Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Former Coach Calls Out Titans, Titans First Round Reach & Vrabel Talks AJ Brown Trade

Episode Date: April 7, 2022

The Tennessee Titans were in the news on Thursday for all the wrong reasons. Former Titans defensive coordinator Ray Horton joined the racial discrimination lawsuit started by former Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores and in the process accused the Titans of improper hiring procedures in 2016. Horton's allegations were supported by former Titans coach Mike Mularkey based on comments Mularkey made in 2020. What did Horton say? What did Mularkey say? What does this all mean? Tyler navigates the murky waters. Then, two draft experts who typically have a good read on the Titans are both forecasting a particular prospect to them in the first round. Who is it and would it be a good fit? Tyler goes over the information. Finally, Mike Vrabel shared his thoughts on the AJ Brown trade rumors and it went about how you would expect. Tyler reviews the comment and also looks at interesting developments in the wide receiver contract market.Follow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitansFollow the show on Facebook @LockedOnTitansPodSubscribe to the Locked On Titans YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/c/LockedOnTitansSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineBetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts!Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you.Athletic GreensTo make it easy, Athletic Greens is going to give you a FREE 1 year supply of immune-supporting Vitamin D AND 5 FREE travel packs with your first purchase. All you have to do is visit athleticgreens.com/NFLNETWORK. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the Locked on Titans podcast. I am your host, Tyler Rowland. Titans fans, it is a Friday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. And on today's show, we have to go over Thursday's headlines and the Tennessee Titans were in the news for all the wrong reasons. They were accused of improper hiring practices by two former coaches. I'll tell you what's going on, what we know, and what the Titans had to say about these

accusations. Then we'll talk about two draft experts and what prospect they are pegging to the Tennessee Titans in the first round. And it's two experts that have had a good read on the Titans historically. Finally, we'll talk about the wide receiver market. Mike Vrabel had something to say about these A.J. Brown trade rumors on Thursday. I'll tell you the wide receiver market. Mike Vrabel had something to say about these A.J. Brown trade rumors on Thursday. I'll tell you what his comments were.

So a packed episode on a Friday of the Locked On Titans podcast. Let's get it. You are Locked On Titans, your daily Tennessee Titans podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Titans fans, it is a Friday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. We're going to dive into this big news story surrounding the Tennessee Titans before we do. Got to thank you guys for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen every day.

If this is your first ever listen to the Locked on Titans podcast, make sure you subscribe on whatever platform you do stream. You're going to find the Locked on Titans Podcast everywhere and always free. That includes the Locked on Titans YouTube channel. Subscribe over there as well. Smash that notification bell so you know when all the shows go up and throw a thumbs up

on the video. If you're watching on YouTube right now, make sure that you follow me on Twitter at TicTacTitans. Follow the Facebook page at Locked onTitansPod. I am going to be putting out daily Monday through Friday Tennessee Titans content all year long. But with all that being said, we do have to get into the latest news. And it's a difficult topic to discuss things outside of football itself.

And you guys know that my focus is always on football. But these are big news stories surrounding the Tennessee Titans. They must be covered and we need to dive into them. And to kind of lay a base down for you, as most of you know who follow the NFL, and if you don't, this is an update for you. The former coach of the Miami Dolphins, Brian Flores, who was let go after the 2021 season, has filed a lawsuit against the NFL, basically going after racial discrimination in the hiring process and while he was on the job in Miami. And a lot of the things surrounding his situation with the Dolphins are very ridiculous and very peculiar if they do turn out to be true.

So it's definitely something to watch. But he had a couple of coaches join him in that lawsuit, hopes to make it a class action lawsuit against the NFL. And both the coaches were alleging some racial discrimination in the hiring process. Well, one of those coaches was former Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Ray Horton, who was the defensive coordinator for the Titans in the 2014 and 2015 season, basically with Ken Wisenhunt. He interviewed with the Tennessee Titans for the big chair for the head coaching job for the 2016 season. Ultimately, the Titans decided to keep then interim head coach Mike Malarkey from the 2015 season on for 2016.

