As he navigates his way through a new offense, Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis has been studying different quarterbacks, all of whom have a connection to head coach Brian Callahan.
Ahead of rookie minicamp over the weekend, Levis revealed that he’s been watching the Cincinnati Bengals’ Joe Burrow, the Los Angeles Rams’ Matthew Stafford and Hall of Famer Peyton Manning.
Callahan was Stafford’s quarterbacks coach with the Detroit Lions in 2016-17 and was on the Denver Broncos’ staff as an offensive quality control coach and offensive assistant during Manning’s days there.
And, of course, he was most recently Burrow’s offensive coordinator in Cincinnati.
“All the tape we watch from the installs to even just the individual drills, it’s Joe, it’s Matt, it’s Peyton,” Levis said, per ESPN’s Turron Davenport. “It’s cool to see those guys and know that they’ve been in a system, at least similar to this or very similar to this, and been able to have great success. It’s big shoes to fill but I want to be the next guy and get to that level. I don’t want to be them, I want to be me, but I want to perform and exceed the levels they performed at.”
“He doesn’t have to be Joe Burrow. We just need him to be Will Levis.”
Callahan on the takeaways he had from his time with Burrow in Cincinnati to now being in Nashville with Levis. #Titans pic.twitter.com/jXtDHUO6gU
— 104-5 The Zone 📻 (@1045TheZone) May 9, 2024
When it comes to quarterbacks and head coaches, the relationship means a great deal. As Levis detailed, not only does he have a good one with Callahan, he says it’s different from anything else he’s ever had.
“I think it’s just, for one, earning his trust as a player,” Levis said. “I do feel like there’s a friendship there but I’ve never really had that I feel like, where it’s like a friend with a coach. You always have that dynamic that he’s the boss and I’m his worker. But he’s done a good job coming in with mindset of ‘hey, I’m the coach, what I say goes and I’m going to tell you guys what to do, but I’m also here for you guys and to talk about anything.’
“So, I feel like I’ve been able to talk with him comfortably about other things other than football. He’s been great in that way.”
