USA TODAY International Edition
Tannehill off the mark on mentorship stance
Ryan Tannehill raised eyebrows this week when discussing the new dynamic within the Tennessee Titans quarterback room following the selection of talented Liberty product Malik Willis in the third round of the NFL draft.
Tannehill, who has helped lead the Titans to the postseason in each of the last three seasons, didn’t know the move was coming. He acknowledged that team officials look to improve the roster every year and, regardless, he has a job to do. Asked about the obvious fact Willis essentially is coming for said job, he offered an equally obvious retort.
“That’s part of being in a quarterback room,” the 33- year- old said. “We’re competing against each other. We’re watching the same tape. We’re doing the same drills. I don’t think it’s my job to mentor him, but if he learns from me along the way, then that’s a great thing.”
Tannehill didn’t make his statement with a hint of malicious intent, but even so, his answer sparked a debate over whether he had erred by not eagerly pledging his services to Willis or whether he was well within his rights to focus solely on maintaining and doing his job.
Tannehill is no villain because of the stance that he took. His duties do not include molding and sharpening Willis in preparation for the day that the Titans deem the dual- threat prospect worthy of taking over as starter.
However, if Tannehill views himself as Tennessee’s unquestioned leader and desires maximum success both for the team and himself, he should rethink his viewpoint. He’ll realize that it’s absolutely possible – and beneficial to all parties involved – for him to simultaneously operate as a fierce competitor, leading man and mentor to Willis.
Tannehill certainly is not the first quarterback to call “not it” when asked about mentoring the shiny new toy.
When the Baltimore Ravens drafted Lamar Jackson in 2018, Joe Flacco left the mentoring to Robert Griffin III. The next year after signing with the Denver Broncos, Flacco said, “I’m here to win games, not be a mentor,” when asked about his relationship with Drew Lock.
Case Keenum shared similar thoughts in 2019 when he went to Washington, where Dwayne Haskins was trying to learn the ropes.
Brett Favre once said, “My contract doesn’t say I have to get Aaron Rodgers ready to play.” Years later, the Hall of Famer maintained Rodgers didn’t owe it to anyone to mentor Jordan Love.
And, of course, Joe Montana and eventual successor Steve Young maintained an icy relationship.
Basically, very few quarterbacks have the warm and fuzzies about their heir apparent – especially when, like Tannehill, they believe they have plenty left in the tank.
But the true mark of maturity and leadership involves the ability to stave off those demons of insecurity while maintaining a belief in oneself and remaining mindful that the team is bigger than any single player.
Just ask Kurt Warner – Super Bowl champion, two- time NFL MVP and a Hall of Famer. Warner knows a thing or two about the situation in which Tannehill finds himself. With the St. Louis Rams, Warner had Marc Bulger nipping at his heels. With the New York Giants, Eli Manning was set to seize the starting role at some point. In Arizona, he staved off Matt Leinart.
But Warner managed to do so while still viewing himself as the best man for the job of starting quarterback and the ideal role as mentor to his backups.
“It’s all about your mindset and how you go into it,” Warner told USA TODAY Sports. “I hear all the time, ‘ My job is to win.’ Or, ‘ I’m fighting for my job against this guy.’ For me, I never looked at it that way. I looked at it from the standpoint that your job is all encompassing, and it’s to do whatever you can to make your team better. It’s to do what you can to make sure you can play at your best.
“And it’s not mutually exclusive. If I help someone else get better, it doesn’t mean I’m not going to compete for my job. It doesn’t mean that I don’t believe I’m going to be the best player for the job. The bottom line is, I’m here to help, and I want everyone on my team to be great.”
Tannehill is not egotistical for not seeing the benefits of juggling roles as Warner described it. It’s not at all an easy task.
“I think human nature says, ‘ Oh, my gosh. I’m not going to help him because they brought him in to take my job.’ Human nature is to try to protect what’s ours, and the selfishness of fighting that battle,” Warner acknowledged. “Nobody is going to sit here and say we never have those thoughts crossing our mind. The bottom line is to fight that. A, you have to ask yourself, ‘ What would I want and hope everyone did for me?’ and B, you have to ask yourself, ‘ What’s the deal here?’ The reason I got into sports and competition. What I loved was you put everybody out there with the same rules and same situation and ( let) the best man win. … That, to me, is what competition is all about.”
Competition, even in the form of allowing a still- very- raw rookie shadowing, can help Tannehill elevate his game.
As he’s coming off of a disappointing showing in the Titans’ premature exit from the playoffs, Tannehill – a former college wide receiver who turned himself into a top- 10 draft pick as a quarterback – already has plenty of motivation to redeem himself.
The addition of Willis should fuel him that much more. The rookie’s presence in the quarterback room, the weight room and on the practice field should serve as a constant reminder for Tannehill to continue to push rather than become complacent.
Said Warner, “Going in and saying ‘ Yes, I’ll mentor him. Yes, I’ll help him. He can walk by my side, and he can watch film with me, and I can talk him through everything.’ All that does is lead you to hone your own skills to the point where you say, ‘ Yes, I’m going to teach him, but I’m going to sharpen mine in the process, and I’m going to win the job at the end of the day anyways.’
“That’s the mentality you have to have: to compete in every situation, to want to compete against the best, to want to help everyone else be the best, but at the same time believing, at the end of the day, I’m still the best man for the job.”
Taking Willis under his wing doesn’t mean handing him the job. But it does mean willingly lending insight and knowledge while providing strong examples of professionalism and effectiveness.
And, as Warner points out, “mentorship is a two- way street.” Willis has to be humble enough to pick Tannehill’s brain and willing to accept guidance.
“There have been plenty of situations over the years where the older guy has been willing to mentor and the other party didn’t want the mentoring, or wasn’t all bought in,” Warner said. “You’ve got to be willing to do whatever you can, and the other person has to be willing to learn and say, ‘ I want to take all of this stuff and want to shadow and want to learn from you.’ ”
A well- prepared Willis could only aid Tannehill and the Titans, even if he remains the backup. Maybe Tannehill plays at a high level but misses a week or two with an injury. If Willis can manage well enough to help keep things afloat, that means Tannehill and Co. might not have to climb out of a hole.
Maintaining sight of the greater good while also fighting to remain on top certainly is no easy task. But as Warner explained, the mental fortitude and ability to balance confidence and humility will benefit all parties involved in more ways than one.