Will Arthur Smith leave the Titans?
Well, that escalated quickly for Tennessee Titans OC Arthur Smith.
Last year, Smith was a first-time coordinator after being a relative no-name candidate in the Titans search to replace Matt LaFleur. In fact, through the first half of that season, he hadn’t exactly endeared himself to Titans fans.
It is hard to remember now, but there was a huge emphasis on getting the ball to Dion Lewis as a runner and as a receiver that just never worked and constantly killed drives.
There were also times where Ryan Tannehill seemed to overrule Arthur Smith on plays by changing at the line of scrimmage to something he was more comfortable with. More often than not, these audibles were the best plays of the game for the Titans and it is what forced so many Titans fans to buy into Tannehill last season.
Well, fast forward to Black Monday as the league fires head coaches en masse and the hottest name on the coaching market is…Arthur Smith.
All six teams with HC openings - Chargers, Jets, Jaguars, Lions, Falcons, Texans - have either requested permission to interview Titans’ OC Arthur Smith or plan to ask permission, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 4, 2021
Obviously, he deserves this attention, but it is a little odd to me that he is such a hot name when his offense requires some pretty specific pieces.
Regardless, let’s try and focus on the positives and which team he has the best shot with, and I’ll start at the absolute bottom.