Ultimately, he led the Titans to their first playoff victory in nearly a decade and then was subsequently fired. And then Mike Vrabel replaced him, a decision that turned out to be the right decision to get away from Mike Malarkey because he wouldn't fire Terry Robiskey as the offensive coordinator. But it's widely known that after that, Mike Malarkey had a bad taste in his mouth with the Titans. He was a bit bitter, a bit vengeful. He said this himself. And all of that basically comes into play into this news story.

So Ray Horton basically says that the Titans discriminated him racially. They gave him a sham interview. They had intentions and had already hired Mike Malarkey for the head coaching job, but they gave him an interview just to satisfy the Rooney rule, which, if you're not aware, is a rule that requires NFL teams to interview minority candidates for their head coaching position. And those things are getting expanded throughout the years.

But at the time, in 2016, that was the basis of the rule is you have to interview minority candidates for an open head coaching position. And what Ray Horton is saying is along with Brian Flores, he was racially discriminated against. And the Titans interviewed him just to check the box of the Rooney rule, knowing very well that they had already decided that Mike Malarkey would be their head coach. And this is basically the official complaint of Ray Horton

from the attorneys involved in the lawsuit. It says this, Mr. Flores and Mr. Wilks, Steve Wilks, another NFL coach who was joined in with former coach Horton and Brian Flores in this lawsuit. It says Mr. Flores and Mr. Wilks are joined by Mr coach Horton and Brian Flores in this lawsuit. It says, Mr. Flores and Mr. Wilks are joined by Mr. Horton. Mr. Horton was a longtime NFL coach and defensive coordinator when he was interviewed for the Tennessee Titans head coach position in January 2016.

This turned out to be a completely sham interview done only to comply with the Rooney rule and to demonstrate an appearance of equal opportunity and a false willingness to consider a minority candidate for the position. Indeed, the Titans all-white ownership and management ultimately hired Mike Malarkey, a white candidate, for the head coach position. Years later in 2020, Mr. Malarkey admitted in a podcast interview that the Titans, quote, told me I'm going to be the head coach in 2016 before they went through with the Rooney rule. And so I sat there knowing I was the head coach in 2016 as they went through this fake hiring process, knowing, knowing a lot of the coaches that they were interviewing, knowing

how much they prepared to go through these interviews, knowing that everything they could do and they had no chance to get that job. The allegations, end quote, the allegations pertaining specifically to Mr. Horton are located in a certain part of the legal documents. The podcast can be located at, and there's a YouTube link provided, although the YouTube link provided goes to an unknown source, so I'm sure that podcast is on record somewhere, but not the link that was provided. That is the official statement. Uh, what did

Mike Malarkey exactly say in that interview? Well, this is basically the full quote, uh, quote, this is Mike Malarkey on a podcast in 2020 quote, I've always prided myself on doing the right thing in this business. And I can't say that's true about everybody in this business. It's very cutthroat business, and a lot of guys will tell you that. I allowed myself at one point when I was in Tennessee to get caught up in something I regret, and I still regret it. But the ownership there, Amy Adams Strunk and her family came in and told me I was going to be the head coach in 2016 before they went through the Rooney rule. And so I sat there knowing I was head coach in 16 as they went through this fake hiring process, knowing a lot of the coaches they were interviewing, knowing how much they prepared

to go through these interviews, knowing that everything they could do and they had no chance at getting that job. Actually, the GM, John Robinson, he was in on the interview with me. He had no idea why he was interviewing me that I had the job already. I regret, I'm sorry. I did that. It was not the way to go about it.

And just to make sure that I'm covering all the bases here, this is Ray Horton's comment about all of this. Ray Horton says, quote, I am proud to stand with coach Flores and coach Wilks and combating the systemic discrimination, which has plagued the NFL for far too long. When I learned from Coach Malarkey's statements

that my head coach interview with the Titans was a sham, I was devastated and humiliated. By joining this case, I am hoping to turn that experience into a positive and make lasting change and create true equal opportunity in the future. Well, here is what the Titans had to say in response. Quote, our 2016 head coach search was a thoughtful and competitive process fully in keeping with

NFL guidelines and our own organizational values. We conducted detailed in-person interviews with four talented individuals, two of whom were diverse candidates. No decision was made and no decision was communicated prior to the completion of all interviews. While we are proud of our commitment to diversity, we are dedicated to continued growth as an organization to foster diversity and inclusion in our workplace and community. So that is all the official things that need to be read. You clearly see how each party in the situation feels. As for me, as a fan of the Tennessee Titans in 2016,

everyone knew that the interview process was a sham, not only for the two minority candidates, but for the other white candidate as well, because everyone knew Mike Malarkey was getting the job after earning it at the end of the 2015 season. However, however, it is a mockery to the process to conduct interviews when people don't have a real opportunity to get it. A couple of things that I know for certain.

