NFL Rumors: Is Tom Brady Not a Fan of the Titans Offense?
One of the underlying factors that will determine where Tom Brady plays next season is how his play meshes with another team's offensive scheme.
As a quarterback that is seemingly on the decline, though still playing at a high level, it makes sense for Brady to want to play in an offense that has many talented weapons, to go along with strong offensive line play. On top of that, having a scheme that is similar to New England's would make it a much easier transition for the 42-year-old QB to play somewhere new.
One team that is rumored to be interested in Brady's services come free agency are the Titans. With former Patriot Mike Vrabel coaching the Tennessee team that managed to make it to the AFC championship game this past season, there are plenty of reasons to think Brady would consider the Titans as his new team. But while that is the case from an outside perspective, Tennessee may not be as attentive of a spot for Brady as we had originally thought.
Boston Sports Journal's Greg Bedard shared some information earlier this week regarding last summer's joint practices between the Patriots and Titans.
What did Bedard share? That Brady apparently thought Tennessee's offense was "laughable."
"Brady’s not going to Tennessee, where teammates told me Brady thought their offensive system during joint practices was laughable and whose offensive personnel could never run the passing offense to Brady’s specifications," Bedard wrote.
Ryan Tannehill, who began his 2019 season with the Titans as a backup to Marcus Mariota, ended up playing so well that he was awarded the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year award. Tannehill threw for 2,742 yards, 22 touchdowns, six interceptions and completed 70.3% of his passes in 12 games total, 10 games started. Him hitting free agency this offseason, along with Mariota, is why Tennessee is looking for their next starting quarterback.
While there is no doubt that a QB can succeed within offensive coordinator Arthur Smith's scheme in Tennessee, that may have not looked like the case early last season. In August when Mariota was the starter, there's plenty of reason to believe their offense looked unattractive, even laughable. But one has to wonder if Brady's mind may have changed when he saw how explosive their offense was when they switched QBs and were able to exploit opposing defenses with running back Derrick Henry and rookie receiver A.J. Brown, who finished the season with over 1,000 yards and 20.2 yards per reception.
The biggest question for Tennessee if what their offense will look like in 2020. The Titans aren't expected to give Henry, who was the NFL's leading rusher in 2019, a big enough contract to keep him. So, Henry will find another team to join this offseason. Because they won't have their starting running back or their starting QB (in the event that they don't sign Tannehill during free agency) the Titans offense could look very different next season. If they are willing to mesh their system to the key offensive pieces they have/acquire, that could bode in Brady's favor.
Vrabel, who played with Brady during his time in New England, knows exactly what he's getting from the veteran QB if he were to sign him. So, if Tennessee does pursue the six-time Super Bowl champion during free agency, you can best bet they will have Brady-esque offense ready to use.
