Tennessee Titans shouldn’t punt on Will Levis for Mason Rudolph

MIAMI – Brian Callahan emerged from a locker room filled with relief and celebration Monday night. And very loud music. The tunes drowned out his press conference and no one seemed to care.

After his first win as coach of the Tennessee Titans, Callahan was content to shout as he said something that needed to be said definitively and preemptively after this 31-12 victory over the Miami Dolphins. Because the game was won with quarterback Will Levis on the sideline.

“When Will is healthy,” Callahan said, “he’s our quarterback.”

So there you go. There’s nothing to see here. No quarterback controversy.

There isn’t, and there shouldn’t be. Not yet, at least. Assuming the shoulder injury that sidelined Levis in the first quarter in Miami isn’t a major issue — and Callahan said he didn’t think it would be — Levis is still “100%” the Titans’ starter, ahead of Mason Rudolph, who picked a victory in relief on Monday.

“It wasn’t a decision based on anything other than his health and protecting him,” Callahan said, “especially with a bye week. With a shoulder that didn’t feel great, I didn’t want to put him out there again knowing I was going to make a big run on the ball.

It was smart of him to cut off the speculation before it got out of hand, because people will undoubtedly talk. Many who left the lesser of the two “Monday Night Football” games still saw Levis throw another bad interception on the first drive. And they will sum up the Titans’ victory in two points:

1. They won their first match for Callahan in four tries.

2. And the Titans’ quarterback was Rudolph for the first time in these four games.

How much was the second point related to the first? Very questionable. Those who watched the entire game saw a weakened offensive struggle from the Dolphins, while the Titans executed it on about two-thirds of their offensive plays. Rudolph completed just nine passes for 85 yards. This was a defense and run game and . . .

“I haven’t done much at all,” Rudolph said.

WHERE. Rudolf it didn’t do a lot to win this game. But he also hasn’t done anything to lose it, and that’s really important for the Titans right now.

Teammates pointed it out afterwards.

“He played great,” running back Tony Pollard said of Rudolph. “He did a great job with the ball, made the right plays and made good decisions with the ball. He helped us win the game.”

Of the Titans’ last 11 possessions with Rudolph on Monday, seven resulted in points. The other four? Points. None ended with turnovers.

Rudolph looked like a veteran NFL quarterback because he is a veteran NFL quarterback. He has learned how to avoid mistakes that cost a match. Nice to have a reliable backup, and at this point you could argue that stability and maturity make him a safer choice than Levis on match day.

More: What Tennessee Titans’ Brian Callahan said about Will Levis’ shoulder injury after the Dolphins win

However, Callahan doesn’t see it that simple, and nor should he.

The Titans coach plays this carefully. Maybe too cautious. His public criticism of Levis’ mistakes often comes across as more of an apology, and that happened again on Monday after Levis threw a pass directly to a Dolphins player: “I just didn’t see it,” Callahan said. “Sometimes that happens.”

Yes, but it happens too much for Levis. It can’t keep happening forever.

But what else can the Titans do in the meantime? Staying with Levis isn’t just the right decision for Callahan. It’s the only decision.

If the team were to bench Levis now, it wouldn’t just be for one or two games. It would be for conservation. It would be a sign to everyone – especially Levis – that the Titans have decided he’s not the guy for the long term and would rather hit the lottery for a quarterback. Rudolph might win a few more games now, but the long-term question is Levis, and the Titans don’t have an answer yet.

They need to continue this with Levis and let him grow and build some confidence.

Because he doesn’t look confident right now.

How could that be him? Spend five minutes searching the man’s name on social media and you’ll be convinced that the Titans are saddled with the worst quarterback in NFL history. I’ve never understood what it is about Levis that attracts haters like few other athletes, but that was the case before he was drafted, and that’s the case now.

Levis has insisted he is ignoring it. I hope so, for his benefit, but I have my doubts.

I’ve often thought he cares too much about what people think. I’m afraid he’s listening to the negativity and putting too much pressure on himself, trying to prove doubters wrong. I suspect he’s also discovering along the way how insanely difficult it is to play quarterback in the NFL, where everyone is talented and works hard and desperately wants to succeed with no guarantee that it will happen.

After the win in Miami, I asked receiver DeAndre Hopkins – who has seen a thing or two in this league – how Levis is handling everything.

“I think Will will be fine,” Hopkins replied thoughtfully. “I think he’s doing well.”

It looks like the Titans are willing to wait and find out.

That’s a good call.

For now.

Reach Tennessean sports columnist Gentry Estes at [email protected] and on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter) @Gentry_Estes.