Tennessee Titans blueprint for a ring
It is a dark time in Nashville and after a game where he made critical mistakes, Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill is under pressure.
Right now the narrative is that the Titans will never win a Super Bowl with Ryan Tannehill because he isn’t an elite quarterback. The good news for Titans fans is, that isn’t really how Super Bowls work.
They don’t always get decided by which quarterback lights up the other team, and in reality, it is rare that the best quarterback in the NFL wins the title.
Three years ago the New England Patriots won a game where Tom Brady had 0 TDs and an INT. Six years ago, the Denver Broncos won the Super Bowl against MVP Cam Newton and Peyton Manning’s arm looked like limp noodles tied together underneath an orange uniform.
More often than not it is the healthiest team and the team with the most playmakers on both sides of the ball. Sometimes, elite quarterbacks make it to the playoffs and then get wrecked by teams with worse quarterbacks but better coaching and supporting talent.
Last year, the Kansas City Chiefs went to the Super Bowl armed with Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, and every skill player they had throughout the entire season. They lost that game 31-9 and Patrick Mahomes had 0 TDs and 2 INTs.
A few years before that a healthy Peyton Manning took his record-setting offense into a game against the Seattle Seahawks and got decimated 43-8.
Sometimes you get an elite quarterback with a healthy offense that plays like an elite quarterback and weird things just happen. Look at the Super Bowls where Tom Brady has lost. Are you telling me that Eli Manning (twice) and Nick Foles are better than Brady at his best? That isn’t even talking about the time when he nearly lost to Matt Ryan.
The point is, having an elite quarterback is great but it isn’t the only path to the Super Bowl and it isn’t even the only path to winning a Super Bowl. If it were, the last decade would have ended with rings for Cam Newton and Aaron Rodgers and even more rings for Tom Brady.
So, if the Tennessee Titans are going to be a team that doesn’t have an elite quarterback to ride to the playoffs, they are going to have to roll up their sleeves and figure out how to make the most out of Ryan Tannehill who is normally good and sometimes great in the right scheme.
Taking stock of what the Tennessee Titans have
Accept the reality where Ryan Tannehill is the quarterback for the Titans short and long term. Barring a massive trade or an elite quarterback prospect falling into the 20s (there aren’t any in this draft), the best chance the Titans have is to build around him.
The good news is, the Titans already have the bulk of a Super Bowl roster thanks to years of great drafts, free agency signings, and trades from GM Jon Robinson. I think you could argue that these players are among the 5 or 10 best players at their positions (sorted by position, not talent level):
-Harold Landry, EDGE (FA)
-Jeffery Simmons, DL
-Denico Autry, DL
-Zach Cunningham, LB
-Kevin Byard, S
-Amani Hooker, S
-Derrick Henry, RB
-A.J. Brown, WR
I think these players are on the cusp and could be in that area depending on which month you watch them:
-Bud Dupree, EDGE
-David Long, LB
-Kristian Fulton, CB
-Elijah Molden, SCB
-Jackrabbit Jenkins, CB
-Brett Kern, P
-Randy Bullock, K (FA)
-Ryan Tannehill, QB
-Taylor Lewan, LT
-Ben Jones, C (FA)
So that breaks down to 11 defenders (one pending free agent), and 5 players on offense (one pending free agent). After an offseason where the Titans completely rebuilt their defense, it is great that they have so many hits but that overcorrection means that they are going to have to reload on offense this season.
Young players who could step up for the Tennessee Titans
Last year the Tennessee Titans saw the rise of some young players that helped give this team a boost. Kristian Fulton really developed into a great talent while Chris Jackson and Teair Tart both looked like really solid rotational players.
Next year, the Titans could get a few new starters or role players on both sides of the ball that didn’t get a chance to play because of the talent in front of them, injuries, or a mix of both.
Dillon Radunz immediately jumps out as a player who could step into a starting role next year. Radunz was thrown into the mix against the San Francisco 49ers and he basically walled off Nick Bosa and made him a non-factor when the two matched up.
Is he a future star? It is hard to say because he has great athleticism and tools, but we haven’t seen him in a starting role yet. However, what we have seen from him is positive and he has earned a chance to take a spot somewhere in 2022.
Caleb Farley is an interesting player because the Titans got great play out of their top cornerbacks and unless Jackrabbit Jenkins is cut or traded for cap space, it is going to be hard for Vrabel to pull the trigger on a change.
Having said that, Farley is immensely talented and has elite size and tools, so he could end up being too good to the bench.
The last player to mention is Rashad Weaver who had a stellar preseason but got hurt very early in the season.
Still only one of these players plays on offense. While it is great to have defensive depth and potential blue-chip prospects next year, it is even more clear now that the Tennessee Titans’ upgrades have to be focused on offense this offseason.
Where do the Tennessee Titans need to upgrade?
To win a Super Bowl without an elite quarterback, it helps to have an offensive coordinator that can make things easier. Unfortunately, it seems like the Titans are going to stick with Todd Downing and that is going to make everything substantially harder.
Remember, Ryan Tannehill spent two years with a good OC in Arthur Smith and he looked fantastic. During that time his numbers were:
-516/767 passing (67.3%)
-55 TDs, 13 INTs
-6,561 yards (8.6 yards per attempt)
-795 points (30.6 points per game)
This year under Todd Downing his numbers were:
-357/531 passing (67.2%)
-21 TDs, 14 INTs
-3,734 yards (7 yards per attempt)
-418 points (24.6 points per game)
As long as Todd Downing is there, the Titans are playing with one hand tied behind their back. The only way to get away with that is to have elite playmakers surrounding Ryan Tannehill.
Again, the good news is that Tennessee seems to already have two players that fit that bill in Derrick Henry and A.J. Brown.
This offseason they need to find big upgrades at tight end and wide receiver depth where the guys they were hoping to step up just completely failed for the majority of the season.
Guys like Geoff Swaim, Anthony Firkser, Chester Rogers, Marcus Johnson, and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine have to be looked at as players that need to be replaced with urgency. If they serve a purpose on special teams then they don’t necessarily need to be cut, but they have shown that they don’t add anything of value on offense.
The blueprint is simple, fire Todd Downing and get in someone who can mimic what Arthur Smith did with the Titans. If you do that with a slightly improved roster, this team is going to be right back in contention.
If Mike Vrabel won’t do that, then “plan B” is to try to make this offense too talented to fail. Supplement the elite skill position players you have now with another wide receiver and a tight end, preferably with players who can play immediately.
It isn’t going to be easy, but it wasn’t supposed to be this easy to revamp the defense in an offseason. Jon Robinson has stepped up to every task he has been given and there is no reason to expect him to fail here.