Titans HC Brian Callahan dishes on next step for Will Levis development plan

There's no denying that Tennessee Titans starting quarterback Will Levis showcased growth in Sunday's defeat to the Los Angeles Chargers. Levis completed 18 of 23 passing attempts for 175 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions. His 78.3 completion percentage was a career-high mark. He also played his first turnover-free game of a difficult season.

As a whole, it was a solid performance against a Chargers defense ranked first in scoring (13.1) and ninth against the pass (191.6) as far as weekly outputs go. Titans head coach Brian Callahan has routinely showered Levis with praise in his press conferences since Sunday's loss. There's however one key area Callahan is still wanting to see improvement in, starting with Sunday's Week 11 game versus the Minnesota Vikings.

Levis was sacked seven times against the Chargers. All of those sacks occurred in 3.2 seconds or longer, with a few of his takedowns surpassing five and six seconds, well above the league average provided by Next Gen Stats. In five complete starts this season, Levis has now been sacked on 22 occasions, or 4.4 times per contest. By comparison, backup quarterback Mason Rudolph was sacked five times in three complete starts.

Callahan is hoping to see improvement in that department against the Vikings this weekend.

"The sacks are a part of it," Callahan said in a clip captured by Paul Kuharsky earlier this week when discussing Levis' evaluation. "Knowing when to get the ball out, knowing when it's okay to hold onto it and take a sack. He could have taken three or four less hits [in that Chargers game] and made three or four more completions for 30-40 yards. We want him to get the ball out of his hands."

Levis currently leads all full-time starting quarterbacks in pressure-to-sack percentage (P2S%). Approximately 31 percent of Levis' pressures have converted into sacks this season, according to Pro Football Focus. The only quarterbacks with more than 100 dropbacks with a worse P2S% are backup Cleveland Browns quarterback Jameis Winston (32.1%) and New Orleans Saints fifth-round rookie Spencer Rattler (31.1%).

By comparison, Rudolph has the third-best P2S% in the NFL at just 11.5 percent. That's behind the same Titans offensive line Levis is protected by, strongly insinuating it's a Levis problem.

The Vikings have recorded a sixth-best 30 sacks this season. Defensive coordinator Brian Flores is fielding an excellent defense. The challenge for Levis to display improved pocket presence will be sizable. Callahan will be watching closely.