Tag: Will Levis

Titans’ 2023 draft class ranked top 10 by CBS Sports

The Titans’ 2023 draft class was ranked as a top-10 group after a solid first season.

The Tennessee Titans had a rough season that ended with a 6-11 record and no playoffs, but the team did get some encouraging performances from its 2023 draft picks.

Tennessee’s first three picks in last year’s draft, left guard Peter Skoronski, quarterback Will Levis and running back Tyjae Spears, all made an impact, which was a far cry from some recent draft classes.

As a result of their performances, CBS Sports’ Chris Trapasso ranked the Titans’ most recent draft class as the 10th-best in the NFL during the 2023 campaign.

Trapasso named Skoronski, Spears and Levis as the Year 1 hits from the group.

Skoronski lived up to the expectations as a reliable interior blocker making the switch from tackle to guard in the NFL. Levis’ flashes were outstanding just few and far between and Spears proved to be the running back of the future as a versatile, elusive weapon out of the backfield. 

Skoronski had his growing pains, especially after having to overcome an appendectomy, but he was solid overall and finished the season strong. He’s the only O-line starter from 2023 who is locked into a starting job in 2024.

Because of the importance of his position, Levis has ignited excitement for the future of the franchise after showing he’s capable of making all of the throws.

He’s definitely got work to do to take that next step, but some of his issues can be attributed to the lackluster situation around him with a terrible O-line and a receiving corps. that struggled to get open. We’ll have a much better idea of where he stands once those issues are shored up.

Last but not least, Spears was the most consistent of the trio and has the goods to be an electric playmaker. He also checked the pass protection box, which is important for him in order to see third-down snaps. Spears should lead Tennessee’s backfield in 2024.

Tennessee didn’t get much out of their last three picks, but two of them did play sparingly, making it tough to properly evaluate, so there is hope for them yet.

Offensive tackle Jaelyn Duncan got the most run and struggled but was also thrown into a role he wasn’t ready for. Tight end Josh Whyle showed some flashes as a pass-catcher and blocker but didn’t get much playing time, and Colton Dowell only saw 51 snaps on offense, with the majority of his playing time coming on special teams. He also suffered a season-ending injury.

The Titans are facing a rebuild this offseason but have a great foundation to get going with Skoronski, Levis and Spears in the mix.

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Titans’ Brian Callahan stresses importance of giving Will Levis input

Early on in his tenure with the Titans, it’s clear Brian Callahan has the collaborative mindset Amy Adams Strunk was looking for.

For Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan and quarterback Will Levis, communication is going to be key for their relationship moving forward.

Callahan has already started building the foundation for that relationship, as he recently revealed he was in communication with Levis during the process of hiring his staff.

“I know that as a quarterback, you’re certainly not owed those explanations, or input,” Callahan said, per Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTItans.com. “But I think the best relationships with head coaches and quarterbacks are ones where they are given those opportunities to share information like that. And I thought that was important to keep Will abreast of what was happening both hiring wise, where we were at organizationally, just (because) he plays a huge role in this whole thing, too.

“And so, he needs to feel like he’s got some, at least has my ear and can come to me with anything he thinks. And then I’m able to tell him, what’s happening for us. And I think that’s important, for him to feel like he’s got some involvement, some ownership, some input to what’s happening. And again, it’s not necessarily that he’s owed that. It’s just that I think that’s the working relationship that I want to have with him. And I think for me, it’s starting that precedent was the right thing to do. I think he’s appreciated it. And it’s been really fun to start to get to know him.”

Callahan noted that the approach he plans on taking with Levis as far as taking his input with play-calling and other things will be similar to the one he and head coach Zac Taylor utilized in Cincinnati with the Bengals.

“My relationship with (Will), his relationship with me and Nick (Holz) and (QBs coach) Bo (Hardegree) is going to be really a critical factor in our success,” Callahan said. “And I wanted to make sure that he feels like he has input and ownership into that process. And we can kind of build it from there and hope that he gives me the same kind of feedback I need from him, particularly when you’re talking about plays and what you like and how you like it.”

