The Tennessee Titans franchise is going through a transition this season, and there's no bigger transition you can make in this league than to bench your longtime quarterback for a rookie. Will Levis, the big-armed signal-caller out of Kentucky, who was selected with the No. 33 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, is Tennessee's new starting quarterback. And while the Titans currently sit in the basement of the AFC South at 3-6, Levis has brought some optimism to Music City with his play early on.
Levis has the makings of a gunslinger who wants to push the ball down the field. He's the only quarterback this season to average 10 air yards per attempt in three straight starts, per CBS Sports Research, and leads the NFL in average air yards per attempt (10.9) (min. 50 attempts).
This week, Levis recapped the early stages of his rookie season with CBS Sports. From his historic debut against the Atlanta Falcons, to the ugly loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and what the prospective future of the franchise wants to improve upon moving forward.
Desirable debut
Levis played in just one preseason game this summer due to injury. There was plenty of speculation if the high second-round pick would even be Ryan Tannehill's backup after second-year quarterback Malik Willis put together an impressive preseason, and sure enough, Levis was the third quarterback for the first six weeks of the season. However, after Tannehill was injured in the Week 6 loss to the Baltimore Ravens in London, it was Levis -- not Willis -- who was named Tennessee's starter for its next matchup vs. Atlanta.
"It was awesome," Levis said, revisiting the moment he was told he would be making his first career start. "I thought that there was a chance coming back from Britain when Ryan got hurt that he might be out for a little bit, and I didn't know the current situation or what was going to be thought of as to who was gonna be getting what reps, but I knew that I did a good job of showing that I maybe earned at least an opportunity with how I prepared and how I had gone out there and practiced and prepared week to week."
The vibes were a little mixed in Nashville that next Sunday. On one hand, the Titans were breaking out their Oilers throwback uniforms for Alumni Weekend, and there was an eagerness to see how the rookie quarterback would perform in his first game. On the other, Tennessee had just sent defensive leader Kevin Byard to the Philadelphia Eagles for a couple of Day 3 picks, and the fan base wondered if Tennessee wasn't done selling assets at the looming trade deadline. The 4-3 Falcons also weren't the easiest opponent a rookie QB could face, as Atlanta statistically had the No. 3 defense in the NFL entering Week 8. However, Levis shot the Falcons out of the sky.
The rookie completed 19 of 29 passes for 238 yards and four touchdowns, and guided the Titans to a 28-23 victory. The Titans had just three passing touchdowns on the season before Levis stepped on the field. He became the third player to throw four touchdowns in an NFL debut, and these weren't red zone dump-offs either, as three of Levis' four touchdown tosses went for at least 33 yards. Three touchdowns went to DeAndre Hopkins, who had caught three touchdowns in a single game just one other time in his distinguished career.
Levis credited the monster performance to his preparation and improved vision -- which was aided by a procedure he underwent in the summer. (EVO Implantable Collamer Lenses).
"I was just trusting what I saw," said Levis. "Trusting my vision. I have a lot more confidence with the EVO lenses that I was able to get implanted before the season. That combined with the preparation and the work I put in, I feel like I'm seeing things at a good level right now. There's a lot more work to be done in terms of my knowledge of defenses and where I'm seeing (where) the different openings could be, but I've never felt more confident in my vision and feel of the field than I have in these past few games in any part of my career. I know it's not always going to be like that. There's going to be times where I don't know what the heck is going on, but for the most part I've had some confidence in that area."
"Levis the Menace" had arrived. From the third-string quarterback to the deep-ball dealer who needed just one game to win over the fan base.
Perspective in Pittsburgh
With Tannehill still sidelined due to his ankle injury, Levis got his second career start on a short week against the Pittsburgh Steelers. T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith would provide a different kind of test for the rookie, but the NFL world was excited to see what Levis could do for an encore.
Levis led the Titans to points on three of their four first-half possessions. In the second half, Tennessee found itself in a tight affair. Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett led the Steelers on an 11-play, 92-yard touchdown drive with just four minutes remaining in the final quarter to acquire a four-point lead, allowing Levis his first chance at a game-winning drive.
Tennessee then turned the ball over on downs after picking up just 6 yards, but the Titans defense forced a three-and-out to give the offense another shot with 1:44 remaining. Levis led the offense 66 yards down the field on 12 plays, but threw his first career interception to Kwon Alexander right outside the end zone to end the game. Levis finished having completed 22 of 39 passes for 262 yards and the one interception. He was sacked four times, and pressured on 54% of dropbacks -- which was the highest pressure rate for any quarterback in Week 9.
Something Levis noticed in his second game is how close these contests can be despite how you perform individually. In his first start, the rookie came out on top in a tight affair despite four passing touchdowns. In Pittsburgh, finding the end zone was a struggle for Levis, but the game was still up for grabs late.
