The Tennessee Titans are just 1-5 on the season and have now made some changes. The Titans have fired Brian Callahan and will now be looking for a new head coach. These are the top candidates for the job.
Brian Callahan went just 4-19 with the Titans, having the worst record in the NFL in 2024, and earning the top pick in the NFL Draft. The pick was Cam Ward, but there was not enough progress this season to keep Callahan around.
“After extended conversations with our owner and general manager, we met with Brian Callahan this morning to tell him we are making a change at head coach,” president of football operations Chad Brinker gave in a statement on X, formerly Twitter.. “These decisions are never easy, and they become more difficult when they involve people of great character. We are grateful for Brian's investment in the Titans and Tennessee community during his tenure as head coach. We thank him and his family for being exemplary ambassadors of the Tennessee Titans.”
Now, the Titans look for a new coach. The team has yet to name an interim coach, but it is unlikely that the coach will have a chance at the job, barring a massive turnaround. Now, the Titans look for their seventh head coach since moving to Tennessee in 1997.
Kliff Kingsbury- Washington Commanders offensive coordinator
The Titans have not had a ton of success since Jeff Fisher parted ways with the franchise following the 2010 season. Mike Munchak and Ken Whisenhunt both did not deliver, while Mike Mularkey brought just one playoff berth and no division titles. Mike Vrabel showed up in 2018, and after missing the playoffs his first year, brought the team to the AFC Championship and won two division titles. Still, after two years of missing the playoffs, the team moved on. Callahan was a disaster who had left the pantry bare, and the new coach will need to fix that.
Kliff Kingsbury may be the guy to refill the talent in the organization. The former NFL quarterback began his coaching career in the college ranks as an assistant with the Houston Cougars. He first became a head coach with Texas Tech in the college ranks. He went 35-40 with three bowl games in six years with the Red Raiders, but was not retained.
This led Kingsbury to the Arizona Cardinals, where he spent four years as the head coach, making the playoffs once. After a year with USC, Kinsbury was hired by Dan Quinn in his first year with the Washington Commanders. Kingsbury led Wahsington to being the seventh-ranked offense in yards per game in 2024 and developed Jayden Daniels. Daniels set multiple rookie records as the team made the playoffs for the first time since 2020.
While Kingsbury has shown himself to be a solid offensive coach, his head coaching record is not impressive. This would be a similar hire to Callahan, and it will be interesting if Tennessee goes down the path of an offensive guru again.
Jesse Minter- Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator
If the Titans want an up-and-coming coach on the defensive side of the ball, the best answer is Jesse Minter. Minter has been in a Harbaugh system for most of his career. His father was a college coach, and Minter began his coaching career with Notre Dame in 2006. After rising through the ranks, he spent time as the defensive coordinator for both Indiana State and Georgia State before moving to the NFL.
His first NFL job was with the Baltimore Ravens under John Harbaugh. He spent from 2017 through 2020 with the team before heading to Vanderbilt in 2021. This gave him experience in Nashville, but after one season, he moved to be the defensive coordinator for Michigan under Jim Harbaugh. He followed Harbaugh to the Los Angeles Chargers for the 2024 season and has shown himself to be one of the top young defensive minds in the game. He does not have a ton of experience, but he will be a head coach somewhere in 2026, and Tennessee should be an option.
Joe Brady- Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator
The Buffalo Bills' offensive coordinator could be an option for the Penn State job, after spending two seasons there, but he will also be an option for NFL jobs. Joe Brady started coaching in the 2013 season, coaching for William & Mary. He moved up primarily in the college ranks until being the offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers from 2020 through 2021. After being removed from Carolina, he became the quarterback coach for Buffalo, and then would replace Ken Dorsey as the offensive coordinator.
He coached a historic college offense back in 2019 at LSU and got interviews as a head coach following the 2020 season with the Panthers. Brady has been instrumental in the growth of the Bills, including helping Josh Allen win an MVP award. He is viewed by some in NFL circles as the best offensive coordinator in the game currently.
Regardless, this would have hints of both Callahan and Kingsbury. Callahan was the top offensive coordinator when he was hired, and that was a disaster in Tennessee. Kingsbury has been similar, but he has head coaching experience. If the Titans want to go offensive in their hire and have someone without the baggage of past head coaching experience, this is the man.
Mike McCarthy- Former Dallas Cowboys head coach
Every year, there are former head coaches who get second or third chances in the NFL. Pete Carroll and former Titans coach Vrabel are examples from this last cycle. Mike McCarthy could be another retread head coach who gets a shot in 2026. The former NFL coach has had success in his career. With Green Bay, he made the playoffs nine times in 13 seasons. Further, he won the NFC North six times and a Super Bowl in 2010.
He was fired during the 2018 NFL season, and then in 2020 was hired by the Dallas Cowboys. He won the NFC East twice in his five seasons and went to the playoffs three times, but won just one playoff game. If Tennessee is looking for instant credibility, it should look no further than McCarthy. He has been a winner in the NFL and has a Super Bowl ring. Regardless, in both situations, he inherited quality quarterbacks, with Brett Favre plus Aaron Rodgers waiting in Green Bay and then Dak Prescott in Dallas.
There is no guarantee of how good Ward is, which could put added pressure on McCarthy if he chooses to come to Tennessee.
Eddie George- Bowling Green head coach
There is always the slightly outside-the-box candidate, and what better than former Titans great Eddie George? George is one of the greatest Titans of all time, and he does have coaching experience. He ran for over 10,000 yards and helped Tennessee to a Super Bowl appearance in his time with the franchise.
George began his coaching career with Tennessee State in 2021. After two losing seasons, he began to turn the program around. He had a winning season in 2023 and then won the Big South-OVC title in 2024, earning Coach of the Year honors in the process. After being eliminated in the first round of the FCS playoffs, he took the head coaching job at Bowling Green.
This year, he is already 3-3 at Bowling Green. The team has already shown improvement under George, and could reach a fourth straight bowl game this season. If the Titans go for a legacy hire, George is the best option.