“One of the things that made (Bengals QB) Jake Browning so unique and so helpful was that we had a great relationship and rapport where he could tell me and he could tell (Bengals HC) Zac (Taylor), ‘Hey, I don’t like this play, don’t call this, without any kind of fear of retribution or ‘no you’re going to run what I tell you,'” Callahan added. “That’s not how it’s going to work. We’re going to have an input from him, and I think it’s important that he feels that willingness from me. So, we can build a successful scheme around his skill set that he feels comfortable with.”

Since hiring general manager Ran Carthon last year, owner Amy Adams Strunk has stressed collaboration. At least from the jump, it’s clear Callahan checks that box and doing so will only help his relationship with Levis.

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Titans OC Nick Holz talks his role, coaching style, Will Levis

Titans OC Nick Holz said the opportunity to work with QB Will Levis made Tennessee an attractive destination.

With Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan set to call the plays for the offense in 2024, new offensive coordinator Nick Holz won’t have that responsibility on his plate but will stay play a big role in the offense.

The approach to offensive game-planning and play-calling will be the same as the one Callahan worked under with the Cincinnati Bengals, where head coach Zac Taylor called the plays but Callahan had a lot of input and was instrumental in the implementation of the offense in general.

“It’s a little different than maybe you’re used to around here, having an offensive head coach that’s calling the plays with an offensive coordinator by title, that doesn’t call the plays,” Callahan said, according to Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com. “But it’s a setup I’m trying to emulate from how we were set up in Cincinnati with myself and Zac Taylor. And it’s a system that I know is important, and I know that it works.”

Holz kept it simple, saying he’s “just like a regular offensive coordinator, I just won’t be calling the plays,” per Broadway Sports Media’s Easton Freeze, and he hopes to take more and more off Callahan’s plate moving forward.

“(Most) of Nick’s job is to make sure the offensive staff and the offensive players and the offensive scheme keeps running all the moments I am not available to be there, particularly during the course of the week,” Callahan said. “There’s a preparation part of it that is critically important to me.”

“You need to be yourself first. I am not going to try and be Brian. We are different people in that regard,” Holz said. “As each day goes, just seeing a few more things I can take off his plate.”

“It is really kind of an open dialogue the whole time in how we’re trying to figure stuff out, and structure it this way,” Holz added.

When it comes to his coaching style, Holz said he is not a screamer and is focused on building relationships, which he believes empowers players to better do their jobs.

“Everybody has their own management style,” Holz said. “I don’t think you’ll see me as a yeller and a screamer or anything like that. But I think if you build relationships with people, you kind of empower them to do their jobs.

“I feel like the people I have worked for, they empowered me,” he added. “As a leadership style, the same thing with the players, ‘We’re going to give you this, and you keep going and we’ll build the connection in that regard.'”

One of the things that was attractive about the Titans job was the opportunity to work with quarterback Will Levis, who Holz will have a hand in developing. Holz believes Levis checks three important boxes.

“I hadn’t really watched very much of him, but I started watching him when I was with the Jags,” Holz said, per Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. “The first thing that jumped out is the arm talent and the second thing that jumps out is the toughness. We talk about quarterbacks, the three things we’re looking for are decision-making, accuracy and toughness, and we saw all of that.”

You can check out more of what Holz had to say during the introductory presser, as well as comments from Callahan and defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson right here.

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Titans’ Will Levis lands near bottom of QB rankings

In a recent article ranking 32 starting quarterbacks, Titans signal-caller Will Levis landed near the bottom.

As high as many Tennessee Titans fans and media rightly are on quarterback Will Levis, the truth of the matter is he has some ways to go before solidifying himself as the team’s franchise quarterback.

While Levis no doubt had his flaws in Year 1, he showed flashes of having the goods to be a long-term solution under center — and those flashes are made more impressive by the fact that he had a lackluster supporting cast, with an offensive line that couldn’t block and a wide receiver corps. that couldn’t get open consistently.

With the jury still out on Levis, it comes as no surprise that he landed at No. 28 in a rankings of starting quarterbacks compiled by The 33rd Team’s Derrik Klassen. Here are his thoughts:

Will Levis has the exact profile that can and will trick teams into giving him time. 

Levis has some traits you can’t teach. For one, he has one of the league’s strongest arms. The ball absolutely jumps out of his hand. Levis is also tough as nails in the pocket, sometimes to his detriment. He is an old-school gunslinger with a penchant for chucking it deep and zero aversion to being hit. 

