Titans Coach Mike Vrabel Still Unwilling to Name a Backup QB Heading into Week 1
The Tennessee Titans are set to start their regular season slate on Sunday against the Saints in New Orleans and most of the roster battles they have been tracked are now settled with one exception, backup quarterback.
The battle between Malik Willis and Will Levis has been the focus of the preseason, but with the rookie Levis getting injured and missing two of the preseason games, it seemed like a competition that was won by default to some degree.
That may not be the the case according to head coach Mike Vrabel. Vrabel was asked at his Monday press conference if he had decided who would be QB2 and he once again refused to declare a winner in the fight.
"No, not yet," Vrabel said quickly.
He dove into more of what his thought process is on deciding who the backup will be and his answer made it sound like something that could change week to week.
"I think a lot of it is based on the game plan," Vrabel explained. "How we feel like who can step in there and help us. Will has been out a little bit, but excited to get him back this week. Continue with Malik's maturity and see where it goes at the end of the week."
Willis got the majority of the reps in the preseason due to the previously mentioned injury to Levis, but Willis also took advantage of those reps. He had a nice finale against the New England Patriots that saw him throw for 211 yards and two touchdowns after rushing for 91 yards against the Minnesota Vikings the week prior.
Willis got the benefit of the reps, but he still did well at times with them. It is surprising that after that advantage and the performance, Vrabel is still undecided about who is the backup quarterback. Some may think it frivolous, but due to a new NFL rule, it will be important.
The new rules in the NFL allow teams to have three quarterbacks dressed on Sundays, but for only two of them to count against the active gameday roster. One of the two young passers will be the emergency quarterback.
That means that whoever is declared QB3 or the emergency quarterback will only be allowed to enter the game if both the top two quarterbacks get hurt or ejected. You cannot put them in based on poor play alone.
That means that this decision must be declared publicly. It can't be hidden in-house and only revealed if Tannehill were to get hurt.
The reality is, if the decision is not made already based on the lopsided playing time in the preseason, then it is as tight of a race as possible with Willis starting to feel more like the underdog than ever.
Maybe this is more Vrabel media mind games in the name of competition, but we will all get our answer by kickoff on Sunday. For now, the debates and confusion continue.
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