Titans talk evaluation process as they search for ‘right guy’ for No. 1 pick

MOBILE, Ala. — Roughly eight members of the Tennessee Titans brass sat dialed in as 22-year-old Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders smiled while answering questions during a meeting last week at the East-West Shrine Bowl in Frisco, Texas.

It was the first of many conversations about Sanders potentially becoming the future face of the franchise.

Titans coach Brian Callahan and general manager Mike Borgonzi were on hand, in addition to president of football operations Chad Brinker. Borgonzi, who was hired as Tennessee’s 16th general manager two weeks ago, rolled up his sleeves and dove into the Titans’ quarterback search with Callahan for the first time in an interview setting.

“[Callahan]’s very smart and detailed,” Borgonzi told ESPN. “He’s been around, some pretty good ones — Peyton Manning, Joe Burrow and Matthew Stafford. I think that helps being around players like that — knowing what to look for in terms of just footwork, dropping the eyes downfield, etcetera.”

The Borgonzi and Callahan pairing is intriguing because of how successful each was at their previous stop. Callahan and the Cincinnati Bengals hit the jackpot before their second season together by making Burrow the first pick in 2019. Borgonzi was the director of player personnel for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2017 when the franchise sent their No. 27 overall pick, a third-round pick, and their 2018 first-round selection to the Buffalo Bills to move up to No. 10 to select Patrick Mahomes.

Callahan and Borgonzi hope to recreate the magic they found as part of previous searches if they decide to take a quarterback with the No. 1 pick on April 24. The problem is there isn’t a clear-cut top prospect. Both Sanders and former Miami quarterback Cam Ward have found themselves atop the different mock drafts.

Callahan has seen this movie before. His input helped the Bengals land on Burrow despite being able to pick from the full stock of prospects. Back then, Burrow hadn’t pulled away from the group. Fellow quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa and Justin Herbert drew consideration, but Burrow’s ability to produce in the clutch won Callahan and the staff over.

Heading into Senior Bowl week, Sanders was just outside the top 10 in ESPN’s consensus draft rankings, while Ward was tied at No. 10 with Texas tackle Kelvin Banks Jr. Ward ranks as the top QB prospect for ESPN draft analysts Matt Miller, Jordan Reid and Field Yates. (Mel Kiper Jr. has him as QB2 behind Sanders.)

Callahan referred to what he learned from longtime quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator Greg Knapp, whom he worked for as an offensive assistant with the Denver Broncos from 2013 to 2015.

“[Knapp] always said these three things: decision-making, timing, and accuracy,” Callahan told ESPN. “Those three things are always going to be the first things you look for. If you look for those things, you’re going to see a lot of what good quarterbacking looks like.”

Callahan also mentioned arm strength at a baseline level, but he pointed to how arm strength can be offset by anticipatory throws.

“People had questions about Burrow’s arm strength in general coming out,” Callahan said. “One of the things that’s makes Joe so unique, and I think you can probably put Shedeur in the same conversation. … They anticipate when they throw it, they have the timing and accuracy on top of it. That makes up for the arm strength.

“Those things are how you make up for maybe not having the biggest arm. If you’re throwing on time and putting a ball when and where you’re supposed to go, you’re not going to have too many problems.”

Borgonzi agrees with Callahan’s list of core traits. He also places a huge emphasis on leadership because he believes picking a quarterback is the most important decision in sports. During the evaluation process, Borgonzi asks himself some simple questions like:

Is he going to lead the franchise?

Is he a leader on the field?

Can he process the information?

Football intelligence, character and leadership are also major factors in the evaluation.

The big thing that hit for Borgonzi and the Chiefs when they honed in on Mahomes were his special talents. They knew there were things to work on with Mahomes, but having a long-tenured coach like Andy Reid helped offset worries about areas for improvement.

“[Andy Reid] was great when we used to watch tape with him,” Brogonzi said. “Little technical things like having a real wide base throwing the football would come up while watching film and he would say, ‘I can fix that.'”

Kansas City had a veteran quarterback in Alex Smith, who helped get Mahomes ready to play knowing that was his eventual replacement.

Borgonzi didn’t rule out the Titans bringing in a veteran quarterback as a bridge if they draft a young quarterback and nurture him until he’s ready to take the field. If the Titans decide not to acquire a veteran, third-year quarterback, Will Levis is an option.

But Levis failed to secure his future with the Titans when he finished with a 2-10 record last season as a starter. Callahan said Levis plans to work in California with former NFL quarterback turned position coach Jordan Palmer during the offseason.

Levis is currently the only quarterback under contract with Tennessee. With two more years on his deal, Levis has time to showcase himself in hopes of landing another opportunity to convince a team he can be a franchise quarterback.

But that could also come with encouragement to help prepare the young quarterback who could be next in line to take over under center.

Callahan and Borgonzi know they have a tall task on their hands to turn things around.

Added Borgonzi, “We’re going to turn over every rock to make sure we get the right guy there.”