There will be plenty of questions surrounding Tennessee Titans GM Ran Carthon this offseason, and he will have to answer for why the team was so disappointing this year.
The Titans are in contention for the worst record in the league, an opinion that is no longer debatable after they were defeated 52-14 by the Detroit Lions on Sunday.
The remaining portion of the 2024 is going to be difficult, and together, Brian Callahan and Carthon will need to have a plan for what comes next. is going to have to explain how they got here and what comes next. Carthon deserves plenty of blame for the disappointing product on the field, but credit where is credit is due. Trading away wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and linebacker Ernest Jones IV were good decisions that help could the Titana accelerate the rebuild.
Hopkins and Jones are set to be free agents this offseason, so there was no guarantee they'd be back in two-tone bue next season. Derrick Henry, Dencio Autry, and Azeez Al-Shaair were three expiring contracts the Titans failed to re-sign last year. They got nothing in return for them when they left in free agency.
The Titans held on to Henry so that he could have his farewell with the team, even though neither side seemed interested in pursuing a new contract in the offseason. When you look at how much Autry and Al-Shaair were paid in free agency, It is fair to assume that the Titans would have had some takers for the two defenders if they had shopped them around at the trade deadline last year.
Maybe the Titans held on to them for emotional reasons, or Carthon didn't think they were offered enough, or the moves were vetoed by higher ups, or some other reason entirely. It doesn't matter why it happened, it was a mistake that led to the Titans missing out on valuable resources to use last offseason.
More trades could (and should) come before the trade deadline, and everyone should be available for the right price, unless they are young players under contract for multiple years who can help this team compete down the road.
As it stands now, the Titans own the following picks in the 2025 NFL Draft:
1st
2nd
4th
4th (from the Seattle Seahawks)
4th/5th (*conditional from the Kansas City Chiefs)
5th
6th
7th (from the Green Bay Packers)
Those picks should give them the ammo they need to add impact players on Day 1 and Day 2 like they did with J.C. Latham and T'Vondre Sweat last year.
Owning six picks on Day 3 might not seem exciting right now, but it's worth acknowledging Carthon drafted players like Josh Whyle, Jarvis Brownlee Jr., James Williams, and Jha'Quan Jackson in his two years as the GM in those rounds.
You have to assume that Hopkins and Jones weren't in the Titans' long-term plans. While the 2024 season is certainly a wasted one, Carthon wisely got something for in return for players who won't help the team in 2025.
The impending offseason will be huge for the Titans, because if Carthon and Callahan don't show real progress in 2025, their jobs could come into question. Whatever happens, Carthon has to show signs of life next year or owner Amy Adams Strunk will consider burning this thing down to the ground again.