Number one, that interview process was a sham. I don't think it was for race reasons. I think it was because they wanted Mike Malarkey. Can I say it wasn't for race reasons? I can't. So just my feeling from being alive and existing while it was going on. Number two, minorities don't get enough opportunities, especially in the NFL, and that's reflected by the NFL head coaching numbers. But that's not a problem that's just limited to the NFL. That's a problem elsewhere. Number three, the final thing that I know for certain is the Rooney rule is flawed

and a lot of the problems that the NFL gets into with these situations are because of a flawed rule that forces people to interview people who they may not want, but the sad part about it is that a rule is even needed because we see from the numbers right now that even when teams are coerced and forced to interview minority candidates, they're still not given the proper amount of opportunities. Some people may disagree with my assessment on that,

and that's perfectly fine. All we can do is go off what we believe, and all I can say with this platform is what I believe to be right and true. If you disagree, that's fine, and that's why we don't talk about a lot of these type things unless they get into sports, because everyone has a strong opinion and disagrees. But all I know is what I know. And those are the three things that I know. The 2016 interview process was a sham for everyone. Minority candidates don't get enough opportunities in the NFL and in life. And the Rooney rule creates problems and doesn't really fix the problem.

and the Rooney rule creates problems and doesn't really fix the problem. So, how to fix it? I don't have those answers, unfortunately. I wish that I did. But those are the things I know. Those are the, I guess, the bullet points of what's going on right now. Can Mike Malarkey or Ray Horton prove

that the Titans told Mike Malarkey that unless there's a paper trail? No. So will this stand up in court? I don't know. I'm not a lawyer. But right now, without definitive proof and just Mike Malarkey's,

I guess, recollection, I don't know that the Titans can be proved of any wrongdoing. And it'd probably be a full-on NFL matter with it being the lawsuit of the gravity that it is. But either way, whether they're proven wrong in court,

whether the NFL is proven wrong, whether they win the lawsuit, whatever, it does kind of seem like the Titans threw up a sham of an interview process. It felt like that when it was happening. And it still feels like that now. Yeah, Mike Malarkey probably has sour grapes against the organization,

and that's why he would go out and say what happened anyways. But, I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. Does it mean the Titans are racist and Amy Adams drunk and the Ori-

I don't know. I can't answer any of those questions. Either way, the brass tacks here, the fact of the matter is, it's a terrible look for the Titans PR-wise. And even if, you know, it can't be proven, it's something that people will bring up. So, it's just unfortunate news.

My overall take on the entire situation, all of it, it's just it's incredibly unfortunate that these things happen or that anything is the way that it is. You know, life is just crazy. But anyways, we're going off the rails here. That's all the facts of the story.

Facts are, you know, that's all the news that you guys need to know. We're going to move forward here. We're going to talk about some football got some mock drafts to look at and two draft experts are I guess attaching a certain prospect

to the Titans in the first round that I can't say that I agree with but before we get into that do want to tell you guys about betonline.net the masters is here make sure you place your bets at betonline.net. The Masters is here. Make sure you place your bets at BetOnline.net. They're your number one source for all your betting needs and sports

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Titans fans, let's continue this Friday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. We talked about the big news story. My apologies. I ran long on that one. And as a lot of you guys know, who've been listening to the show for quite some time, you know, when these controversial topics and these you know sensitive issues come up I just don't know

exactly how to you know always navigate the news is the news and I can't just not go over stories that paint the titans in a negative light that would be irresponsible of me but also these are ongoing legal proceedings I don't have all of the information. I'm not qualified to have all the information. So I just try to give you

guys the best information that I possibly can, give you my general feelings on it of how I just feel from what we know and go from there. So certainly, a lot of people will feel a lot of different ways, but that's the news. So if anything else pops up with that, we'll cover it for now. It looks like in the draft, the wide receivers, the top five could all be off the board. Talking Wilson, London, Olave, Williams, Burks could all be off the board there's a chance all the offensive tackles

that are worthy of a first round pick the top four stopping with cross and penning they could all be off the board there is a chance that the Titans interior offensive line options are all off the board. Green, Linderbaum, Zion Johnson.

