Titans Name Will Levis Their Starting QB As Ryan Tannehill's Days With Club Coming To A Close
The Tennessee Titans have been preparing for the day they move on from starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill for two years and that day arrived on Wednesday with the ascension of rookie Will Levis.
Coach Mike Vrabel announced the Titans will continue starting Levis the remainder of the season. And Tannehill, who is still nursing an ankle injury, will be the backup even when he is 100 percent healthy.
"Will's going to be our quarterback," Vrabel said. "We're going to go with Will. We think that's the best opportunity for our football team right now. And we'll see where he's at."
Titans Should Have Traded Ryan Tannehill
So, bye Ryan.
"I think and hopeful he'll be a backup for us, prepare as a starter but that's where we're at right now," Vrabel added.
Vrabel told both Levis and Tannehill of his plans early Tuesday. Maybe if the club had known this was the direction it was going to take, it might have been better served by trying to trade Tannehill by the Oct. 31 trade deadline.
That deadline came two days after Levis made his second start for the club.
Tannehill, unsigned for the 2024 season, will finish his career with the Titans as it began: As a backup.
That's how it is in the NFL, folks. Doors open but rarely stay that way for a super long time. That's what happened with Tannehill.
Tannehill Time Didn't Deliver A Championship
He arrived in Tennessee after he was traded from the Miami Dolphins. He'd been Miami's starter for seven seasons but went to the Titans as a backup. It didn't take Tannehill long to earn the starting job in 2019 when he first arrived. He started 10 games that year.
And he has been the unquestioned starter 51 games after that, leading the Titans to the postseason three consecutive years through 2021.
But in those playoffs it became clear Tannehill was not the guy to carry the club to any sort of lasting success. Tannehill threw 7 TD passes and 5 interceptions in five postseason games, with his last postseason appearance in January of 2022 including a meltdown 3 interception performance.
Those struggles also leaked into his regular-season play starting in 2022, as Tannehill's touchdown numbers declined and his interceptions numbers climbed to 12 in his last 18 starts.
All this despite the fact the Titans leaned on an effective running game that features star running back Derrick Henry.
"Again, just a lot of respect for Ryan personally and professionally," Vrabel said. "We've won a lot of football games here with Ryan. Just was a professional. Certainly disappointed."
Levis The Starter Titans Have Looked For
Previous Titans GM Jon Robinson started looking for a possible Tannehill replacement last year when he selected Malik Willis in the third round of the 2022 draft.
Willis struggled and has continued to need development.
New general manager Ran Carthon picked up the quarterback-succession baton in April when he drafted Levis in the second round.
Levis has been good his first two starts. He threw four TD passes in a victory over Atlanta and then took something of a step back in a loss to the Steelers. Despite the setback, Vrabel has obviously seen a chance to work with the rookie.
"Where we're at right now, I think just looking for something," Vrabel said. "Again, I think that there's clearly something there. We want to be able to continue to try to work with him, progress, develop and win.
"And that's how you get better. You only get better by going out there and playing, especially at that position."
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - OCTOBER 29: Will Levis #8 of the Tennessee Titans looks on before the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Nissan Stadium on October 29, 2023 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
Titans Should Expect Levis Struggles
A couple of things:
The Titans are likely going to ride something of a roller coaster the remainder of this season as Levis learns and develops. They obviously wanted to start that exercise this year rather than waiting until next season.
Tannehill, 35, will go into free agency hoping to find a starting role or a chance to compete for a starting role.
Some possibilities come to mind -- Atlanta if former offensive coordinator Arthur Smith is still the coach there, and perhaps any of the teams that will be in the quarterback market for a veteran to play while a younger quarterback develops.