The Tennessee Titans have officially benched Will Levis and will be starting Mason Rudolph for Week 16's match-up against the Indianapolis Colts. Levis, who the Titans selected early in the second round of the 2023 draft, started 11 games for Tennessee this year with disappointing results.
Levis has thrown for 1,916 yards, 12 touchdowns, and 12 picks while the Titans have gone 2-9 in the games he's started. The hope was that first-year head coach Brian Callahan could get more out of Levis after he had a rookie year to forget but that hasn't been the case. The Titans will now likely start Rudolph for the final three games and Levis probably won't be playing for Tennessee again.
With Levis not the answer at the sport's most important position, what will the Titans do next at quarterback? Well, they'll have to hit the reset button once again but this time, Callahan can get the guy he wants to develop to be the Titans next franchise quarterback.
Titans have to hit the reset button at QB after Will Levis didn't pan out
By hitting the reset button, that means the Titans will have to address the quarterback position in two ways. First, they'll have to sign a veteran bridge quarterback. Some of the names available who could fit this description in free agency this offseason are Jacoby Brissett, Taylor Heinicke, and Jameis Winston. The Titans could also opt to swing for the fences and sign Sam Darnold to the big contract he might have earned after an impressive year with the Vikings but that might not be the best move.
After the Titans have their veteran quarterback, the next step will be to find a quarterback in the draft that Callahan likes and thinks he can turn into a franchise guy. The Titans would hold the sixth pick in the draft if the season ended today and it's highly unlikely that Shedeur Sanders or Cam Ward will be available by the time Tennessee's turn comes around.
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If Callahan doesn't like anyone in the draft, maybe he does try to be bold and bring in someone like Darnold or Justin Fields to run the offense for a few years. That'd be a risky move, however, and Callahan might not want to bank on either of those guys when it comes to keeping his job past the 2025 season.
At the end of the day, Titans fans aren't surprised to see that this move is being made. Levis has struggled with protecting the football and while his reactions to throwing key turnovers and mayo commercials have been entertaining, this move needed to be made.
The question now is -- Who will the Tennessee Titans turn to quarterback their offense in 2025 and beyond?