Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans Mike Vrabel DID NOT Endorse Tannehill, Aaron Rodgers Rumors & Rookie QB Options

Episode Date: February 10, 2023

The Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel had a big press conference earlier this week to explain all the new moves. There was one comment about Ryan Tannehill and his status in 2023 that some are taking the wrong way. Tyler breaks down the full quote and why it isn't what people think. Next, if the Titans do move on would they consider Aaron Rodgers? Rodgers to Tennessee is a hot rumor these days. Finally, if the Titans move off of Tannehill and draft a QB, what spots would they be able to move up to. Tyler goes over the list of possible trade partners.Follow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitansFollow the show on Facebook @LockedOnTitansPodSubscribe to the Locked On Titans YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/c/LockedOnTitans/videosSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!BlueNileAt Blue Nile, you can find the perfect piece of jewelry for life’s special moments—or even create the custom engagement ring of her dreams! Right now, you can save up to fifty percent at BlueNile.com.BetterHelpThis episode is brought to you by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at Betterhelp.com/LockedOn and get on your way to being your best self.LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFLBuilt BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKEDON15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.PrizePicksFirst time users can receive a 100% instant deposit match up to $100 with promo code LOCKEDON. That’s PrizePicks.com – promo code; LOCKEDONUltimate Football GMTo download the game just visit Ultimate-GM.com or look it up on the app stores. Our listeners get a 100% free boost to their franchise when using the promo LOCKEDON (ALL CAPS) in the game store.TurboTaxCome to TurboTax and don’t do your taxes. Visit TurboTax.com to learn more.FanDuelMake Every Moment More. Place your first FIVE DOLLAR bet to get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in Free Bets – win or lose! Visit Fanduel.com/LockedOn today to get startedFANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Some folks in the Titans media and some Titans fans got it all wrong. Mike Vrabel did not endorse Ryan Tannehill earlier this week. I'll explain why and more on today's edition 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. Welcome to the Locked on Titans podcast. Today's edition is brought to you by FanDuel Sportsbook,

the official sportsbook partner of the NFL. Make every moment more. Visit FanDuel.com slash locked on today to get started. Titans fans, we got a lot to discuss. Some people are taking Mike Rabel's comments the wrong way, in my opinion. He did not endorse Ryan Tannehill as the starting quarterback in 2023 during his press conference earlier this week. We'll go over the full quote and I'll explain why. And the Aaron Rodgers rumors talking about him coming to the Titans just won't die.

I'll update you guys there. And if the Titans do want to trade up and get a quarterback, who are some trade partners that they could work with? We're going to talk about all of that and more. First, I want to thank you guys for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen every day. Remember, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content on all platforms, all year round, and always for free.

Make sure you get subscribed. Stay subscribed to the Locked On Titans podcast, where it's your team every day, part of the Locked On Podcast Network. But where I want to start with you guys is this quote from Mike Vrabel, because some people have just taken this the wrong way. They're looking at the part of the quote that doesn't matter and ignoring the part of the quote that matters the most. Number one, dive into the quote here. Quote from Mike Vrabel. He was asked, what does it mean for Ryan Tannehill that Tim Kelly is now the offensive coordinator for the Titans?

Vrabel said this, quote, well, I don't think anything. I talked to Ryan. I let him know which direction we were headed, and I don't want to speak for him. He seemed excited about what we were going to do and who we were going to do it with. I'll end the quote there. That's what everyone took and they ran with that. Ryan Tannehill seemed excited about the news about Tim Kelly. I don't understand how people took that part of the quote and turned it into

Mike Vrabel gave an endorsement for Ryan Tannehill in 2023 or a soft or hard endorsement of any kind because let's continue with the quote. But again, Rand and I are evaluating the entire roster and the players that are under contract and the players that are going to be potential free agents here soon. So Ryan's in here every day and he's excited about where things are headed. So other than that, I don't know what to tell you other than being able to say, we got to get ready here to add a lot of pieces and find ways to do that. So everyone is focused on the first part of the quote where he says, I can't speak for Tannehill, but he seemed excited. And they're like, oh, Tannehill is

excited. He's going to be back in 2023. But then ignored the second half of the quote where Vrabel said, and I'll repeat, but again, Ran and I are evaluating the entire roster and the players that are under contract and the players that are going to be potential free agents here soon. He said, yeah, Ryan seemed excited, but Ran and I are still evaluating the roster. I don't know how that got misconstrued into some sort of endorsement or some sort of confirmation that Tannehill is going to be the quarterback next year. And the most telling part of the quote, in my opinion, is the end of it where he says, so other than that, I don't know what to tell you other than being able to say, we gotta get

ready here to add a lot of pieces and find a way, and find ways to do that. If the Titans are telling you they need to add a ton of pieces to the roster and find ways to add pieces to the roster, well, what are ways to add a lot of pieces to the roster when you're minus 23 million in cap? You probably need to cut a lot of players on your team.