I mean, there is a realistic world where all the offensive linemen go in the first 12, all the wide receivers go before pick 24, and the offensive linemen go in the 20s before the Titans pick. I mean, it's not the most likely outcome, but it's possible. So what happens if all those interior offensive linemen, the wide receivers, the tackles, what if they're all gone?

What would the Titans do then? Well, to me, that would indicate that the quarterbacks fell down and dropped, so the Titans could pick up a Matt Corral or a Desmond Ritter, maybe a Sam Howe. I know some of you guys like that guy. Definitely not Carson Strong. Yeah, I'm talking to you, Mike. Carson Strong.

I'm out on that. Degenerative knee issue and a quarterback with zero mobility. I'm out. But anyways, would the Titans, for the second time in three years, reach on a borderline first-round offensive tackle? Well, two draft experts that know the Titans pretty well

are starting to mock this player to the Titans. That's Charles Smith who works for the NFL and does the Titans preseason games when they're at home. And Tony Pauline who works for Pro Football Network.

Now the other guy that has a good read on the Titans is Matt Miller. Works for ESPN, now works for himself. But I haven't seen a mock from him recently, an updated one, but we'll go over it when it happens. He seems to have people inside the Titans organization. But either way, the player is Tulsa offensive tackle Tyler Smith.

Now, despite having a fantastic first name, Smith isn't a first-round prospect to me. It's like Isaiah Wilson 2.0. A run-blocking, road-grading, tough, tenacious, nasty guy at tackle who's incredibly raw with technique, who isn't a very good pass blocker, who's a young guy. I just don't know, guys.

I would rather have the quarterback. Charles Smith mocked Tyler Smith to Charles Davis. Sorry, not Charles Smith. There's too many Smiths going on. Charles Davis mocked Tyler Smith to the Titans, and here's what he had to say about the pick. Quote, a road grader who totally fits the Titans' scheme and attitude on

offense, Tennessee continues to seek players who help make Derrick Henry the best running back in the NFL. When healthy, Smith could be an immediate starter at guard or tackle. Guys. I mean, it's just Isaiah Wilson all over again. I can't take it. I can't take it. I can't take it. Trade back. If they want Tyler Smith that bad,

they have to trade back. If not, you've got to take something. I would rather reach on wide receiver. I mean, I would rather, this is the reality, I would rather trade up to get Trevor Penning in the mid-teens than I would take Smith.

And here's what Tony Pauline had to say. This wasn't even in a mock draft. This was just some insight, intel on the draft. Quote, The team to watch for Smith... Oh, that's how it's written. It's not just me. The team to watch for Smith,

watch for with Smith, is Tennessee at pick number 26? Smith would be an upgrade at right tackle over 2021 second round pick Dylan Radins, a natural guard. As previously reported, Smith long established himself as the fifth tackle in this year's class, and some feel he could start his career at offensive guard and then kick out to tackle. I don't want another guy who we don't know what position he's supposed to play. Another guy who's incredibly raw with technique. I mean,

I'm frustrated. I am out on Tyler Smith at 26. I'll be incredibly frustrated if that's the direction the Titans go. I'm not even against taking tackle. Take a tackle, but if you're going to do that, trade back. Take one in the third round. Trade up. Get Trevor Penning. Tyler Smith at 26 would be an abomination. So, with Charles Davis and Tony Pauline both pointing the arrow that direction, it just makes me incredibly nervous, is all I can say about that. Charles Davis and Tony Pauline both pointing the arrow that direction.

It just makes me incredibly nervous is all I can say about that. But we're going to move forward. Mike Rabel had some comments on the A.J. Brown trade rumors. We also got some important wide receiver news as well that I want to go over. So before we get into that, I want to tell you guys about the best tasting protein bars in the galaxy from our friends over at Built Bar. They give you the best of both worlds with Built Bar. You get delicious taste and the health benefits of every protein bar that you would want. They're not chalky and waxy and hard to choke down like most protein bars, though.

