With a loss on Sunday to the Houston Texans, the Tennessee Titans (3-14) officially secured the 1st overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft and now have a valuable asset to jumpstart a rebuild.
Tennessee needed a lot to fall into place in order to be in this position, but now have a lot of intriguing options for the future.
The Titans could draft a franchise quarterback in Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward. Two-way superstar and Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter could be in consideration as well. His value is hard to understate. Trading down and picking up additional picks is also an intriguing option.
Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk now has the perfect opportunity to reset the franchise. I have been kicking the tires on this for a fews weeks now, but circumstances now give Strunk the option to clean house, fire everyone, and get a fresh start with a new GM and head coach. If there was a time to do it, it makes sense when you have the 1st overall pick and are one of the most desirable jobs in the league.
Will Ran Carthon Be Fired?
In the hours since Tennessee lost to the Texans, there have been a lot of rumblings regarding GM Ran Carthon's job security. Will he stay or will he go? Amy has a big decision to make. But the most important thing is that she remains consistent in whatever direction she chooses.
I don't really have a preference on if Tennessee sticks with Carthon and Callahan or not. I think you could make a compelling argument for both sides of that debate. But I do hope that she at least keeps them (and maybe Chad Brinker) tied together.
My wish for the Titans is to have the front office, head coach, and quarterback all tied to one another and aligned. A GM that hires the head coach. A head coach that drafts his quarterback. Accountability for all parties when things fail. No more fall guys, or scape goats, or half measures.
The Titans have been down a slippery slope in recent years where Strunk invokes a "changing of the guard" at every hiccup or disappointing season. She picks a new person to be in charge and as a result, Titans football has had little harmony and a murky power structure.
Confusing Power Structure
When Jon Robinson was fired in 2022, Mike Vrabel was supposed to the "the guy"...until he wasn't. Vrabel was never on the same page as Ran Carthon, who never really envisioned Vrabel coaching the team he put together. But still, Amy hired Carthon and let the tandem draft a young quarterback in Will Levis that showed promise.
When Vrabel was fired just one season later, Carthon hired his guy (Callahan), who then inherited a quarterback he didn't draft. Despite spending money in the offseason to surround Levis with talent, Tennessee bottomed out in 2024.
Somewhere in between, the Titans restructured the front office last spring, promoting Brinker to President of Football Operations while adding "executive vice president" to Carthon's title of General Manger. Those moves unquestionably created a cloudy power structure for those both inside and outside the organization. Some would tell you that Brinker is really the one running the show.
There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the long-term future of Titans football. But do we attribute that optimism to moves made by Carthon or Brinker? How collaborative are they?
Firing Carthon while keeping Callahan in place would continue the dangerous cycle of half-measures by Titans ownership. Robinson had to go so that Vrabel could have control. Then Vrabel was pushed out the door for not being on the same page as Carthon. Now Carthon is the odd man out while Callahan is expected to be a part of the Titans' 2025 plans? Make it make sense.
My other fear is that Ms. Amy will keep both Carthon and Callahan for 2025 with a shiny rookie QB to get the fanbase excited. But if things don't turn around or the quarterback does not develop as expected, there will be a fallout that starts with the coaching staff and front office being let go. And then where are we? Left with a talented young quarterback forced to learn a new offense while the new coach inherits the most important piece of his roster.
Titans Best Options
With the Titans in a position to draft a quarterback in the upcoming draft, there are only three options in my eyes.
1. You commit to Carthon & Callahan for at least three more seasons (through 2027) and give them time to develop whichever quarterback they choose.
2. You cut bait with everyone now and take the opportunity to do the perfect organizational reset.
3. You fire Ran, but make it clear that Chad Brinker will remain in control of an operation he was already running. Then Brinker, Callahan, and the new quarterback are tied to one another in the future.
The Titans are anticipating the opening of a new stadium for the 2027 season. That gives them just two more years before they'll need to have a roster that's ready to compete and draw a crowd. In a world where Tennessee cleans house, Amy Adams Strunk has a chance to bring in a new GM, new head coach, select a quarterback at the top of the NFL Draft, and build from the ground up.
It's clean and simple. And if you get those hires right, the Titans should have no problem being a young, contending team with a bright future by the time the new stadium opens.
Maybe most importantly, you are then able to run the team in an organized manner. If for whatever reason the next quarterback doesn't work out, you can hold both the head coach and GM responsible for that failure. No more questioning who should be blamed. No more hot potato and voting the lowest man on the totem pole of the island.
And of course, regardless of what path we go down, Tennessee cannot screw up the number one pick in the draft. That doesn't happy very often and the Titans would love to not be the worst team in the NFL ever again. But that means you have to get this one right.
