Tom Brady Rumors: Tennessee Titans Dropping Out Of Sweepstakes To Focus On Ryan Tannehill
The rumors about where pending NFL free agent QB Tom Brady is going to end up this season took a couple of different turns on Saturday. As The Inquisitr reported, the New England Patriots appear to be only making a cursory offer to keep their star quarterback in house. In addition to that, it appears one of the teams that was thought to be hard-charging after the sure-fire hall-of-famer has dropped out of the sweepstakes.
The Tennessee Titans were thought by some to be the surprise front runners for Tom Brady, but it’s possible the team wants to save its money to improve elsewhere. Ian Rapoport recently appeared on the NFL Network and said his sources are telling him current quarterback Ryan Tannehill is the priority for the team.
That might come as a bit of a surprise, considering the Titans were considered one of the biggest suitors for Brady at one point. It appears now the team is looking to reward Tannehill for the surprise season he had in 2019.
Tannehill was traded to the Titans by the Miami Dolphins in Maech 2019 and served as a backup quarterback. He later took the starting job away from Marcus Mariota and led Tennessee into the playoffs as a wild card team. Though they finished the regular season just 9-7, they were giant killers once they got to the playoffs, managing an upset win over Brady’s Patriots.
In some ways, Tannehill finally put together the kind of season NFL experts have been waiting for him to have. He went 7-3 as a starter for the Titans, completing 70 percent of his passes and throwing 22 touchdown passes with just six interceptions.
Tannehill also carried the ball 43 times for 185 yards and four touchdowns. His mobility might be one of the factors that now has the team looking at him over Tom Brady. He’s also quite a bit younger and could conceivably be signed for less money.
The report that the Titans have now decided Tannehill is their target at quarterback over Brady is interesting for a number of reasons. Perhaps the top one, as Fansided pointed out, Tennessee has been clearing up salary cap space. The outlet believes the team is making that room to sign the current New England Patriots quarterback.
If Tannehill is really the Titans’ top target at quarterback, then the reason they’re making so much room for new contracts is a mystery. It’s possible the team just wants the ability to improve at multiple positions if the right free agents come along. With the NFL’s new year kicking off in just four days, fans may not have to wait long to find out.
