Just last week there were reports that the Titans were the front runners to sign Tom Brady, which seemed a little suspect. Sure there's the Mike Vrabel-Brady connection, but wouldn't the Titans sign their own guy? Currently, that's where the smart money appears to be leaning.
NFL.com's Ian Rapoport says the Titans are focused on re-signing Tannehill before free agency opens, which seems wise. Yes, Tom Brady has won a few more Super Bowls and has greater odds of making it into the Hall of Fame one day. But Tannehill is the defending Comeback Player of the Year, and he's 12 years younger. At least one of those things seems more important than signing a guy you used to play with.
And while the Titans' run to the AFC Championship Game was squarely on the shoulders of Derrick Henry, Tannehill played a significant part in them getting there.
Once Tannehill took over for Marcus Mariota, the offense got a lot better. Tennessee, 2-4 at the time, reeled off 7 wins in the next 10 games. Tannehill, between his passing and running scores, put up multiple total touchdowns in all 10 of those games. The only quarterback who had more touchdowns per game last year? MVP Lamar Jackson.
| TDS PER GAME, QBS, 2019 (8+ STARTS) | |
|---|---|
| Player | Avg |
| Lamar Jackson | 2.87 |
| Ryan Tannehill | 2.60 |
| Drew Brees | 2.55 |
| Matthew Stafford | 2.38 |
| Deshaun Watson | 2.27 |
| Daniel Jones | 2.17 |
| Russell Wilson | 2.13 |
| Jameis Winston | 2.13 |
| Dak Prescott | 2.06 |
| Patrick Mahomes | 2.00 |
| Josh Allen | 1.81 |
| Matt Ryan | 1.80 |
| Kirk Cousins | 1.80 |
| Ryan Fitzpatrick | 1.77 |
| Carson Wentz | 1.75 |
| Jimmy Garoppolo | 1.75 |
| Tom Brady | 1.69 |
| Aaron Rodgers | 1.69 |
| Sam Darnold | 1.62 |
| Kyle Allen | 1.58 |
| Baker Mayfield | 1.56 |
| Andy Dalton | 1.54 |
| Jared Goff | 1.50 |
| Kyler Murray | 1.50 |
| Gardner Minshew | 1.50 |
| Jacoby Brissett | 1.47 |
| Philip Rivers | 1.44 |
| Derek Carr | 1.44 |
| Mitchell Trubisky | 1.27 |
| Case Keenum | 1.25 |
| Mason Rudolph | 1.25 |
| Joe Flacco | .75 |
Tannehill benefited from Henry's monster second half, seeing a lot of favorable defensive looks; he wasn't the primary player defenses were accounting for. But he deserves plenty of credit for his work. I think Tennessee, assuming they work things out, is making a good decision. I'll have some interest in Tannehill next season.
--Andy Richardson