And one of the ways to do that is to cut Ryan Tannehill and save $18 million if you cut him right away or save $27 million if you cut him as a post-June 1st designation cut. To me, everybody is making the mistake of running with the first part of the quote where all Mike Grarabel said was, I don't want to speak for Ryan Tannehill, but he seems excited. And everyone's running with that. That's not the most interesting part of Mike Vrabel's answer.

The more interesting part is when he said, but again, Ran and I are evaluating the entire roster. And when he said, we got to get ready to add a lot of pieces and find ways to do that. Mike Vrabel answered this in a professional way. He didn't come out and say, we're getting rid of Tannehill. We're keeping Tannehill because why in the world would he make a definitive statement like that when he's doing a press conference talking about changes to his coaching staff?

Just like when they asked Rand Carthon about Ryan Tannehill's status during his entry press conference, he didn't commit to anything either. He said, you know, some good things about Tannehill, but then reaffirmed, we are still in the roster evaluation process. At no point in time during this answer did Mike Vrabel give a soft, a firm endorsement of Ryan Tannehill in any way. If you want to take something from Mike Vrabel's answer, logically, you would take the opposite.

If you read through this entire quote, I would think that it leans to the Titans cutting Ryan Tannehill this offseason. Now, I think that Ryan Tannehill stays the quarterback for the Titans. But all I'm saying is, anybody out there, fans, media, and I've seen a ton, hundreds of tweets from different people saying that this quote from Mike Vrabel was an endorsement of Ryan Tannehill. And I just don't know how you could possibly take from that. I don't want to speak for him, but he seemed excited.

And have that outweigh the, but again, Ran and I are evaluating the entire roster and we got to get ready here to add a lot of pieces and find ways to do that. The two quotes at the end are far more substantial than the quote at the beginning saying he seems excited. So I just don't understand how fans and media members have misconstrued this quote so bad

that they think it's an endorsement of Ryan Tannehill. Because I'm not saying it's Mike Vrabel telling us he's cutting bait with Ryan Tannehill, but it surely, surely is not an endorsement of Tannehill as the starting quarterback in 2023. But with that in mind, we do need to look at what if the Titans do cut Ryan Tannehill, move away from Ryan Tannehill, what are their quarterback options for 2023?

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slash locked on to claim your no sweat first bet on Super Bowl 57. That's FanDuel.com slash locked on. Make every moment more with FanDuel, the official sportsbook partner of the NFL. Titans fans, we are going to continue today's show. We just talked about that quote Mike Vrabel had about Ryan Tannehill's reaction to Tim Kelly's hiring or promotion as the offensive coordinator and why a ton of people, media and fans alike, have totally misconstrued it. If you read through the entire quote, which I did,

it's obvious that it's nowhere near some sort of confirmation or endorsement of Tannehill as the quarterback in 2023. So we have to let ourselves go down the logic path here. And if the Titans do cut bait with Ryan Tannehill, what options would they have at quarterback? And guys, I would be remiss if I didn't talk about the Aaron Rodgers rumors. So last week, Aaron Rodgers went on the Pat McAfee show. He talked about an experience he had with Mike Vrabel

where they were playing golf together. And Vrabel is a complete savage, ladies and gentlemen. And I mean that in the best way possible. He said Mike Vrabel got done golfing, was throwing a pack of cigarettes away, had four dip pouches in his mouth, was lighting up or hitting a vape pen, a tobacco vape pen or whatever. I don't smoke, so maybe I'm not using the right terms.

But it's obvious that Aaron Rodgers has a mutual level of respect for Mike Rabel. And you also have to point out that Aaron Rodgers does own land in a house in Nashville. It's pretty obvious that Aaron Rodgers and the Packers are on the outs and most people believe that Aaron Rodgers will be traded. Now, I'm not going to sit up here and tell you guys that Aaron Rodgers to the Titans is likely. I'm not going to sit up here and tell you that the Titans are the favorites to get Aaron Rodgers. If you ask me my real opinion, I do think Ryan Tannehill is the quarterback of the Titans in 2023.

