Titans Could Still be Involved With Former HC Candidate

The Tennessee Titans, after weeks and weeks of speculative rumors about the team's head coaching search towards the end of their season, have been able to quiet much of the noise with the official beginning of the 2026 offseason.

With an official, potentially overlong and varied list of contacted candidates in place, the suggestion that college-level phenom and Notre Dame Fighting Irish HC Marcus Freeman could be amongst the fray dissipated for a number of reasons.

Not only has Freeman not been confirmed in any capacity to have contact with the Titans' franchise, but he himself confirmed, amidst the prior rumors of his move to the NFL, that he would remain with the Fighting Irish. Yet, if a recent report is to be believed, suitors in the league with an interest in Freeman are operating as if the race is still very much on.

Ignoring Freeman Himself

According to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport, NFL teams have "ignored" Marcus Freeman's own public declaration that he will return to the collegiate level to coach Notre Dame for the 2026-27 season.

Reportedly, supposedly interested teams - which, at one point prior to Freeman's aforementioned post, included the Tennessee Titans - still believe that the book isn't closed on one of the NCAA's most prolific sideline personalities.

NFL teams have "ignored" Marcus Freeman's post about returning to Notre Dame next season, per @RapSheet.

Interested teams still believe there's a chance Freeman makes a move to the NFL and would not put him through the interview process. pic.twitter.com/QcnJJDUyUv
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) January 11, 2026

To boot, such teams wouldn't even put Freeman through the interview process in the case of his hiring. A risky move for all involved, for sure, but the NFL coaching cycle has certainly seen more outlandish moves in past years.

For the Titans, with an array of more experienced options on the table (and some already in the building), taking a flyer on Freeman would feel more akin to the Brian Callahan hire than almost any other name on the market.

That's probably the last thing fans want to hear about any potential coach, though then again, it still appears highly unlikely that Notre Dame's lead man could actually end up in Nashville.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

A Low Likelihood

General manager Mark Borgonzi has stated multiple times that he's looking for a leader to take the top position on the sideline at Nissan Stadium. Not only does that imply a coach with deep experience, but one with a track record of proven success.

Freeman, for all his appealing traits, has neither. A few years down the road, the college coach could definitely make a compelling case for an NFL job. But if Borgonzi is to be believed, he doesn't fit Tennessee's current bill of needs.

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