Tag: Brian Callahan Tennessee Titans

Revamped Titans passing game offers fantasy hope

A revamped passing game and system offers fantasy promise.

Coming off another sub-.500 season, the Tennessee Titans fired head coach Mike Vrabel and didn’t re-sign longtime stalwarts like running back Derrick Henry and quarterback Ryan Tannehill. It felt like the end of an era as the club hired Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan to replace Vrabel and signed veteran wide receivers Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd to jumpstart a passing attack that ranked 29th in the NFL last year (180.4 yards/game) and hasn’t finished in the top 20 since 2011.

That duo joins three-time All-Pro WR DeAndre Hopkins and 2022 first-rounder Treylon Burks in a receiver room that now boasts talent and experience. Questions remain, however, as QB Will Levis enters 2024 as the starter following an uneven showing as a rookie — he threw four TDs in his debut and then managed just four scoring strikes over his remaining eight games. Behind him are QBs Mason Rudolph and Malik Willis, neither of whom have lit up scoreboards in limited opportunities.

So, with the caveat that improved play from Levis is crucial to Tennessee’s receivers delivering the goods for fantasy football owners, let’s look at what Tennessee has to work with this season.

A closer look at the Tennessee Titans backfield

What should we expect from the Tony Pollard-Tyjae Spears tandem?

From the moment Mike Vrabel was hired to be the head coach of the Tennessee Titans before the 2018 season, you knew you were going to get two things: a physical defense, and a heavy dose of running back Derrick Henry each week. After six years of that, it’s a new day in Nashville. Vrabel was fired after posting a 13-21 record over the last two seasons, and Henry signed with the Baltimore Ravens.

Vrabel’s replacement is Brian Callahan, who was hired after serving as offensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals for the last five seasons. In Cincinnati, he oversaw a pass-first offense led by young superstar quarterback Joe Burrow and the receiving tandem of Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. While the Titans have upgraded their own receivers room, which now includes DeAndre Hopkins, Calvin Ridley, and Tyler Boyd, a familiar face from Cincy, the jury is still out on QB Will Levis.

As such, the ground game should be important for the 2024 Titans. With Henry gone, Tennessee gave former Dallas Cowboys RB Tony Pollard a three-year, $21.75 million deal to join promising youngster Tyjae Spears atop the depth chart. Let’s look at what we can expect from them this year.