Tennessee Titans lowest point in 2019 sets up magical 2020 start

What could have been:

With one decision, in the midst of one of the lowest points in recent Titans’ memory, Mike Vrabel changed the course of history for his team. And if he’s lucky, that one decision might still be affecting the course of the Tennessee Titans throughout the 2020 season.

By pulling the plug on a struggling offense, by handing the reins to Ryan Tannehill in the middle of the third quarter against Denver, and having enough faith in Tannehill to leave him in charge going forward– Vrabel might have saved a few jobs and given Tennessee the chance to play in their second Super Bowl in franchise history.

A world in which Vrabel doesn’t decide to roll the dice on Tannehill, or even a world where he gives Tannehill the chance to start a few weeks later, looks quite a bit different for Tennessee than where they ended up. Most likely, the team would have struggled to a five or six-win season and would have begun a teardown on offense.

Mariota would be gone regardless, but Tannehill might not have had a chance to prove himself either. In a strong class of quarterbacks and with a high draft pick, all while in a world where Tannehill remained the unproven quantity he was coming in from Miami, the Titans most likely would have tried their hand with a rookie quarterback. They probably would have fired Arthur Smith, whose offenses were underperforming just about every reasonable expectation until the point where Tannehill took control.

The ripples stretch further though. With Henry’s poor performance with Mariota under center, who’s to say the team would even want him back? Rather than an NFL Rushing Title, rather than a new mega-contract, Henry might have been out too. AJ Brown, who had his four highest-yardage games in the league after Tannehill took over, might not have looked like the breakout star he would eventually turn into.