Back in 2018, when the Tennessee Titans were trying to keep Marcus Mariota healthy and turn his career in the right direction, the feeling inside the organization was simple: Time was running short, excuses were running long, and at some point, the constant roller coaster of good and bad had to stop.
This is how Ryan Tannehill’s second career was born in Tennessee. And it started with the Titans opening their minds to other options at quarterback heading into the final year of Mariota’s rookie contract. Yes, the organization badly wanted it to work with Mariota, who was the second overall pick in the 2015 draft and had flashed some brilliance in between injuries and inconsistency.