According to the announcer, The Tennessee Titans head coach has name another…
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — The Titans have fired head coach Mike Vrabel after a 6-11 season.
Controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk said the choice was one of the most difficult she has ever had to make:
“As the NFL continues to innovate and evolve, I believe the teams best positioned for sustained success will be those who empower an aligned and collaborative team across all football functions,” Strunk said. “Last year, we began a shift in our approach to football leadership and made several changes to our personnel to advance that plan. As I continued to assess the state of our team, I arrived at the conclusion that the team would also benefit from the fresh approach and viewpoint of a new coaching staff.”
Vrabel, 48, took over for Mike Mularkey after the Titans lost in the Divisional round of the playoffs in 2017 and took the team to four straight winning seasons before falling on hard times the last two years.
He finishes with an overall record of 54-45 that includes a run to the AFC Championship game in 2019.
In 2020 he led the Titans to their first AFC South division win since 2008. The Titans repeated their division success in 2021, going 11-5 and claiming the AFC’s no. 1 seed despite using an NFL record 91 players over the course of the season due to injuries.
Vrabel was honored after the season as the NFL Coach of the Year and was given a deal extension in February of 2022 through the 2025 season.
But that spring things began to turn the other way. The team moved star receiver A.J. Brown to the Eagles in a surprise draft night move. Key losses on the offensive line and an eventual injury to quarterback Ryan Tannehill ruined a 7-3 start to the 2022 season.
The Titans lost the final seven games of that season to fall out of first place and miss the playoffs for the first time since Vrabel’s first season. Adams Strunk fired general manager Jon Robinson in the middle of that streak, while the team was still in first place and seemingly headed for another playoff berth.
At the time it appeared Vrabel would be given more power – perhaps full control – of the organization’s football operations. But Adams Strunk hired Ran Carthon as the team’s new general manager and reports emerged almost immediately about a possible rift between coach and G.M.
