Ran Carthon is out as the Titans’ general manager after two years. The team announced on Tuesday Carthon has been fired while noting head coach Brian Callahan will be retained. 
Tennessee moved on from Jon Robinson late in the 2022 season, his seventh at the helm. Carthon was hired as his replacement, and he faced the task of overseeing a transition to a younger core. One of the central aspects of that effort was the decision to draft quarterback Will Levis, but his time atop the depth chart has not matched expectations. Carthon’s job security was in question leading up to the end of the season, and now the team has indeed moved on.
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“It’s impossible to ignore that our football team hasn’t improved over the past two years,” a statement from owner Amy Adams Strunk reads in part. “I am deeply disappointed in our poor win-loss record during this period, of course, but my decision also speaks to my concern about our long-term future should we stay the course.”
The Titans went 6-11 in Carthon’s first year as GM, which doubled as head coach Mike Vrabel‘s final one in the organization. The latter was dismissed last offseason in a sign Carthon may receive a lengthy opportunity to oversee the Titans’ rebuild. Indeed, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network notes the 43-year-old signed an extension this past offseason, a deal which left him with four years on his contract. Carthon had executive vice president added to his title last January in a move which gave him roster control and a major voice regarding the coaching staff.
Callahan was hired during the 2024 cycle, and his Titans gig represents his first opportunity as a head coach. The former Bengals offensive coordinator was tasked in large part with overseeing Levis’ development, but that process did not go according to plan. Dealing with injuries during the year, the former No. 33 pick was benched late in the campaign and his future in the organization is up in the air. Tennessee finished the year 3-14, leaving the team atop the first-round draft order. The opportunity to add a new franchise QB will add value to the GM vacancy, although the quick hook Carthon has received could give at least some interested candidates pause.
In the meantime, president of football operations Chad Brinker will oversee the search for Carthon’s replacement. The longtime Packers staffer was hired in 2023 and promoted to his current role last offseason. Brinker along with Callahan will be key figures for the organization moving forward, although the team announcement makes it clear Brinker – not the new general manager – will “break ties” when it comes to roster decisions moving forward.
“I think the general manager position is unique to their respective organizations,” Brinker said in a statement. “This particular job, what we’ll be looking for is someone who has spent their career as a scout, is a top-flight, top-level evaluator who has spent the majority of their career projecting college players to the National Football League, they’ve had a major hand in setting the draft board in preferably a consistent, winning organization, and you can see their fingerprints all over the roster.”
With roughly $61MM in projected cap space for this offseason, the Titans are near the top of the NFL in terms of financial flexibility. That, coupled with the No. 1 pick, will be among the attractions for GM candidates in Tennessee. Making major additions at a number of positions will be needed for the team to return to the postseason, something the new hire will have a role in (although clearly the same will be true for Brinker). Finding stability in the front office and on the sidelines represents a key organizational goal for the Titans, and the next step in that process will be another general manager hire.