Levis has a lot to fix, though. He needs to clean up his footwork, speed up his clock as a passer and improve his down-to-down accuracy from terrible to average. We’ll see if new head coach Brian Callahan can make headway in those areas. 

Continuing to develop and improve his game is certainly part of the puzzle for Levis becoming a locked-in starter for years to come, but the Titans also must put him in a better position to succeed by improving the offensive line and receivers room.

Solving those two issues will truly allow us to properly evaluate Levis and give us a better idea of where he needs to improve.

But, based on what we saw out of Levis in 2023, if the Titans can indeed get better in those two areas, I’m pretty confident he’ll be fine and it won’t be long before he’s moving up lists like these.

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Will Levis talks Titans firing Mike Vrabel, hiring Brian Callahan

While down at the Super Bowl, Titans quarterback Will Levis discussed the firing of Mike Vrabel and the hiring of Brian Callahan.

Entering his second season in the NFL, Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis be playing for a new head coach after the team fired Mike Vrabel and hired Brian Callahan.

Levis admitted it was “surprising” to see Vrabel lose his job. However, he has some extra motivation after owner Amy Adams Strunk mentioned him as part of the franchise’s future plans in her statement following the move.

“It is a business, and all these decisions are made each and every year,” Levis said, per Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com. “It was surprising, and there was that limbo period of: What is going to happen with everyone else once we hired somebody? It was definitely a little uncomfortable, because we have no say in all of it. We all loved playing for coach Vrabes, but we all know Miss Amy and the front office, and the organization, has a plan for us.

“I know I am part of the plan, and for her to think of me and include me in it is really special and makes me want to work even harder.”

Despite feeling bad about the situation with Vrabel, Levis says he’s excited to work under Callahan, who has been in contact with him and keeping him in the loop about coaching staff hires.

“You could feel the excitement about the guys he is bringing in, and the guys that we are keeping on the staff,” Levis said. “It just seems like he is being very meticulous about each and every one of these decisions, and he feels really strongly that he has hit the nail on the head about the decisions made so far.”

“He has been able to work with a great amount of quarterbacks and it gets you excited when you see the track record and you see the stats and you start watching the film of how he is able to run an offense and do it really well at a high level efficiently,” Levis added. “So, I am excited to work for him and hopefully be that next guy that people mention of guys he’s had under his belt.”

While Levis has created no shortage of hype following an impressive rookie season, the Kentucky product is far from satisfied. He also noted that he’s close to being full healthy after finishing the season injured.

“Definitely not satisfied,” Levis said. “I know we had the opportunity to win a lot more games than we did, but you can’t fret about all those things, all you can do is look at the tape and do what you can to improve. For me, for one, it’s about getting healthy, which I am close to now, which is a great feeling. Having my body feel this way and as good as it has in 25 weeks or so is really cool. And, I am looking forward to just getting my athleticism back a little bit, getting my legs back, and just being able to be more of a (complete) player than I was this past year.”

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Will Levis correctly predicts flop during celebrity poker tournament

Titans QB Will Levis took part in a celebrity poker tournament and correctly predicted the flop on one hand, which is not easy to do.

Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis is a man of many talents and is having himself quite the week leading up to the Super Bowl.

First, we saw him smoke Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence in a table tennis tournament, and now we have him taking part in a poker tournament.

Not only did Levis do well, with the Kentucky product finishing sixth to net himself $2,500, but he also managed to knock out poker pro Rampage along the way.

Levis’ most impressive feat during the tournament came when he correctly predicted a 4-8-9 flop on a hand that he ultimately doubled-up on. The odds of doing so were NOT in his favor.

As we saw during the season and the table tennis tourney, Levis’ competitive nature was on full display during this tournament. This is not a guy who just plays for fun, he’s playing to win and it’s impossible not to love that about him, especially if he’s your quarterback.

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Watch: Will Levis beats Trevor Lawrence in table tennis tournament

Titans QB Will Levis beat Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence in a table tennis tournament on Wednesday.

The Tennessee Titans have notched their second win of 2024 against the Jacksonville Jaguars — well, sort of.

At the “Battle of the Paddles” table tennis tournament at Super Bowl LVIII in Nevada, Titans quarterback Will Levis squared off against Jaguars signal-caller Trevor Lawrence and beat him, 15-8.