But as the drum starts to beat louder, we can't ignore it here. The three teams that are really in the discussion for Aaron Rodgers are the Las Vegas Raiders, which probably make the most sense, the New York Jets, and then, of course, the Tennessee Titans. And recently, in the media,

you've seen some people talk about how the Titans would be a great fit for Aaron Rodgers. And the only real drawback that people think about is would he get along with Mike Vrabel? Well, you can have your own opinion on that, but all I know is Mike Vrabel is a football guy and if there's anybody who has

a personality to deal with Aaron Rodgers, it's Mike Vrabel who's no nonsense. So, again, I'm not telling you guys that the Titans are going to get Aaron Rodgers. All I'm saying is a lot of people have been discussing it. And there is, like we talked about a couple of weeks ago,

when we looked at the veteran quarterback options for the Titans, I said then that anybody telling you that financially it can't work, they just don't know what they're talking about. I don't know how else to say it. So, if the Titans cut Ryan Tannehill and they designated him as a post-June 1st cut, they would get $27 million in cap space after June 1st. in cap space after June 1st.

If the Green Bay Packers trade Aaron Rodgers after June 1st, their dead cap goes way down and is way less punitive. And it's actually logical that the Packers could trade Aaron Rodgers after June 1st. It would not be as financially detrimental to them as it would be if they did it before June the 1st. And that's why there's some logic there. If the Titans were to trade for Aaron Rodgers after June the 1st and cut Ryan Tannehill as a post-June 1st designation, Rodgers' cap hit in 2023 is only $15 million.

They get $27 million in cap with Ryan Tannehill's release if it's after June the 1st. So if the Titans and the Packers were to agree on a trade for Aaron Rodgers and both of them agreed that they would not complete that trade

until after June the 1st. The Titans would have twice as much money as they need to fit Rodgers into the salary cap. And they would save buku bucks and have enough to sign their draft class and bring in Rodgers. I'm not saying it's going to happen. All I'm telling you is it is logically possible.

Okay? Rodgers would be $15 million on the cap in 2023. Ryan Tannehill is $36. Rodgers would be $32 million on the cap in 2024. That's still less than what the Titans paid for Tannehill last season and if they keep him this season. So you're telling me that you're going to get Aaron Rodgers cheaper than Ryan Tannehill

and save money from cutting bait with Ryan Tannehill? If it took place after June the 1st, I mean, it would make a lot of sense. Again, I'm not sitting here telling you guys it's going to happen. But what I'm telling you is, it's possible. It is possible. Now, after the 2024 season, things get a little dicey. Rodgers' cap hit is $51 million, $45 million.

But Rodgers himself already said this offseason that when he goes to a new team, if he goes to a new team, he would be willing to rework the contract. if he goes to a new team, he would be willing to rework the contract. So, I'm just saying that it would take a little bit of finessing to be able to do it,

but there is a path here where the Titans and Packers agree on a trade in February. The Titans cut Ryan Tannehill as a post-June 1st designation, meaning they save $27 million on June 2nd. And then they bring in Rodgers

for $15 million against the cap. I mean, they could even restructure Aaron Rodgers' deal to give him more money in 2023. Say they give him an extra $10, $15 million. He's still $6 million, $8 million cheaper than Tannehill. So the drum is beating louder and louder and louder. Rodgers to the Titans could make some serious sense.

And back to the point I made in the first segment, Mike Vrabel did not give any sort of endorsement or commitment to Ryan Tannehill as the quarterback based on this quote that everybody's running with. They're ignoring the back half of the quote, which actually would lead you to believe the opposite. So just wanted to outline that for you guys. Again, I think Tannehill ends up being the

quarterback in 2023, but it is not, it is not impossible for the Titans to make a move for Aaron Rodgers. And look, if you hate the idea of Aaron Rodgers, you don't want anything to do with Aaron Rodgers. Well, I'm here to tell you that there are a lot of options for the Titans to jump up and get a rookie quarterback if they want to save that much money on Ryan Tannehill as well. So we're going to talk about potential trade partners for the Titans in just a moment. Before we do, I want to let you know that today's episode is brought to you by TurboTax. Go to TurboTax and don't do your taxes. Meet with an expert who will do them for you.

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Come to TurboTax and don't do your taxes. Visit TurboTax.com to learn more. Intuit TurboTax, full service products only, video meeting with expert while they do your taxes is required. See guaranteed details at TurboTax.com slash guarantees. Titans fans, we are going to cap off today's show talking about the other option that the Titans would have

if they decided to cut Ryan Tannehill and move on at quarterback. Before we get into that, I want to thank you guys again for making the Locked On Titans podcast your first listen every day, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content all year round on every platform, YouTube, your favorite podcast platform, and always for free. Make sure you get subscribed, stay subscribed. As for your second listen, check out the Locked On NFL podcast. You get all your Titans news here with me Monday through Friday

for free on all platforms. Get all your national NFL news with the Locked On NFL podcast. It is also Monday through Friday, free, year-round, on all platforms. There is no better pairing to start your day or start your evening than the Locked On Titans podcast and the Locked On NFL podcast. But with that being said, we've talked about Mike Vrabel's comment or start your evening than the Locked on Titans podcast and the Locked on NFL podcast. But with that being said, we've talked about Mike Vrabel's comment about Ryan Tannehill and how it was totally misconstrued by so many people online

