Tennessee Titans are joining the rest of NFL teams who are in search of a coach. After beating the Kansas City Chiefs in Titans’ first postseason appearance since 2008, it looked like head coach Mike Mularkey is bond to stay. Still, the team announced on Monday that the two sides “couldn’t come to an agreement over the future” and will part ways.
According to the reports, the Titans were open to bringing Mularkey back but they wanted to make certain changes to the coaching staff. Also, it was reported that the two sides “saw different paths to achieve greater success.”
“It is certainly unfortunate that we couldn’t find enough common ground,” – said the Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk. “I generally believe that continuity is the best path for success, but I also view this as an important moment for our football team as we try to make that next step to sustained success on the field. Jon will begin the search immediately to identify that person.“
Previously, Adams Strunk expressed her support for Mularkey, saying he is “our head coach and will be our head coach moving forward.” Mularkey himself also repeated on several occasions that the reports of him leaving the Titans are “ridiculous”.
After finishing the season 9-7, the Tennessee Titans entered the Wild Card Playoff Game against the Kansas City Chiefs as major underdogs. They came back from an 18-point deficit in the game and managed to get a 22-21 win. Parting ways with Mularkey make the Titans first team in the last 15 years to change a coach who won a playoff game in the same season.
After playing in the NFL for nine years, Mike Mularkey took his first coaching job at the Concordia University. He then joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a tight ends coach in 1994, and went on to serve with various NFL teams. He was named the Titans’ head coach in 2015.