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You're going to get 15% off your order. Once again, that's promo code LOCKED15 for 15% off at built.com. Alright Titans fans, let's cap off this Friday edition of the Locked On Titans podcast. We talked about the Ray Horton story, talked about two experts, draft experts pegging one prospect

with the Titans. Now I want to go over, I had to put this in here. I know I said I wouldn't talk about the AJ rumors anymore, but I had to put in Mike Vrabel's comment about the AJ Brown trade rumors because it's just so fantastic. And if you were somebody who refused

to listen to Diana Rossini's report, well, maybe this will do it for you. Talking to you, Jets fans. Mike Vrabel went on the Rich Eisen show on Thursday, and he was asked by Rich, quote,

is A.J. Brown on the trade block? Mike Vrabel's response, quote, not as long as I'm the head coach. A.J. Brown's not getting traded. It just was always silly. It was always dumb. But it's nice.

It's obvious John Robinson was like, hey, Diana, run this. And then Mike Vrabel was like hey Diana run this and then Mike Vrabel was like hey Rich ask me about this they wanted to publicly be out front here and be like AJ we love you we're not trading you not even close not even for a second they're making

sure that they don't lose the trust of AJ Brown period and they're going to give him a long term extension this off season and all will be well okay a wide receiver like AJ Brown who's expecting to get paid soon in this offseason, and all will be well. Okay? A wide receiver like A.J. Brown, who's expecting to get paid soon, is Debo Samuel.

And his situation with San Francisco is... not as quaint, to put it lightly. On Thursday, and however much stock you want to put in this, that's fine, but on Thursday, and however much stock you want to put in this, that's fine. But on Thursday, Debo Samuel took everything related to the San Francisco 49ers off his Instagram. And listen, I know that what kind of world are we living in here? It's 2022. You know, we got these young players using social media to send messages, but it's just what it is. He's clearly unhappy.

It's a strange thing to do. So, the fact that he would just absolutely scrub all the same, he deleted 80 posts, took San Francisco out of his Instagram bio, I mean, it's gotta mean something, right?

So, I just wanted to juxtapose what's going on with Debo Samuel right now and then how the Titans front office is coming out and being profusely saying we're not trading A.J. Brown. So I just love that the Titans are handling that the way that they are. The other thing I wanted to point out here is that Stephon Diggs got a big, huge extension with the Bills for years.

$91 million. Up to $106 million, I think. But either way, his average per year now is $26 million. He got $70 million guaranteed. And what did I say when we broke down AJ's contract? I think AJ should be about 24 million

and 60 million guaranteed. Stephon Diggs is a better player than A.J. Brown and has been more productive. So, again, the top tier of guys, Diggs, Hopkins, Adams, Tyreek, that's my top four wide receivers in the NFL. I didn't know Hopkins had a down year because of injury last year, but I still believe in Nuke.

So, A.J. Brown's not in that elite tier wide receiver. He's knocking on the door. So, he should be paid. Not like an elite receiver, like he's knocking on the door at $24 million. And, also worth pointing out here that we got some updated contract market values from SpotTrack.

And it had AJ Brown at four years, $91 million, which is about $22.75 million, about $23 million. So right around now, he's got DK Metcalf and Terry McLaurin getting $97 million over four years. That's the $24 million.

Okay, no. Terry McLaurin is not going to get paid $6 million more than A.J. Brown. I just don't believe that. I think A.J. Brown is going to get paid that $97, $98 million on four years. So we'll watch. We'll see what happens. But just some interesting news in the wide receiver market, which continues to be one of the biggest news items

and one of the biggest trends to follow over the NFL offseason. But that's going to do it for me today, folks. Next week is going to be a big scouting week. We're going to hit pretty much all the rest of the positions on the offense. Wide receiver, tight end, running back, offensive tackle, interior offensive line. I can't wait to dive into all of it with you guys.

That's going to do it for me today though, folks. As always, I am your host Tyler Rowland and this was Locked on Titans.