to be some sort of endorsement for Tannehill that it certainly wasn't. We talked about the Aaron Rodgers to Tennessee Titans possibility and why it is logical and why it is possible at that. But if you're somebody who doesn't want anything to do with Rodgers, and I'm seeing some people in the chat right now. I saw somebody say they didn't want to go the Colts route. Well, Aaron Rodgers is a far better quarterback

than anybody the Colts brought in. They brought in Phillip Rivers, Matt Ryan. Aaron Rodgers won back-to-back MVPs just one season ago. So I don't agree with that comparison, but hey, I get it. If you don't want to go that route, and you would rather go with a young quarterback, well, there are a lot of opportunities for the Titans to jump up and get their guy. Number one.

Literally, number one. The first pick overall. We talked about that rumor at the beginning of the week that the Titans may be interested in trading up to the number one overall pick. I don't really agree with that. I think Rand Carthon is just trying to inflate the price because he knows the Texans or the Colts are probably going to be the team to jump up there and do that. I think Rand Carthon is just trying to inflate the price because he knows the Texans or the Colts are probably going to be the team to jump up there and do that. But if the Titans do feel very strongly about one of the quarterbacks, then yeah, they could trade up to number one with the Bears. I don't think that's going to happen. A lot of draft people think that Bryce Young and Will Levis

are going to end up being the first two quarterbacks off the board. I think Indy trades up to number one. I think that Jim Irsay is desperate to get a young quarterback after going through some veteran quarterbacks. I think Indy trades up to number one. And they may take Will Levis or Bryce Young. I think that the Texans would take Bryce Young if he was there.

Yeah, Andre I see a Colts trading up to one for Levis. There's a lot of buzz about that. Levis may remind them at least physically, not talent-wise or prospect-wise, but at least physically, Levis may remind them at least physically, not talent-wise or prospect-wise, but at least physically, Levis may remind them of Andrew Luck. So, I could see the Colts trading up to number one to take Levis. I could. I could see the Texans at

that moment in time taking Bryce Young. If that happens, the Arizona Cardinals are sitting at number three. Monty Austin for it. A former Tennessee Titans executive is now their general manager. I could easily see the Titans trading up to number three with Arizona

and drafting C.J. Stroud or drafting Bryce Young or drafting Will Levis. You guys all have your own quarterbacks who you like and who you don't like. So just imagine, just imagine that I'm saying the Titans could trade up to number three

and take the quarterback you like. That would be possible. And again, the Monty Austin-Fort connection. There's a logical path and relationship there to getting that done. If two quarterbacks go off the board early, Arizona and the Bears, who have dropped back to number four in this scenario,

take defensive players. Well, now Seattle is sitting at number five. All of the indications are they're going to re-up with Geno Smith. They're not going to need a quarterback. Seattle would love to trade back and allow the Titans to come up to number five. That is a logical possibility. And it's going to be a lot cheaper than trading for the first pick.

A lot cheaper. Not only that, but keep going down the line. Number six, the Detroit Lions. Number eight, the Atlanta Falcons, who again, there is a relationship there between the organizations. The Titans have a ton of dance partners available if they want to trade up and get a quarterback.

So, here's all I'm telling you. Yes, I think that at the end of the day, Ryan Tannehill is back with the Titans as the quarterback. But, but, even if the Titans have to trade picks to get up to the spot where they need to to take a quarterback? What would you rather have? Would you rather have a rookie quarterback and a little bit less draft picks and 18 or

$27 million extra in cap space? Or would you rather sit at pick 11 and pay Ryan Tannehill 36 million dollars against the cap to play quarterback this year? That's your avenues. Don't think about it as just the draft or just cutting Tannehill. Do you want 27 million dollars extra in cap space and a

rookie quarterback with a few less draft picks? Or do you want the draft picks that you have now and pay Tannehill $36 million on the cap? Which avenue do you think makes more sense? To me, I would rather have the rookie quarterback some less draft picks and save that $18 to $27 million in cap than pay Tannehill $36 million against the cap again and stick at number 11 and have your full complement of picks. That is the paths.

Those are the paths that you have to choose between. So, I'll let you guys make your own decision, but I know which route sounds more appetizing to me. I'd rather have the rookie quarterback, $18 million to $27 million in cap space from cutting Tannehill, and a couple less draft picks. In terms of asset management, seems a lot smarter to me.

But that's going to do it for me today, folks. Thank you all so much for tuning in. I am your host, Tyler Rowland, and this was Locked on Titans. Thanks for watching!