This offseason marked the end of an era for the Tennessee Titans, but the franchise's new brass has given the fan base reason to be optimistic. Despite its "rebuilding" status, Tennessee has been aggressive.
The Titans quickly targeted former Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard in free agency to replace Derrick Henry, giving the Memphis native a three-year deal. Tennessee also broke some financial records in signing center Lloyd Cushenberry, formerly of the Denver Broncos, and stole a former rival away in Calvin Ridley, who spent 2023 with the Jacksonville Jaguars. This Titans offense is going to look very different in 2024 under former Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan, which is something wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins is delighted about.
"I am very excited to get going under Brian's offense, and his schemes," Hopkins told reporters at the NFL owners meetings, per the Titans' official website. "Obviously I've talked to Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins and those guys told me that I would love this offense, and I think the sky is the limit, especially with a guy like Calvin (Ridley). I am very excited for this offense."
What is Hopkins going to "love" about this new-look offense? It would be unfair to expect Callahan to operate exactly how Zac Taylor does in Cincinnati, but you can absolutely expect more passing. Tennessee has had a bottom 10 passing offense every year since 2020, and ranked fourth-worst last year with 190.4 passing yards per game. Still, Hopkins turned in his seventh career 1,000-yard receiving campaign in 2023, catching 75 passes for 1,057 yards and seven touchdowns.
With Taylor and Callahan in Cincinnati, Joe Burrow established himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the league. In fact, when he went down with a season-ending wrist injury this past year, his backup, Jake Browning, stepped in and finished first in completion percentage (70%) and fifth in yards per attempt (8.0). Chase is, of course, one of the best pass-catchers in the world, and Higgins has recorded two 1,000-yard seasons in his four years. Both receivers rank in the top five in Bengals history when it comes to most receiving yards in a player's first four NFL seasons.
As was expected, Tennessee put an emphasis on offense this offseason, and young quarterback Will Levis has seen his situation improve with the NFL Draft still ahead.
"I'm happy, I'm smiling," Hopkins said. "I'm trying to win a championship, and everything that Miss Amy is doing and Ran (Carthon) is doing is along those lines. It's hard not to be happy about the moves we made this offseason, and where this team is going.
"My mindset is to win a championship this year for the Tennessee Titans, and that is how I am going to approach every day."