UPDATE (1 p.m. ET): Tom Brady will not be joining the Tennessee Titans this offseason.
The Titans are set to sign quarterback Ryan Tannehill to a multi-year contract extension, according to a report Sunday from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, removing them from the list of potential Brady suitors.
As @diannaESPN alluded to, Titans and Ryan Tannehill are now on the verge of a new multi-year extension that would prevent Tennessee from using its franchise tag on the quarterback and keep him as the team’s starter moving forward, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 15, 2020
ESPN’s Dianna Russini reported earlier in the day that Tennessee was “not interested” in Brady and committed to Tannehill.
ORIGINAL STORY: Tom Brady-to-Tennessee reportedly is off the table.
The Titans “are not interested” in pursuing the New England Patriots quarterback in free agency, according to a report Sunday from ESPN’s Dianna Russini. They plan to stick with Ryan Tannehill, whom they “are working hard” to re-sign, per Russini’s sources.
Despite Tannehill’s excellent 2019 season, the Titans had been considered one of the leading candidates to sign Brady if he and New England could not come to terms on a new contract. Brady shares a close friendship with Titans head coach Mike Vrabel from their days as Patriots teammates, and Tennessee has the roster talent to compete for a Super Bowl in 2020.
Vague answers by Vrabel and general manager Jon Robinson regarding Tannehill’s future fueled that speculation.
“We’ll see how it goes,” Robinson said last month at the NFL Scouting Combine. “(Tannehill) is under contract here for the next few weeks, and he did a great job for us. We’ll start those talks and see where those go, just like all the other (free agents).”
More Patriots: Examining Potential Tom Brady Replacements
Tannehill revived his career this season after a mediocre six-year stint with the Miami Dolphins. After replacing a struggling Marcus Mariota in Week 6, he led the NFL in passer rating and yards per attempt and won nine of his 13 starts, including a wild-card round upset of the Patriots at Gillette Stadium. The Titans advanced to the AFC Championship Game as a No. 6 seed before losing to the eventual champion Kansas City Chiefs.
If the Titans are indeed bowing out of the Brady sweepstakes, the list of potential suitors for the 42-year-old QB includes the Los Angeles Chargers, Las Vegas Raiders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and San Francisco 49ers, with the possibility for another under-the-radar contender to emerge once the NFL’s legal tampering period begins.
Under the current schedule, teams will be allowed to begin negotiating with Brady — and any other impending free agent — at noon ET on Monday, with free agency officially opening at 4 p.m. ET on Wednesday. These dates are subject to change, however, as the league weighs how to proceed amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
