NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The tone of the Titans' top two personnel men in the team’s season-starting press conference was dead on: Chad Brinker and Mike Borgonzi were enthusiastic about progress made during the offseason, excited about the discoveries ahead but super-conscious about the work the franchise has to do to garner wins and gain respectability.
“Nobody wants to hear that word patience, I get that,” Brinker said. “But the reality is we understand where we are as a roster. We got a lot of work to do. And we're going to be relying on a lot of young players this season to carry this football team. And we need those veteran players to help those young players grow. So there will be some challenges. But I do want to see our football team improve from day-to-day to week-to-week.
“To where by the end of the season, you know, we'll see what we look like and hopefully we're healthy. This game it's a war of attrition. So you've got to be healthy and there's just a lot of work to do. So it's hard to really define, you know, if you're asking me what the success looks like in 2025, I think that's for you guys to write about.”
That is a long way from Ran Carthon’s pronouncement in a radio interview at roughly this time last year when he was
asked about an offense that would feature or call on Will Levis, Nicholas Petit-Frere, Tyjae Spears, Tyler Boyd, Jaelyn Duncan and others who didn’t perform well in their roles: “We literally checked every single box from what we felt like we needed in starters to the furthest backup. And we were able to hit every single one of those. And that’s what we really set out to do.”
The Titans were the NFL’s worst team in 2024, that 3-14 record and the presence of Cam Ward, the No. 1 overall draft pick, tells us that. It’s a monstrous climb to the other end of the 32 and they know it. They aren’t going to pretend media and fans are fools, and they aren’t going to set themselves up to look bad. Yes, teams make big jumps around the league, and they’d love nothing more than the surprise with one.
But they aren’t selling “Why Not Us?” when medium or moderate improvement will qualify as a success in their draft and develop plan.
Mike Borgonzi was asked if the #Titans can win the Super Bowl. He said:
— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) July 22, 2025
“That's always the goal every year. But we also realize there's a lot of work to do.”
That is a perfectly acceptable answer and an absolute non-event. #Titans
That’s why the one odd spot to me is behind Ward. I thought Will Levis was their best option and his choice to have season-ending surgery on his throwing shoulder leaves them in a bad spot, with Brandon Allen, owner of a career 56.7 completion percentage and 60.3 passer rating as the backup.
At least Allen has some feel for Brian Callahan’s offense from shared time in Cincinnati. Tim Boyle simply cannot take snaps in the NFL – His teams are 0-5 in his five starts, losing by a collective 131-76 as he threw three TDs and seven interceptions with a 66.7 passer rating. It’s 52.6 if you add in his 18 games of relief work.
Here Borgonzi couldn’t get himself to say the Titans take a hit without Levis, who at least had upside or that perhaps they're willing to absorb the consequences to their record if Ward misses time. He had to express some confidence in two guys who inspire none.
“We feel good right now about the quarterback room,” he said. “Like every position, though, we're going to continue to evaluate it. But right now, we don't see adding anybody.”
I followed up bluntly. Why do the Titans feel good about and have confidence in Allen and Boyle when their performances in regular-season games have been so poor?
“You know, they have game reps, they have starter reps,” he said. “I think Brandon, obviously, was with Brian in Cincinnati, has a really good understanding of the offense. And listen, he had a really offseason here, too. I was impressed with him. So I've watched Brandon over the years. And every time he comes out there, he competes hard. So we're going to continue to evaluate that position, like every position in training camp.”
Many bad players have had NFL reps. Reps alone are not a qualifier.
A good alternative to Allen may not come free, and odds are high the team will value his time in the playbook and at practice more than the level of upgrade they can get at cut time after camp.
They’ve got to do better than Boyle as the practice squad guy, as that QB is one hit away from being one hit away from starting.
But sure, it's Ward or bust. I'll try to move on. I mostly liked what I heard and respect the tone and approach.
“I'm excited about what we have going on right now, knowing where we are as a football program,” Brinker said. “But I get it, there's not a lot of star power on this roster right now. I do think there are some stars that will come through at some point. We're excited about the draft class. Obviously, you got Cam Ward and he's got a lot of work to do and a long road ahead of him too. But I mean, I think you all have seen the talent.
“It's pretty impressive ...just the way he's gaining the respect of his teammates is something that I've seen from the periphery. It's been impressive. But we also know this is a performance-based business. He's got to go out and perform and he knows that. And when he does, it's just going to elevate the entire program. So there's just a lot of improvement that we've got to make all across the board.”