The Tennessee Titans saw their starting quarterback, Will Levis, get hurt during the first half of the Week 4 win over the Miami Dolphins, which led to backup signal-caller Mason Rudolph getting the football for the first time this season.
Levis hurt his shoulder in the first quarter when diving for a first down on a third-down scramble. The former second-round pick was clearly in pain but remained on the sideline for the remainder of the contest. Levis completed 3-of-4 passes for 23 yards and one interception (of course) before exiting.
Meanwhile, Rudolph took care of the football the rest of the way and finished 9-of-17 for 85 scoreless yards. The veteran signal-caller's biggest play of the day was a 27-yard strike to Tyler Boyd right before the half to set Tennessee up for a field goal.
Big time connection from @Rudolph2Mason ➡️ @boutdat_23 to set up the field goal!
— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) October 1, 2024
📺: Watch #TENvsMIA on @ESPNNFL stream on NFL+ pic.twitter.com/D62qEfWo61
Because of Levis' struggles this season, and with the Titans finally winning their first game while also scoring 30 points for the first time in over 1,000 days, many are wondering if Rudolph might become Tennessee's starter moving forward.
However, head coach Brian Callahan immediately shot that down following the game, saying Will Levis will 100% be the team's starter as long as he's healthy enough to play.
MORE: Titans snapped 1,000-day streak in Week 4
"If Will's healthy, he's our quarterback," Callahan said. "It was not a decision based on anything other than his health and protecting him... he's our starter and when he's healthy, we are ready to roll with him."
As far as Levis' health is concerned, Callahan didn't give any specific details but revealed that the shoulder was bothering him "pretty significantly" and he didn't want to risk it, especially with a bye week coming up.
"He tried to come back, but it was bothering him pretty significantly in his shoulder. So I made a decision to hold him out," Callahan said. "Ultimately, I knew what kind of game it was going to be. With the bye week next week, I didn't want to expose him to any further risk."
Levis will get an extra week to rest his shoulder up with the Titans on a bye in Week 5. When they return, the Titans will have a divisional matchup against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 6 in Nashville.
