NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- If Ryan Tannehill can't go Sunday, Mike Vrabel said he'd anticipate both young Titans' quarterbacks will play against the Falcons on Sunday.

When you have two you don't have one.

But surely this can't be an every-other-series sort of scenario.

The best that can come of it is Levis being the primary guy with packages for Willis to enter the game as a change-up with options to run the ball, which is where he is most dangerous. [Unlocked] 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – With Kevin Byard gone, the Titans could be trading some additional veterans.

Whether they do or not, it’s a good time to assess the roster.

Who HAS to be here for the long term? Who would be left standing if you did an imaginary tear down to the studs? Who are the indispensable Titans?

Here’s my list:

1)    Jeffery Simmons: He’s not played great the last few games, but he’s the Titans' biggest foundational piece. At his best he’s a player offenses have to worry about on every play, disrupting pass plays from the inside and tracking every run play.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- What better coping mechanism as you come to terms with the departure of No. 31 than a Monday Night Football halftime chat?

We got it done and it makes for a quality rewatch even if you were not able to join us.

Kevin Byard is off to the Eagles in exchange for fifth- and sixth-round draft picks and safety Terrell Edmunds and the Titans may be at the start of an attempted fire sale. 

It's the healthy thing for the organization to do, as next year's price structure versus Byard's production was not going to allow for a 2024 cap hit north of $14 million. 

But that doesn't mean it's easy for fans who've loved a player for eight years to watch him leave and to come to terms with where the organization is. And that's not in a good place at all.

Elijah Molden has missed two games already this season, including Week Six with a hamstring issue. Will he be ready to return and assume Byard's slot next to Amani Hooker on Sunday when the season resumes against Atlanta? If not we could see Dane Cruikshank off the practice squad, undrafted rookie Matthew Jackson or a quick move to Edmunds.

And who's next if the Titans continue to trade? It takes a willing partner and the rest of the Titans on the list -- outside of DeAndre Hopkins -- all have something that makes them not worth as much as Byard was.

We sorted through it all on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube (which is also below). Check it out.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Sentimentality comes first, ahead of practicality. 

For eight years Kevin Byard has been as likable a Titan as any in the team's Tennessee history, as stand-up, as productive.

To be a First-Team All-Pro twice, five years apart, is a big accomplishment. He carried himself in a way that Mike Mularkey and then Mike Vrabel wanted others to model and he was a gold star on the draft resume of Jon Robinson. Fans loved him. Last year he won the media's first Good Guy award, named after Eddie George and there was no second place. [Unlocked]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Seven fines for infractions came out of the Week Six Ravens-Titans game in London.

Six of those fines were against five Baltimore players, and four of the violations were not called by referee Bill Vinovich and his crew during the game.

I went back and looked at each play to see how a call rather than a non-call would have altered things as they unfolded.

Second quarter

Second-and-10 TEN 30 (4:52) 

(Shotgun) L.Jackson pass short left to Z.Flowers to TEN 26 for 4 yards (T.Avery, J.Gibbens).
PENALTY on TEN-J.Simmons, Unnecessary Roughness, 13 yards, enforced at TEN 26

Result: First-and-10 TEN 13

FINES: Simmons, unnecessary roughness, $11,473
Odell Beckham, unnecessary roughness, $11,473

The play: Simmons turned to chase down receiver Zay Flowers who was already surrounded by two Titans’ tacklers and it 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- What a fun, big weekend off awaits us.

But during the course of it you must have a quality Titans' read, and so I collected a dozen of the best questions that came to be through the private Facebook page -- which gets priority -- as well as Twitter as did my best to give you some detailed and thoughtful answers to the things that are most pressing for you.

So here is the big weekend read.

If you're not a member, remember to go download the ZenSports app, use code TNPAUL, make a $10 bet, and get a free membership. If you're a member and you bet $250 (winning with all of it, of course) they'll give you $250 more. 

ZenSports is a way better way to bet, as you get five percent of what you bet for the first 15 days back in cash, and up to three percent back monthly after that. (Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-889-9789. Terms & Conditions apply. Must be 21+ and in Tennessee to bet.)

Jump on it.

Here we go.

David Jackson Why do you think so many fans are so eager for the team to tank? There have been a lot of top 10 qbs (and other positions for that matter) that didn’t pan out, after a team had a bad stretch and continually drafted high. It seems like the disadvantages outweigh the advantages, but clearly not everyone sees it that way.

The fascination with draft position bewilders me.

The regular season is just 18 weeks long. We wait for the games all year. Now we’re in the midst of them,and people are more concerned with the names that will be called at the end of April, SIX MONTHS from now.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The highest-paid players need to produce for their team to have success. And amid all the Titans' problems, they are not getting very much out of their cash cows.

Jeffery Simmons talked in London about the team's leaders being vocal and speaking their minds, helping to spark change.

But those leaders also need to trigger teammates with better, contagious play.

Here is what the Titans’ big-dollar guys have done through six games:

Ryan Tannehill

Cap hit: $36.6 million
Base salary: $27 million [Unlocked]

By MIKE HERNDON, columnist

For much of the 2023 offseason, it felt like Ran Carthon and Mike Vrabel were trying to thread the needle between competing in 2023 while also setting the table for a future beyond this season, one that likely doesn’t include some of the central figures from this spurt of success since 2019.

Carthon reportedly had discussions about trading Derrick Henry early in the offseason and the new GM was careful not to do too much restructuring of current deals to preserve a war chest of cap space that is waiting for him in 2024. He also traded up to select Will Levis in the second round and then took Tyjae Spears in the third, clear heirs for the Ryan Tannehill-Henry backfield duo that helped win back-to-back division titles in 2020 and 2021.

However, they ultimately decided to keep their expensive core veterans – including Kevin Byard and Denico Autry along with Tannehill and Henry – while adding DeAndre Hopkins. To make room for Hopkins, they did borrow from that 2024 cap allotment via Harold Landry’s restructured contract. Those were all moves aimed at competing for a division title in 2023.