Brian Callahan's future is all but certain in Tennessee
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The Titans No. 1 overall draft pick has additional pressure heading into the 2025 season.
A 23-20 preseason win is far from enough for Brian Callahan to secure his spot in Tennessee. The Titans second year head coach faces the harsh reality of maintaining his position as head coach.
Cam Ward started in both of the Titans preseason games. He only was on the field for a pair of drives in both of them, but it’s valuable experience as the No. 1 pick will be fighting for his head coaches life.
Brian Callahan’s Job on the Line Heading into 2025 Season
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Turron Davenport revealed that the Titans nearly moved on from Brian Callahan last season. It’s going to take more than three wins for the second-year head coach to keep his job. Tennessee finds themselves in a tough position, one that isn’t going to get any easier with a rookie quarterback.
Pressure continues to build for Cam Ward who’s been kept under the radar. Not often does the No. 1 overall pick not have a ton of attention around him, but that goes to show the state of the 2025 draft class. Not only that, but it shows how the media thinks of the Titans organization.
After the Will Levis disaster last season, Ward has a chance to get the team back on track. Not even Callahan is asking him to guide the team to the postseason, but just a few more wins would help secure his safety.
Davenport and Fowler wrote, “There was consideration given to completely cleaning house and sending Callahan on his way along with [Ron] Carthon, multiple Titans sources confirmed. Callahan and Carthon had a close relationship, and having the No. 1 pick gave Tennessee an opportunity to bring in a new general manager, coach and rookie quarterback at the same time.”
The Likelihood of Callahan’s Tenure Expanding Beyond the 2025 Season
The ESPN article continued with a quote from Chad Brinker, the team’s president of football operations, “We wanted to give him that opportunity to grow as a head football coach. We felt like another year to grow into that and we’re going to need to see that growth. We believe in Brian, and we think he’s going to get there. So that’s why he was retained.”
“The front office didn’t lose sight of Callahan being one of the league’s in-demand coaching candidates when the Titans hired him,” they wrote. Should the team have released him after a three-win season, it’s clear both Fowler and Davenport believe Callahan wouldn’t have struggled to find his next head coaching job.
Regardless, the coach is in a good position due to how highly many think of Ward behind the scenes. The Miami graduate has been praised for showing up to practice everyday at 4:30 or 5 a.m. Not only that, but he’s bringing some of his teammates with him.
The article also contained a quote from Tyler Lockett who chose Tennessee simply because he wanted to play with Ward. For a veteran player to choose to play with a rookie, it shows just how highly he thinks of him. Ultimately, the league’s newest duo will have a chance to save their head coaches job.