The Titans' QB situation is undoubtedly up in the air and it's still extremely unclear what their plan of attack is in solving it. Having the number one pick makes the situation only more interesting. Draft a QB or trade the pick for a ton of value? There's a ton of pros and cons to consider. Good thing it's still only February, but still, the pressure is on for this new front office in Nashville. Ideally, this new staff handles this off-season so well, we will be in the 40's by the time the Titans even sniff a top ten draft pick. This is definitely one of the biggest off-seasons in franchise history.
It's a strange feeling having zero idea who will start next season. Since the Titans drafted Marcus Mariota in 2015, the team always knew who the guy was going to be at QB year in and year out.
Even though I don't know for sure who will start for the Titans, I still think I can narrow it down to five players, plus two honorable mentions. If any of these QBs don't start for the Titans in September I will be shocked and this post will be that much more wild to look back on. I do have one favorite scenario, which I will mention at the end.
Two Honorable Mention Candidates:
- Justin Fields
Fields enters his fifth season in 2025 and has been a very mixed bag so far as an NFL QB. He definitely wouldn't demand much in terms of a salary and I can't imagine the Titans would give him a multi-year deal. Depends on what Fields is looking for I guess. Fields could be a decent bridge quarterback. Also, maybe Fields could play like Jalen Hurts one day. We also have seen Baker Mayfield blossom later in his career, so yeah anything is possible I guess.
- Will Levis
I'm no math wizard but if the Titans want to just conserve monetary value or whatnot and roll with Levis who is still on his rookie deal, it'd be a very annoying but unique move I guess. Levis will have a full year in this system under his belt. Overall I suppose just treat Levis as a bridge guy. Try and build the team a lot more and then hunt a QB down in 2026 unless Levis somehow blows everyone's mind.
I guess both Levis and Fields would be much more plausible IF the Titans trade their number one pick for a haul of picks. These two QBs would not be all that thrilling in terms of realistically helping the team stay competitive but they'd be ok options if the Titans want to remain in ultra re-build mode.
The Five Strongest QB Candidates for the Titans heading into 2025-26
- Derek Carr
Carr is probably the most well balanced, flexible and adaptable bridge QB option for the Titans. He is a real wild card in a pretty positive sense, he could be a very strong signing if handled correctly as a franchise. He offers a chance at being competitive, he's a solid team guy and he would set a good example for a young QB. The Titans could give him a nice high end backup QB contract maybe even for several years. I guess some above average incentives thrown in or something. Carr would be excellent in a scenario the Titans want to ALSO draft a QB while signing vet like Carr. Carr could not only mentor a rookie QB, but even coach up/guide Levis which is never a bad thing. There is strong value in signing a QB like Carr.
- Sam Darnold
Sam would be an interesting choice. He just had his best season by far with the Vikings, the only problem is that this was his only good season as a QB. He also had a pretty good team around him in general this past season. I sense a lot of reluctance when people speak on taking a chance on Darnold but I think he has Matthew Stafford type of upside and will only be 28 this season. I would tentatively be ok with this.
- Aaron Rodgers
Honestly, Rodgers would just be a fun one and done season I feel. The only way Rodgers stays beyond 2025-26 is if the Titans win the Super Bowl, maybe a deep playoff run would make me reconsider but I'm not sure. Seeing Rodgers in two-tone blue would just be cool, no matter mine or anyone's opinion, the guy is a Hall of Famer and many consider him to be like top five all-time material. If he heads to Nashville knowing the Titans are rebuilding, perhaps he would be like an epically entertaining bridge QB. Rodgers also has property in the Nashville area, so just an extra pro-Titans tidbit.
Rookie Options
- Colorado QB Shedeur Sanders
Shedeur Sanders is the mildly safer choice of the two top NFL QB prospects in this year's draft. He seems to have good essential skills to be a serviceable QB at the very least from what I can tell. Good timing and accuracy, good game manager traits, good IQ. He has like a hybrid Baker Mayfield/Joe Burrow style of play and mobility. He has good leadership in his corner, his dad being Deion Sanders and his known solid relationship with Tom Brady. I would have no complaints if the Titans signed Shedeur.
- Miami (FL) QB Cam Ward
Cam Ward has perhaps a slightly lower floor than Sanders but I believe a significantly higher ceiling. I think Ward has stronger athletic ability in general and he's pretty much on par with Sanders in practically every other category. I say his floor is lower than Sanders but only barely because I think as a pure pocket passer Sanders may be a little better. Like, I believe Sanders would probably do better in 2005 era football than Ward. BUT this isn't 2005 and Ward's pocket skills are still strong and with even just pretty good coaching and further experience, I'm fairly confident in Ward's ability to fine tune some pocket passing skills pretty quick.
I truly feel that if the Titans commit to one of the top five choices I pointed out, and the front office and coaching staff do their job well, any one of these scenarios could work out favorable for the Titans.
My favorite scenario overall would be seeing the Titans draft Cam Ward #1 overall AND signing Aaron Rodgers or Derek Carr as a bridge QB to learn from.
That's what I would do and just hope for the best from there. There's a lot of scenarios that would be ok though. I'm just excited to see what happens! It will be interesting no matter what.
What QB do you think the Titans should go after?
#TITANUP
Still cranking out these old Madden games! Fun times indeed.
