NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee Titans fired Brian Callahan on Monday, just six games into his second season as head coach.
Callahan finishes with a 4-19 record, including 1-5 this season with Cam Ward, the top pick in the 2025 draft, as the Titans’ starting quarterback.
“We just felt like it was the right time to make a change,” Titans president of football operations Chad Brinker said during a news conference Monday night. “We were looking for growth on this football team, and that’s what it’s about right now. We’re not seeing enough growth from this football team.”
Senior offensive assistant Mike McCoy will fill in in the interim. McCoy was previously the head coach of the San Diego Chargers from 2013 to 2016. He had a record of 27-37, making the playoffs in his first season.
Brinker said the organization’s goal is to give McCoy every chance possible to prove he can be its next head coach, not just the interim one.
“What Mike brings right now is experience and leadership,” Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi said. “He’s been a head coach. He’s a former quarterback who spent a few years in the NFL as a player and was around NFL quarterbacks like Philip Rivers, Peyton Manning, and he was with Trevor Lawrence last year.”
A team source confirmed a report from NFL reporter Paul Kuharsky that Titans offensive line coach Bill Callahan, whose son is Brian, will also not remain with the team. There was no immediate word on other potential personnel changes.
The Titans were 3-14 in Callahan’s first season, finishing with the first pick and selecting Ward. With Callahan’s firing, the last four quarterbacks drafted No. 1 and six of the last eight saw their head coaches fired during their rookie seasons, according to ESPN Research.
Only Ken Whisenhunt (3-20) had a worse record as a head coach in Titans/Houston Oilers franchise history.
The Titans’ offense scored just 83 points, the franchise’s fewest points in six games since 1985, according to ESPN Research.
The frustration flared in Week 3 at Nissan Stadium in a 41-20 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. Fans booed the Titans as they entered the locker room at halftime and chanted “Fire Callahan” repeatedly during the game.
Callahan turned over playing duties to quarterbacks coach Bo Hardegree last month. But Callahan’s seat got even hotter after a 26-0 loss to the AFC South division rival Houston Texans in a battle of winless teams in Week 4. The Titans failed to reach the red zone, and Ward expressed his frustration after the game, saying, “If we keep the money right now, we’re assholes.”
Callahan picked up his first win of the season last week with a 22-21 win over the Cardinals in which Arizona blew a 21-3 lead. However, a frustrating 20-10 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday sealed his fate. It was the Titans’ fourth loss by at least 10 points this season, the most of any team.
The Titans hired Callahan in 2023 after controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk fired former coach Mike Vrabel, who led the team to two AFC South Division titles. Vrabel returns to Nissan Stadium this Sunday for a showdown between the Titans and the New England Patriots. Vrabel has the Patriots (4-2) in first place in the AFC East in his first season as coach.
