Mike Vrabel is entering his first season as a head coach, having taken over the Tennessee Titans after working as an assistant for the AFC South rival Houston Texans the past four years.
Tennessee Titans quarterback Marcus Mariota is entering his fourth NFL season, but he could have more freedom in a new offense coordinated by Matt LaFleur.
NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Titans won their first playoff game in 14 years in a thrilling rally from 18 points down on the road.
Then they fired coach Mike Mularkey once the postseason run ended in an ugly rout.
Yes, expectations are very high in Tennessee, where consecutive 9-7 seasons with Marcus Mariota just didn’t cut it, not with an offense that didn’t get the most out of the young quarterback.
Now the Titans have first-year head coach Mike Vrabel with his three Super Bowl rings as a linebacker for the New England Patriots in charge of a roster that needed only a little tinkering in the offseason.
“Now we’ve just got to pick up where we left off,” linebacker Brian Orakpo said. “It’s not a rebuilding stage, we just reloaded essentially.”
This is the 20th season for this franchise since dropping the Oilers’ nickname for the Titans, and they capped that debut season with a run to their lone Super Bowl appearance – XXIV against the St. Louis Rams at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The Titans unveiled redesigned uniforms in April and are hoping for another trip to Atlanta – this time to Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which will host this season’s Super Bowl in February.
Three-time Pro Bowl tight end Delanie Walker said they have plenty of motivation from how their last playoff berth ended in a 34-14 loss to New England .
“It didn’t sit well with me,” Walker said. “I think everybody in that locker room felt the same way. I worked as hard as I could this offseason.”
Some things to know about the Titans, who open the season Sept. 9 against the Dolphins in Miami:
For so many years, Vrabel was seen as a sure winner once he became an NFL head coach.
Now the man who played 14 seasons in the league and was an assistant coach for four more will be making all the big decisions on his own. Vrabel has tried to prepare himself by watching video from games over the past decade to decide what he would do in specific situations. Everything from tossing a challenge flag to deciding whether to go for it on fourth down will be a first for Vrabel this season, with fans and critics watching closely.
“My playing career is going to help us win zero games,” Vrabel said.
The Titans already have picked up the fifth-year option on Mariota, and that $20.9 million for 2019 could prove a great deal if coordinator Matt LaFleur’s offense helps the quarterback look like the Heisman Trophy winner he was at the University of Oregon. Mariota is going to get to run and throw more in an offense the Los Angeles Rams used to lead the NFL in scoring last season. Mariota is coming off his worst year, having thrown more interceptions (15) than touchdowns (13) last season. But he enjoyed an injury rehabilitation-free offseason and looks faster playing without a knee brace.
DEFENSIVE CHANGES
Legendary coordinator Dick LeBeau is gone, replaced by another longtime success in Dean Pees. The Titans did so much right under LeBeau, ranking fourth against the run and tied for fifth in sacks. They were 17th in points allowed and 25th in yards passing given up, though, and that’s why general manager Jon Robinson signed cornerback Malcolm Butler and drafted linebackers Rashaan Evans and Harold Landry to shore up remaining holes. Robinson also replaced safety Johnathan Cyprien when he was lost to a torn ACL with another veteran in Kenny Vaccaro in training camp.
YOUNG RECEIVERS
This position easily is the biggest question for the Titans. Veteran Rishard Matthews missed the entire offseason and the preseason with an undisclosed injury. Corey Davis is expected to be the top guy; the fifth pick overall in 2017, he didn’t catch his first touchdown pass until the playoff loss in New England – against Butler, who’s now his teammate. After Davis, there are young and unproven receivers in Taywan Taylor and Tajae Sharp. That makes Walker so valuable with his 356 catches since 2013, the most by any tight end in the league during that span.
NEW BACKFIELD DUO
The Titans released veteran running back DeMarco Murray in March , and it’s now time for Derrick Henry, the 2015 Heisman Trophy winner, to show his skills after leading the team in rushing last season despite only two starts. They also signed Dion Lewis to a four-year deal to give Mariota another dangerous receiving threat and a changeup to the powerful Henry .
TOUGH START
Five of the Titans’ first eight games are on the road, including the franchise’s first trip to London, to play the Los Angeles Chargers on Oct. 21. The first month isn’t kind, with visits from the Houston Texans and the Philadelphia Eagles – the reigning Super Bowl champs – along with a trip to Jacksonville for an AFC South rivalry matchup with the Jaguars. If the Titans survive, four of their final five regular-season games are in Nashville, where they went 6-2 last season.