, subsequently brought in a new coaching staff around him, and have completely turned over the roster through free agency, the trade market, and the 2024 NFL Draft.
The Titans made blockbuster acquisitions of players like Calvin Ridley, L'Jarius Sneed, Tony Pollard, and Chidobe Awuzie. They selected JC Latham with the seventh overall pick in the draft with hopes that he'll be the franchise's cornerstone left tackle.
It has been busy and every move has been made with a clear purpose and direction. But the NFL world doesn't seem to be as high on the Titans' offseason as many of the fans and media members in Nashville.
National analysts are confused by the direction Tennessee is headed. After finishing 6-11 in 2023 with an abundance of roster holes, the Titans took an aggressive approach to the offseason that can easily be mistaken for going "all in."
There is no better example of this than a recent edition of "The Athletic Football Show." The Athletic's Robert Mays was joined by Conor Orr of Sports Illustrated to discuss if they were “Buying or Selling” the offseason moves of NFL teams in transition. Mays and Orr were very critical of the way things have gone down in Tennessee.
"Can I separately buy [Brian] Callahan as a human and an eventual good head coach and be completely disgusted with the way [the Titans] have allocated funds and believe this team is going to be a…what? At best you're going to get blown out in the first round of the playoffs? Is that the plan here?," said Orr about the Titans.
"If you look at the way that they've spent money this offseason and the collection of moves that they've made, when has this ever worked?," asked Mays. "It's not just the level of money that they spent. Chidobe Awuzie is 29. He's on a third deal and he's recently been injured. L'Jarius Sneed, they bought at the peak of his value and corners are so volatile historically that buying at the peak comes with a lot of drawbacks. This guy is 29 in the third of his deal and there are huge guarantees all the way into year three of that deal. Calvin Ridley is going to be 30."
"Spending money in free agency on players with their track records collectively and those collective ages, that has never traditionally worked out. And those are the good players," concluded Mays.
The Misconception
I want to make one thing clear about the direction of the Tennessee Titans and the moves they made this offseason: Tennessee is not all in on 2024. The expectations are not necessarily to win a Super Bowl.
The Titans were aggressive in free agency and added talented players to the roster to 1.) Be more competitive in the present and future, and 2.) Give their young quarterback enough pieces to work with to get an answer on his future.
The early returns from Will Levis' rookie campaign were largely positive. But is the second-year quarterback the answer for the franchise moving forward? Do the Titans have the guy? It's the most important question in sports, and sometimes the best way to get that answer is giving a young QB the supporting cast he needs to thrive
Will Levis never stood a chance in Tennessee's offense last year. Outside of DeAndre Hopkins, it was an uninspiring receiving core. The run game was rather one-dimensional with an aging Derrick Henry in the backfield. Levis was also being "protected" by one of the worst offensive lines in football, which ended up getting him injured.
In 2024, Levis will have weapons to throw to, a dynamic running game, a new and improved offensive line, and a head coach with an impressive offensive background calling the plays for him. The Titans are going to be improved from their 6-11 record. They may even make a push for the AFC playoff picture. But most importantly, they are going to get an answer about their quarterback situation.
I believe it is that goal and vision that drove a number of decisions made by Ran Carthon and the front office this offseason. That goal just so happens to also be aligned with making huge improvements to the roster. If that means a playoff appearance and getting blown out in the first round, so be it.
And if Levis isn't the guy…you're putting the next guy in a better position to succeed by surrounding him with the stable, veteran talent that will already be in place. That's a luxury few Titans quarterbacks have had.
Not to mention the fact that Tennessee is still positioned well (in the top half of the NFL) when it comes to cap space for the 2025 offseason. Some of the recent contracts given out in free agency may come with multiple years of guarantees, but when you have more cap space than 90 percent of the league, it gives you the liberty to outspend other teams. It also gives you flexibility to get out of bad contracts and improve on your roster if you need to.
Just because a team makes moves to improve their roster does not mean they believe that roster is a finished product. So, as Orr asked on The Athletic Football Show, what's the plan here?
The plan is make a playoff push in 2024. The plan is to establish a young, talented, and controllable core on the offensive line. The plan is to get an answer about your young quarterback. Then the plan will be to go all in and make a push for sustained Super Bowl contention.
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