TENNESSEE MOVES ON FROM VRABEL
Tennessee Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk wants a fresh approach to compete in the NFL, so she fired coach Mike Vrabel on Tuesday morning after six seasons and losing 18 of the past 24 games.
Strunk said in a statement it was a decision “as difficult as any I’ve made.”
But she said she believes teams best positioned to win must be aligned and collaborate across the board. The Titans started that shift a year ago, hiring Ran Carthon as the franchise’s first Black general manager and expanding its analytics staff. More changes were needed to “fully achieve our vision.”
Strunk said she assessed the team throughout the season in an interview released by the team. The Titans went 7-10 in 2022 and just finished a 6-11 season Sunday.
“I thought it was time to make that change,” Strunk said.
The announcement came a day after the Titans cleaned out their lockers with Vrabel not speaking to reporters. It was the first time in the franchise’s 27 seasons in Tennessee the head coach did not talk to reporters since the team moved to the state from Texas. Several Titans, from rookie quarterback Will Levis to two-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons, all said they wanted to keep Vrabel as their coach.
The Titans hired Carthon from San Francisco where he spent six seasons. The Niners have made the playoffs three straight seasons and four of five, including reaching Super Bowl 54, and currently are the NFC’s No. 1 seed.
Carthon said at a news conference Tuesday he has a couple of candidates already for his first head coaching search. The search process starts immediately.
“We have to get it right, and I’m confident that we will,” Carthon said.
Carthon dispelled speculation of friction between himself and Vrabel, saying the coach was part of every meeting on players. Carthon also said Vrabel never talked with him about wanting more control over personnel.
“We’re not going to bring players in here that the coaches don’t want to coach,” Carthon said.
The Titans now are the sixth NFL team at the moment looking for a new coach, joining Atlanta and Washington who fired coaches Monday. The Raiders, the Chargers and Panthers didn’t wait for the season to end before firing coaches.
Hired in January 2018, Vrabel went 56-48 overall, including a 2-3 record in the playoffs that included reaching the AFC championship game in the 2019 season as part of three straight playoff berths.
Notable
Giff Smith, who served as the Chargers interim coach for the final three games, and offensive coordinator Kellen Moore became the first candidates to interview for the head coaching position.
The team announced both interviews on Tuesday.
Under the new interview process approved by owners in October, any internal candidates or someone not currently employed by the NFL can interview in person.
• Mason Rudolph’s unlikely renaissance will continue into the playoffs. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said he is sticking with the former third-string quarterback ahead of a trip to AFC East champion Buffalo on Sunday. Rudolph is 3-0 as a starter since taking over for an ineffective Mitch Trubisky before a game against Cincinnati on Dec. 23. While starter Kenny Pickett has fully recovered from right ankle surgery in early December, Tomlin doesn’t want to chance derailing the rhythm Pittsburgh’s offense has found under Rudolph.
• The Dolphins signed veteran linebackers Justin Houston and Bruce Irvin
and placed three more players on injured reserve.
Houston and Irvin are expected to add depth to a linebacker group that has been decimated by injuries, as Jerome Baker, Cameron Goode and Andrew Van Ginkel have all gone down in the past week.
• Jaguars coach Doug Pederson has fired nine assistants in total, including running backs coach Bernie Parmalee.
Parmalee’s exit was announced a day after Pederson dismissed defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell
and seven of his assistants on that side of the ball.
• Browns kicker Dustin Hopkins is expected to sit out Saturday’s wild-card playoff game at Houston with a hamstring injury he sustained while chasing a kick returner in Cleveland’s win over the Texans on Dec. 24.