Just 10 weeks after suffering an ankle injury that ended up costing him his starting job, Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill is facing the possibility of temporarily getting his old job back in Week 16.
Fellow signal-caller Will Levis suffered what is reportedly a high-ankle sprain in the Week 15 loss to the Houston Texans, leaving his status up in the air. If he can’t go, head coach Mike Vrabel says Tannehill will get the nod.
“I’m just taking it a day at a time right now, figuring out what is going on while also getting myself ready to play,” Tannehill said, per John Glennon of Nashville Post. “Obviously you try to prepare as a starter every week. But in a week like this week, it’s a little more intense, just trying to make sure I’m on top of everything.”
The transition to backup wasn’t an easy one for Tannehill, who admitted it was “a growing opportunity” for him.
“Yeah, it’s a challenge, right?” Tannehill said. “You get your job taken basically and your first instinct is not a positive one. So yeah, it’s been a growing opportunity for me to put my own feelings aside and try to be an asset to this team, continue to work and be a positive impact on this team.”
As far as Tannehill being an asset while serving as the backup is concerned, Levis praised him for the help he’s provided in getting the rookie ready for games.
In fact, Levis even labeled Tannehill as a “mentor” to him.
“He’s been a heck of a mentor, heck of a leader, heck of a teammate throughout all of it,” Levis said of Tannehill, per Kayla Anderson of 104.5 The Zone. “And, really, a coach, too. In the meeting room, especially, with how he’s able to go through how he sees things and how he could see things potentially play out with multiple pieces of the game plan or multiple reads or just tips that I could definitely point to that helped transition into Sundays. So, I’ve got to thank him a lot for that.”
If Tannehill indeed gets the start on Sunday, it will be 62nd of his tenure with the Titans, but it may also be his last, with the veteran signal-caller set to hit free agency in 2024.
“Yeah, I just want to go out and — if I have the opportunity — play well and try to get a win,” Tannehill said.
