NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — A season of misery is finally over for the Tennessee Titans.
After losing to the Texans on Sunday, Tennessee holds the first selection in April’s NFL Draft. It marks the first time the Titans will pick first overall since 2016, and just the second time they’ve held the pick since being in Nashville.
It wasn’t long ago that the Titans were among the AFC’s elite, having made the playoffs in three straight seasons and coming just one win away from a Super Bowl appearance in 2019.
In 2021, the Titans won 12 games. Since that season, they’ve won 16 games combined.
The last time Tennessee held the No. 1 draft pick, they traded it away to the Rams, who took Jared Goff. But what do fans hope will happen this time around?
“I don’t think they’ll keep [the pick], but I do hope they take Travis Hunter. I just don’t think we’re in a place to develop a rookie quarterback,” said Kristan Parris, a Titans’ fan.
“I don’t want them to follow the hype of, oh, Coach Prime’s son! [Shedeur Sanders]. I don’t want to be that team that just falls down those rabbit holes,” detailed Titans season ticket holder, Brett Gardner, who also liked the idea of trading the pick for more draft selections in April.
The season just ended, so the decision at No. 1 is too early to decipher. Nonetheless, the top two answers News 2 heard on Monday were Travis Hunter, the Heisman Trophy winner who can play both offense and defense, or trading the pick.
“I mean, embrace the tank, right? We’re going to build pieces around a mediocre quarterback. I don’t think it’s Will [Levis)], I don’t think it’s Mason [Rudolph],” said Parris.
It was a horrendous first season for Head Coach Brian Callahan, who fans are understandably skeptical of. But there remains plenty of faith in the Titans front office, led by GM Ran Carthon
“Just from this past year, he did really well in the draft in my opinion,” said Gardner.
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“I trust Ran. That was a great GM choice that [owner] Amy [Adams Strunk] brought in,” Parris added.
Of course, the feeling isn’t all love. One season ticket holder told News 2 he misses former head coach Mike Vrabel and dislikes the direction of the team, saying “I’m not impressed with anything in the front office the past couple of seasons. It’s been a sh–show.”
“It’s another year of Tennessee sports: if you’re not used to being let down by now, I don’t really know what to tell you,” said Parris. “It’s disappointing, but it’s not surprising.”
So what’s there to look forward to in 2025, and beyond? New Nissan Stadium is taking shape, but will the product on the field match the price of admission?
“We’re paying for season tickets to put towards your team, to put towards a new stadium, take care of us too. Don’t just keep increasing our prices as we get worse,” Gardner outlined.
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“Nobody’s buying tickets now, so it’s like, as an organization, you feel like they should step back and say ‘what are we doing?’” continued Gardner.
On top of holding the No. 1 overall pick, the Titans also enter this offseason in the top 10 for projected cap space, meaning they have some money to burn to help improve their roster.
But it’s safe to say: no Titans fan expected to be in this position when the 2024 regular season first kicked off in Chicago.