By MIKE HERNDON, columnist

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- With Ran Carthon locked in as the new general manager in Tennessee, eyes now turn to the openings on the coaching staff that were created when Mike Vrabel fired offensive coordinator Todd Downing, offensive line coach Keith Carter, and secondary coach Anthony Midget following the season.

Matt Nagy with Patrick Mahomes/ © Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

Reports indicate that the Titans may have found their secondary coach in former Commanders defensive backs coach Chris Harris.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In 2020, the NFL adopted a rule change that stopped teams from accumulating dead ball fouls to drain clock while preserving late-game leads.

Bill Belichick may have first “discovered” the loophole but it was Mike Vrabel’s use of it in a Wild Card win in New England against the Patriots in 2019 that really brought it to the forefront as something that made teams feel it needed to be addressed.

Elijah Mitchell, who analytics helped the 49ers find/ © Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

Vrabel saw that as a win and, I believe, as vindication against anyone who would debate that he underuses analytics.

He may not have guys from MIT or Harvard sitting in a booth on game day with binoculars and binders as some teams do, but he and his right-hand man, John Streicher, employ analytics in real-time game decisions and in taking advantage of the rules. Vrabel doesn’t believe requires a big staff. (The following season in a playoff loss Vrabel chose to punt on fourth-and-2 from the Baltimore 40 with 10:06 left in a game the Titans were losing 17-13. No analytics win there.)

Ran Carthon’s background suggests the new GM will put a bigger emphasis on analytics in the front office than there has ever been before. That won’t affect how Mike Vrabel operates, but it should influence some calculations about how the Titans chose players to sign and draft.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A new general manager gets hired off the rhythm of the scouting schedule.

The people in his world don’t have contracts that run on the NFL season schedule and they are not at the end of their work year when the 17-game season ends or their team suffers a playoff loss.

So Ran Carthon joins the Titans and inherits Jon Robinson’s staff at a point where the expectation is, very likely, to get to know who is in place and work with them through a free-agency and draft cycle.

After the draft concludes on April 30 is when front-office executives and scouts generally change jobs.

All of that is nice, in principle.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Maybe you heard Ran Carthon introduce himself Friday afternoon, maybe you didn't.

Either way he gave Titans faithful much to consider as they look optimistically forward to what's next for a franchise coming off a crushing season that ended well short of expectations and got Job Robinson fired with five games left.

Many of you joined me to discuss what he said and what it means and where we think things may go from here for Tennessee with the GM office now occupied.

Mike Vrabel allowed for a change of offensive system in his comments, which was another exciting element to a fresh start day for the Titans.

Rewact the conversation on Facebook, below on YouTube or on Twitter.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The theme wound itself through a press conference that lasted over 50 minutes and it will be a key to whether a Ran Carthon-Mike Vrabel partnership succeeds for the Titans.

The power dynamic between the new GM and the veteran coach is going to be all about collaboration, but Carthon views a chief element of his duties as service to Vrabel.

© George Walker IV / Tennessean.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

“I’ve been with multiple organizations and I’ve seen it done different ways, but the best way I’ve seen it done is when the coach and the GM are in lockstep,” said Carthon, who wore a gray suit, light blue tie and Nikes that matched. “It’s my job, it’s our job as scouts to execute Mike and his coaching staff’s vision. I’m not calling plays on Sunday, I’m not designing plays throughout the week. And so it’s our job to bring the right players in here to execute his vision. …

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Titans will return to London in 2023, this time as a host of a regular season game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

In the NFL’s third 17-game season, Tennessee is slated for nine home games. One will be exported.

It won’t be the Jaguars, as they play a home game in London annually. The Seahawks played in Germany in 2022 and the Falcons were in London in 2021.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- It's been a good while since we've had a chance to chat, and now the Titans have a new general manager in Ran Carthon.

So we got together and discussed the former San Francisco 49ers director of player personnel and the hopes the Titans have with him now in their GM chair.

There are so many issues to solve, but I think there is a course where the franchise can be a competitive team next year while remaining competitive, though it could be healthier in the long run for them to do a more thorough rebuild now.

And while this week's podcast was recorded before Carthon was hired, there is still a lot of relevant stuff in there about Mike Vrabel's moves with Todd Downing, Keith Carter and Anthony Midget, how he needs to approach the open offensive coordinator job and much more.

You'll find links to listen to it here, and you can now watch on a new, public YouTube. 

Rewatch this conversation on the private Facebook page or below.

By MIKE HERNDON, columnist

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- With Ran Carthon officially on board as the Titans' next general manager, let’s dive into arguably the biggest question that he will need to answer in their first offseason in Tennessee… who will play quarterback?

© Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

The Titans have two quarterbacks under contract for the 2023 season. Veteran starter Ryan Tannehill is heading into the final year of his four-year, $118 million deal that he signed in 2020. His base salary is non-guaranteed, however, and Tennessee could save $17.8 million by either trading him or cutting him.

The other quarterback currently under contract, of course, is Malik Willis. He just wrapped up a disappointing rookie campaign that saw him get benched for career backup Joshua Dobbs during the final two weeks.