INDIANAPOLIS – The Tennessee Titans opted to trade the No. 1 pick the last time they owned the top selection in 2016. In possession of the No. 1 pick again, they haven’t closed the door on dealing the most coveted draft slot.
Tennessee Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi revealed the team has fielded phone calls from inquiring teams.
“We’ve had some phone calls,” Borgonzi said. “I’ll keep those phone calls to the vest. But we’ve had some calls.”
The Titans are open to listening to teams inquiring about the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NFL draft, but there are some factors that could deter Tennessee from moving down. The Titans at 3-14 finished tied for the league’s worst record, they were 1-7 at home and ended on a six-game losing streak, which is tied with the Cleveland Browns as the NFL’s longest active losing streak.
Borgonzi believes this year’s draft contains just a fist full of generational players. The Titans could miss out on a player Borgonzi thinks is a generational talent if they elect to move down too far.
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“There’s a handful of players,” Borgonzi said. “Anytime at the top of the draft that you would deem generational talents, and we certainly feel that way this year as well.”
What traits do generational talents have?
“A rare skill set of talent, an impact player that can take the team to another level, whatever position it is,” Borgonzi said. “And then they also have the character makeup as well to go with it.”
One position the Titans must address this offseason is quarterback, whether in free agency or through the draft.
The Titans hired Borgonzi after he spent 16 years with the Kansas City Chiefs. He was on Kansas City’s staff when the team traded up to select Patrick Mahomes, No. 10 overall in the 2017 draft. Titans head coach Brian Callahan was a college football quarterback at UCLA and helped the Bengals evaluate Joe Burrow before Cincinnati picked Burrow No. 1 overall in the 2020 draft.
Both Borgonzi and Callahan know the characteristics of a franchise quarterback. Will Levis, who’s underwhelmed in 21 games, is the only quarterback currently under contract. He isn’t the long-term answer. The Titans don’t have a franchise quarterback in their building. The organization hasn’t had a 4,000-yard passer in a single season since Warren Moon crossed the barrier for two consecutive seasons from 1990-91.
Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders are the consensus top two quarterbacks in this year’s draft class. Callahan declined to rank the two signal-callers. However, he believes Ward and Sanders are deserving of the top two QB distinction. The head coach hopes to have a quarterback in the building with a few traits that stand out.
“Decision making, timing, accuracy and scouting quarterbacks is not an exact science. You can see over the years that there’s been really quality players that you think had it, that maybe didn’t show up when it actually came time. And then there’s ones that you weren’t sure if they did, and they show up and they play well,” Callahan said. “Those are things that we have to do our due diligence on and make sure that we’re trying to un-turn all the stones from the tape, from the person, from the workouts, all that stuff is a part of the process to try to make the best decision we can when it comes to evaluating quarterbacks in general.”
Follow USA TODAY Sports’ Tyler Dragon on X @TheTylerDragon.
