Ryan Tannehill went to the ground with an ankle injury in the fourth quarter of the Tennessee Titans' loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday. While the official diagnosis remains undetermined, there's a chance Tannehill could miss significant time. He was seen on crutches after the game.
Tennessee drops to 2-4 on the season and the front office has significant questions to answer. Malik Willis and Will Levis lurk in the shadows as viable young alternatives at QB, but the Titans have remained committed to Tannehill and the illusion of contention despite myriad reasons to pivot toward youth. Willis replaced Tannehill on Sunday and completed 4-of-5 passes for 74 yards.
If Ran Carthon and the Titans front office feel the need to replace Tannehill via trade, it will be fascinating to see what the franchise prioritizes. Is it a splashy veteran, or a career backup? Do the Titans swing for another young QB, potentially undermining the development of Willis and Levis, or is experience the goal?
Odds are the Titans will keep the current QB room in tact, but here a few different options if Tennessee decides to take the bold approach.
5. Mason Rudolph
The Pittsburgh Steelers have three QBs on the roster and could part with the most expendable of the bunch, Mason Rudolph. A three-year NFL vet, Rudolph has appeared in 17 games (10 starts) with a 5-4-1 record, 2,366 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions to his name.
He wouldn't present the most exciting possibility, the Rudolph is a perfectly competent gunslinger destined for NFL journeyman status. He's bound to travel from team to team for the next few years as the okay backup who looks half-decent when called upon. He's not full-time starter material, but Rudolph has more experience under his belt than Willis or Levis. That could appeal to Tennessee's front office if he's available on the cheap.
Rudolph possesses great size and strength in the pocket at 6-foot-5. He can read defenses from a high vantage point and get serious air underneath the ball. He's a tad mistake-prone when his ambitions rev up, but arm talent is half the equation. Rudolph would give the Titans' receivers the chance to make plays.
4. Cooper Rush
The Dallas Cowboys are another team with three QBs on the roster. Dak Prescott is momentarily cemented as the franchise pillar, but the Cowboys could pivot sooner than expected. If the Cowboys do pivot, it's hard not to highlight nominal QB3 Trey Lance as the heir apparent — not 29-year-old journeyman QB2 Cooper Rush.
That said, Cooper Rush was remarkably successful when he filled in for Prescott last season. He led the Cowboys to a 4-1 record in five starts, completing 58.0 percent of his passes for 1,051 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions on the campaign. Those numbers aren't great, but there is hard evidence of Rush winning football games when called upon.
He's another low-stakes veteran who would operate solely as a fill-in until Tannehill returns (or the Titans get more adventurous with their young talent). Rush has enough zip on his passes to move the ball downfield and he made several clutch throws during his brief Linsanity-esque run last season.
Jerry Jones doesn't adhere to team-building conventions or even general front office standards, so the Cowboys' thinking is hard to predict. That said, it's clear Jones values Lance — enough to trade for him with zero input from his peers. If the Cowboys want to develop Lance as Prescott's understudy, there's no reason to cling tightly to Rush.
3. Mac Jones
The New England Patriots are 1-4 with the worst point differential in the NFL. Mac Jones has been yanked early in back-to-back games, leading to questions about his future as the team's starter. He's operating on a short leash in Week 6 as the Patriots prepare Bailey Zappe, Will Grier, and Malik Cunningham for increased workloads.
If the Patriots are ready to pull the plug on Jones and 'Crumble for Caleb,' why not spin the former first-round pick into a late-round draft pick and call it a day? Jones should still have enough latent intrigue around the league to at least warrant a second chance. Maybe the Titans get desperate and decide to give it to him.
Jones would make for an interesting trade target because of his age. He's 25, less than a year older than Malik Willis and Will Levis. The Titans would be setting the stage for a three-way battle for 'QB of the future' honors, with Jones positioned as the de facto short-term favorite based on league experience. Whether Jones is actually the best option from that bunch is another question entirely.
This would essentially boil down to a calculated risk from Tennessee — one that only makes sense if Tannehill's future with the franchise is truly in doubt. Jones put together a tremendous rookie season when surrounded with a competent offensive line and a half-decent crew of playmakers. The Titans aren't exactly brimming with talent, but it's a change of scenery for a once-promising young player.
2. Kirk Cousins
Word on the street is that Kirk Cousins will not waive his no-trade clause. He is committed to the Minnesota Vikings, despite the franchise's blatant lack of commitment to him. We will see how long Cousins' attitude holds up once the Vikings start selling off veteran contributors ahead of the Oct. 31 deadline.
Minnesota is 1-4 with a chance to skirt around last place with a victory over the Chicago Bears on Sunday. Cousins has been respectable individually, but the Vikings' offense has been awfully prone to mistakes. With Justin Jefferson set to miss extended time and a difficult chunk of schedule on the horizon, it's way too early to write off the possibility of a Cousins trade.
The Titans could put together a picks package juicy enough to get the Vikings to bite. The problem would be convincing Cousins, which could come down to their willingness to invest beyond the 2023 season. That would essentially condemn Willis and Levis to obscurity, so it would take serious confidence in Cousins from the Tennessee front office.
Cousins enters Week 6 with a 67.2 percent completion rate, 1,498 passing yards, a league-high 13 touchdowns, and only four interceptions. He's still very effective and he would present a sizable short-term upgrade for the Titans under center. Perhaps there's a trade to be worked out centered on Tannehill, who would get a fresh start in the north.
1. Justin Fields
Justin Fields has been something of a sensation over the last couple weeks. After a rough start to the season, he's starting to show Chicago Bears fans the light... That is, unless you're a skeptic. Those of a less upbeat perspective have floated the idea of selling high on Fields before he falls back into a funk.
If the Bears do bottom out with hopes of selecting Caleb Williams or Drake Maye, the Titans could swoop in. Fields' raw athletic talent is beyond reproach — he's big, evasive, explosive. The arm strength is there, even if the accuracy and confidence tend to waver. He's on the shortlist of best athletes in the NFL. That alone should pique the interest of a team like Tennessee.
The Titans need a facelift. Fields would be a forward-thinking trade that looks beyond the ill-fated Tannehill era. It's clear the Titans' current QB1 doesn't have "it" anymore. It's hard to justify a serious investment in Fields with two 24-year-old QBs on the roster, but there's a reason the Titans haven't booted Tannehill already. Fields presents a much higher ceiling than Willis or Levis.
Fields would run into similar obstacles with Tennessee — a shoddy offensive line, limited playmakers, a defense-first coach — but the Titans run a much smoother ship than the Bears. Fields has been failed by teammates and coaches on a regular basis in Chicago, with a healthy amount of well-deserved individual blame too. He could use a fresh start. Depending on Tannehill's outlook, the Titans could make inquiries.
Fields, of course, did injure his hand in Sunday's game against the Vikings. That could determine whether he's an actual Titans trade target or not.
