The Titans missed out on the playoffs by a single game last year when they lost to the Jaguars in the final week of the season. With an aging — and expensive — core, Tennessee could be looking to shake some things up before 2023, starting at quarterback.
ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported teams believe the Titans could be looking to shop Ryan Tannehill and look for his long-term replacement by either moving up or back in the draft.
"New GM Ran Carthon is resetting his roster in a big way, they're making some moves," Fowler said, per Bleacher Report. "I've talked to some teams who believe that the Titans are looking at moving up or even moving back from No. 11 because they have a lot of needs to fill. So it's not all about the quarterback position.
"At least Ryan Tannehill is comfort food. He is available and they know what to expect."
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Publicly, Carthon has not taken a clear stance one way or another on Tannehill. Earlier in the week, Carthon was asked about trade rumors surrounding Tannehill, and while he did not shut them down, he also was non-committal in the veteran QB's future.
Carthon emphasized the need to do his due diligence after the team hosted several of the top quarterbacks in the draft. He said it was important to evaluate every position each year and ensure the team is giving itself "the best option to put the best 53 on the field."
“Just to let you guys in, Ryan and I had a conversation back in February that was between Ryan and I, and Ryan and our organization, so Ryan knows where he stands with us, and that’s really all that matters to me,” Carthon said, according to Titan Insider.
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The Titans are coming off a disappointing campaign in which they looked like a potential AFC contender through the first 10 games of the season, only to lose the remaining seven and watch as the Jaguars, led by second-year QB Trevor Lawrence, raced ahead of them to win the AFC South.
Tannehill is in the final year of his contract with the Titans, and dealing him away could save Tennessee plenty of cap space. Tannehill is owed $36.6 million, and dealing him or releasing him before or during the draft would save $17.8 million, according to Over the Cap.
Tennessee selected Liberty standout Malik Willis in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft and he saw a bit of action as a rookie, but was mostly uninspiring. He completed only 50.8 percent of his passes for 276 yards with no touchdowns and three picks in three starts and eight games total. He also rushed 27 times for 123 yards and a touchdown. When the Titans reached the win-and-in game against the Jaguars in Week 18, the team opted to start veteran Joshua Dobbs in place of Willis.
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Should the Titans deal Tannehill, it's likely they'd give Willis another shot to start given that he is currently the only other quarterback on the roster. It could also signal the start of a potential rebuild, which could include looking to deal other assets like running back Derrick Henry or EDGE Denico Autry, who are both in the final years of their current contracts.
It's one thing to discuss trading Tannehill and another thing to find a deal. A team that would be willing to acquire the soon-to-be-35-year-old signal-caller would be taking on a major cap hit and a player who missed five games in 2023 with an ankle injury. He enjoyed breakouts in 2019 and 2020, but has since experienced some regression over the past two seasons as he has completed 66.5 percent of his passes for 6,270 yards with 34 touchdowns and 20 picks in 29 games during that span.