Thanks to Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com, we have highlights from their match and they show Lawrence having a tough time handling Levis’ devastating serve.

Levis’ competitive fire on full display, with the Titans signal-caller getting animated at a few points and even smashing home some power shots on Jacksonville’s quarterback.

You can check out the highlights below.

Lawrence and Levis squared off during the 2023 campaign, with the former getting the better of the latter in Jacksonville’s 34-14 Week 11 victory over Tennessee.

However, the Ryan Tannehill-led Titans got the last laugh in Week 18, when they beat the Jags, 28-20, to stop them from making the playoffs. Levis was sidelined for the game due to injury.

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With Super Bowl in town, 2024 LIV Golf Las Vegas has loaded pro-am field

A handful of Las Vegas athletes and sports personalities are on hand at Las Vegas Country Club.

It’s Super Bowl week and the big game between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers has brought a who’s who of celebrities and athletes to Sin City, but the NFL isn’t the only show in town.

The LIV Golf League is hosting its second event of the 2024 season down the strip at Las Vegas Country Club, Feb. 8-10, and Wednesday’s pro-am features a loaded field of current and former NFL players, World Series champion MLB players, Fortune 500 executives and more. The format will see three amateurs play the front nine holes with one LIV Golf pro and the back nine with another pro. Check out who’s in the field below.

All 32 NFL QBs (including Panthers’ Bryce Young) ranked by passer rating for the 2023 regular season

32 starting QBs ranked by their 2023 passer ratings

Well, let’s just look back at this like a “Started from the bottom, now we here” meme by next year, shall we?

Here are all 32 NFL quarterbacks, including Bryce Young of the Carolina Panthers, ranked by passer rating from the 2023 season:

Peyton Manning talks Titans’ Brian and Bill Callahan, Will Levis, more

Hall of Fame QB Peyton Manning shared his thoughts on Titans head coach Brian Callahan, QB Will Levis and much more.

You’ll find few bigger fans of new Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan than Hall of Fame quarterback, Peyton Manning.

Callahan and Manning spent four years together with the Denver Broncos, which included a Super Bowl victory in 2015. Callahan served as a quality control coach and offensive assistant during his days in Denver.

Manning praised Callahan before he was even considered for the Titans gig, and he did so once again while attending the Pro Bowl Games this week.

“He’s extremely hard working, he’s smart, he’s grown up around football, he’s tough,” Manning said, per Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com. “He’s been in different coaching environments – Denver, Detroit, Cincinnati, the Raiders. So, he’s seen how it works different places, and I’m sure he’s learned some things to do, and maybe what not to do.

“He has earned this opportunity, he’s paid his dues, he’s done the grunt work. He and I used to text at 1 o’clock in the morning, he was over at the complex still, breaking film down and was not leaving any time soon. I appreciated his work ethic during my time in Denver, and that is not going to leave him ever. The Titans are getting a guy who is going to give it everything he has. It looks like he is putting together a good staff, and I’m pulling hard for him.”

Manning also touched on Brian’s dad, Bill, who is set to become the Titans’ next offensive line coach. He also stated that Derrick Henry would love working with both and that he should stay in Tennessee.

“Brian Callahan would love Derrick Henry, and vice versa,” Manning said. “There’s obviously the business side that comes into play, and that’s up for (GM) Ran Carthon and his staff to decide.

“But Brian Callahan appreciates a good running game, his dad is coming over, and his dad is the best line coach in the NFL. I know he appreciates a good back. (Tennessee) would be a great place for Derrick to continue to play, in my opinion.”

Manning revealed that he spoke with Titans general manager Ran Carthon during the head-coach interview process and feels that hiring Callahan will be great for quarterback Will Levis because Callahan, who will be calling the plays, can’t be poached by another team, which creates stability.

“But now you are looking for some continuity in the system, and the good thing about Brian – I know he is calling the plays this year – is it will be the same system the entire time, and that is so critical to a quarterback.

“That’s what I had in my career, Joe Burrow is going to have the same system as long as Zac Taylor is there (in Cincinnati), so that is a real plus for any young quarterback, and Will will benefit from that.

“It’s quarterback friendly, there’s answers on every play, and as a quarterback that is what you are looking for.”

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