Taken with the first pick in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft, the Tennessee Titans were high on the potential that quarterback Will Levis had the skills to be their version of Josh Allen. Coming out of the Week 7 bye, the coaching staff pushed veteran Ryan Tannehill out of the way and handed the keys to the offense over to Levis.
In his first game, Levis threw four touchdown passes and the Titans brass looked like geniuses. That would change pretty quickly. Over his last eight starts, Levis threw just four more TDs and fewer than 200 yards in five of his last seven starts. Those numbers could make anyone question why should Levis even garner fantasy draft consideration?
Things have changed.
No team has leaned more heavily on the running game than Tennessee over the past six years. Derrick Henry was such a dominating presence that the passing game was used primarily to augment the run, not carry the load for the offense.
Henry left via free agency, and head coach Mike Vrabel, who embraced the run-first, run-second approach, was fired. Brian Callahan, who spent the last five years in Cincinnati helping develop Joe Burrow, has come to Nashville to do the same with Levis.
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The Titans are all-in for the quick ascent of the passing offense with a complete makeover. Six of Levis’ eight TD passes went to DeAndre Hopkins last season, so he already has a go-to guy, even with limited experience. In the offseason, the Titans stepped up to snatch Calvin Ridley away division-rival Jacksonville. Thanks to an endorsement from Callahan, veteran Tyler Boyd comes to Tennessee as a slot receiver. He has 58 or more receptions in each of the last six years and 67 or more in five of those six.
The wild card for the elevation of Levis is that both of the top two running backs currently on the roster – Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears – are known as much for their receiving ability as their rushing. If tight end Chigoziem Okwonko and/or former first-rounder Treylon Burks can take the next step, there are a slew of weapons to speed up the Levis train.
Fantasy football outlook
As things currently stand, Levis is at the very back end of the QB2 ADP range. This is a strange landing spot for him. In 12-manager leagues, it means the same person who jumped on a quarterback earlier than everyone else and needs an insurance policy likely is going after Levis as a QB2. Under that scenario, Levis never plays, barring injury and the bye week.
Perhaps somebody who waited to take a QB1 may want to elevate Levis a little so there is a chance that he plays more often. If he blows up — like some of us suspect he will — with the talent that has been added around him and the change in offensive philosophy, Levis will have the ability to be a weekly starter or part of a matchup-based QB tandem. But at his current ADP, he will grow dust on the fantasy bench because of the investment made to land a QB1. Consider him a coveted QB2 in best-ball formats.