As much as Tennessee Titans fans might want, Brian Callahan isn't ready to think NFL draft
JACKSONVILLE — Even when a good chunk of the Tennessee Titans' fan base has turned its thoughts to the 2025 NFL Draft, coach Brian Callahan isn't ready to make that leap.
"It’s not something I think about," he told reporters after Sunday's 20-13 loss to the Jaguars, dropping the Titans to 3-13. "That’s all for news and clicks and conversation. We’re focused on trying to play one more football game this year and trying to win it. That’s all I put my focus on and put my energy towards. The rest is what it is. We’ll talk about the draft at another time."
Heading into Week 18, the Titans are in good position to land a top-three pick in April's draft, if not the No. 1 pick. Because of the New York Giants' upset win Sunday, the Titans go into their final game in possession of the No. 2 pick, falling behind only the 3-13 New England Patriots. The Patriots' final opponent, the Buffalo Bills, has already clinched the No. 2 seed in the AFC playoffs. The Titans' final opponent, the Houston Texans, has already clinched the No. 4 seed. Both will have incentive to rest starters ahead of the playoffs, putting the Titans and Patriots in precarious positions.
The Patriots played a significantly easier schedule than the Titans in 2024, and because weakest strength of schedule is the tiebreaker for draft positioning, the Titans will need to lose and for the Patriots to win in order to earn the top pick. The Titans hold fairly significant edges over the Giants and Cleveland Browns, the NFL's other three-win teams, in strength of schedule that give the Titans the best odds to jump to No. 1 were the Patriots to win.
Nevertheless, as scenarios fly about what it'll take for the Titans to earn the best possible draft position, Callahan remains unswayed in his conviction to want to win in Week 18.
"That’s for you guys to talk about," Callahan said to the media when asked about the draft. "We don’t talk about that and that’s not something I ever talk to the team about."
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.