The Tennessee Titans may have been representing the past, decked out in their powder blue retro Houston Oilers jerseys on Sunday, but they were looking at their potential future in quarterback Will Levis.
Levis, in his first career NFL start, had a remarkable performance in the Titans' 28-23 win over the Atlanta Falcons. The former Kentucky quarterback and second-round pick completed 19 of 29 pass attempts for 238 yards and four touchdowns with no picks. Three of those scores were in the top-10 for the longest touchdown passes by air distance this season, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.
Mind you, this was all against a Falcons defense that ranks seventh in the league in passing yards per game and had allowed no more than 24 points twice this season, yet gave up 28 on Sunday, all thanks to Levis finding DeAndre Hopkins three times and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine once.
With such an epic performance, is this the end of the Ryan Tannehill era in Tennessee? Tannehill was held out of Sunday's game against the Falcons due to an ankle injury he suffered in Week 6 against the Baltimore Ravens in London. Tannehill's injury was so significant this past week that he went from a cast to a walking boot, getting around the Titans facility on a scooter, to then walking on his own with a compression sleeve on his lower leg, according to ESPN.
It's said that Tannehill's injury could keep him out for a significant amount of time, but with the Titans already somewhat seceding this season by trading away safety Kevin Byard to the Philadelphia Eagles for a third-round pick, Tennessee could be completely moving off Tannehill for good.
Will Levis gave a spark to the Titans' offense
It's just one performance, but the Titans have to see what they have now in Levis. With the lack of production that Titans fans have seen from Tannehill recently — 62% completion percentage, two touchdowns, six interceptions, 2-3 — and even going back to his poor performances when they were making the playoffs a couple of years ago, the question is, why not Levis now?
The division, barring a massive upset, likely will be won by the Jacksonville Jaguars who are sitting at 6-2 currently, with a three-game lead on every team. Unless the Titans sneak into the Wild Card, that's the only way they're getting into the playoffs. Why not see if Levis can lead them there?
The 2024 NFL Draft could be loaded with quarterbacks
Every team will be looking heavily into next year's NFL Draft due to the overwhelming amount of quarterback talent coming out. Being at barely the midway point of the season, the Titans have plenty of time to figure out if Levis is their guy for the future with 10 games remaining. That means the Titans need to move off Tannehill and continue building for the future, securing draft picks in the process. If they see Levis isn't the guy through the remaining schedule, that means they more than likely will be in a good position to draft another quarterback.
The Minnesota Vikings and New York Jets could use a starting quarterback
With the Vikings' quarterback Kirk Cousins suffering a torn Achilles against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, Tannehill, if healthy himself, could be welcomed in Minnesota. Of course, there's always the Jets, who continue to scratch and claw for wins mainly by their defense. At 4-3, they're still very much alive but are hanging on for their lives each week, with minimal offensive production due mainly to being handicapped by Aaron Rodgers' injury and Zach Wilson's starting.
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