Tennessee Titans fans need to adjust their expectations for the rest of the season
By Will Lomas
Despite some protest from fans, Mike Vrabel and Ran Carthon were emphatic that the Tennessee Titans weren't in need of a rebuild. After just six games, the Tennessee Titans are 2.5 games behind in the division and it seems like they wildly misevaluated where this team was.
A lot of fans still believe that the season isn't lost, and they are mathematically correct in that there is still a possibility that the Tennessee Titans could come back and win in the division and make the playoffs.
There is a portion of this fan base that believes that Mike Vrabel can turn anything around and that he is always going to get the most out of his talent. I disagree, but let's just look at the facts. Everyone agrees that the 2023 roster is more talented and less injured than the 2022 version, but the team is trending toward a (much) worse record.
The rallying cry for the Tennessee Titans fans that are still holding out hope for the season, is that the first 6 games of the schedule were much harder than the last 11 games. That sounds good on paper, but it isn't true if the Titans aren't good.
Looking at the next 11 games, here are the teams that have either beaten the Tennessee Titans in the last 13 games or that have a better record than the Titans do:
Week 8: Atlanta Falcons
Week 9: Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 10: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Week 11: Jacksonville Jaguars
Week 13: Indianapolis Colts
Week 14: Miami Dolphins
Week 15: Houston Texans
Week 16: Seattle Seahawks
Week 17: Houston Texans
Week 18: Jacksonville Jaguars
Here is a list of teams that haven't beaten the Tennessee Titans in the last 13 games or that don't have a better record than the Titans:
Week 12: Carolina Panthers
That is it, there is just one team left on the schedule that the Tennessee Titans can feel confident in beating.
Ryan Tannehill's status is huge because he gives the Tennessee Titans the best chance to win each week. If he could play the rest of the games this year, then maybe you could talk yourself into a season where the Titans win four or five more games.
Without Tannehill, it is hard to look at this schedule and think that the Titans are going to have more than five wins by the end of the year.
As hard as that might be to stomach, it is something that Tennessee Titans fans should be excited about. This team needs elite pieces and they need depth, and the best way to get elite talent is to have a high draft pick and the Titans are spiraling towards a very high draft pick.
With any playoff hopes down the drain, the most important goal for this franchise is to figure out if Will Levis can be a guy that you can build around. We have seen a perfect example of a top-100 draft pick that you can't build around in Malik Willis, so if Levis can just clear that low bar then you can start focusing on help around the quarterback.
In a draft class that features blue-chip players like Marvin Harrison Jr. (WR), Ola Fashanu (LT), and Joe Alt (LT), there is elite help available for Levis at the top. Then, if Levis can't progress with that elite help, the Titans can try to find a new QB down the line knowing that they will have the talent around the QB position to help a talented young player succeed.