"I think that, it even stood out in the first game too, just because we were clicking on all cylinders in the passing game and it seemed like on offense we were doing a lot of great things as well as on defense, yet (the Falcons) still had an opportunity to go down there and win the game," Levis said. "In the NFL, every single play matters, all the little details matter. It doesn't matter how well you're playing a game or how poorly, it seems like you always have an opportunity at the end there to get back in it and have a shot. Even though we didn't capitalize on that opportunity at the end of that game, that gave me some really important reps and some important insight into just how down-to-the-wire it seems like all of these NFL games are and just how much effort and focus you need to put in for all 60 minutes."
While the Titans lost in Pittsburgh, it was clear Tennessee had potentially found something in Levis. The rookie wasn't fazed by the Steelers' physical play, and made several big-time throws down the field and off of awkward platforms. Watt told Amazon's broadcast crew afterward that the Titans' new quarterback showed "a lot of toughness," and believed he's "going to have a good career." The Titans brass agreed, as Levis was named the full-time starter over Tannehill the following week.
Tampa teachings
In Levis' first game as the Titans' full-time starter, Tennessee suffered a deflating defeat to the Buccaneers. Levis completed 19 of 39 passes for 199 yards and one interception, while Tennessee finished with just 209 yards of total offense. The headline from this loss was the Titans' pitiful offensive line, which allowed four sacks and 13 QB hits. The Bucs defense also recorded a total of 10 tackles for loss.
Levis played his worst game of the season in Week 10, but it's hard to evaluate his play considering the beating he took in the pocket. In Levis' three starts, opposing defenses have recorded 34 QB hits and 10 sacks.
"We believe in Will's toughness," Titans head coach Mike Vrabel told reporters on Monday, "and we also believe we don't need to challenge it as much as we have."
When asked about his takeaway from the loss to the Buccaneers, Levis didn't bring up the perennial pressure he faced or the lack of big plays on offense. He offered a deeper response centered around game-planning, adjustments and being even-keeled.
"I think it's just sticking to the process, regardless of the flow of the game or how it's going, sticking to the game plan and not changing how you're playing or not freaking out even though when things might be feeling like they're breaking down," said Levis. "Instilling confidence into your guys, being a leader. Not getting too high or too low depending on the circumstances. But on top of that, also getting a feel for the game.
"I think there were some things that popped up tendency-wise defensively that were a little different than what we expected, and just because of how the game was going and how we were seeing and feeling things, their defensive focus shifted a little bit in terms of sending a little bit more pressure in different situations. Being able to have that 'turn-on-a-dime' mentality where you can flip your mind and think, 'Hey, we might have been expecting this on second-and-long or third down, but this is what we're really going to be thinking about possibly getting based on how the first half went.' So making those halftime adjustments, staying within the flow of the game, not getting too high or too low, a lot of good things to take from the game even though the result wasn't what we wanted."
As for all the hits he took on Sunday, Levis maintained he's fine.
"I'm good, I'm good," Levis said. "Nothing major, so I'm able to take these last couple days to get my body back and looking forward to getting back on the field running (Wednesday) and getting ready for Jacksonville here on Sunday."
Vrabel's value
Vrabel was not quick to crown Levis the next big thing following his four-touchdown debut, which rubbed some fans the wrong way. But that's just how Vrabel operates. When Levis was asked about his head coach, he made it sound like Vrabel was his perfect fit.
"He's awesome," Levis said. "He's an intense dude, he demands a lot out of his players but he also has got that soft, funny side that brings the lightness into the room. Our dudes work hard for him because for one, he's been in our position before and he knows what it takes to win, he knows what it takes to not only be a great player, but to be a championship-winning team. When you have a coach with that background, it's hard not to take what he says seriously, and I think that's why he's able to get all of his guys to rally around him so well.
"He's been great for my development. I mean he's been hard on me and that's how I want my coach to be, I don't want my coach to be patting me on the back and telling me everything is good. I want to be coached hard, I want to have someone who's got even higher standards for me than I have for myself, which is really hard to do. To have that as someone in the head coaching position is really special."
What's next
Through three games, Levis is averaging 233 passing yards per game (18th in the NFL) and has thrown four touchdowns compared to two interceptions. Up next for the Titans are the rival Jaguars in Jacksonville this Sunday.
"It's been a whirlwind," Levis said of the last month. "I think being third-string position can be tough sometimes because you can lose sight of your goals and the work that needs to be done to get to where you want to be when you're not necessarily the guy. So that was a test for me. I think I did a good job of making sure that I was preparing as if I was the starter even though I wasn't, and I think that preparation that I had in the beginning of the year and how I approached it helped me for when my opportunity did arise."
When asked what the toughest part of the transition from Kentucky to the NFL was, Levis pointed to the intricate details that come with the most important position in the game. It's what he wants to continue to work at in order to be a franchise quarterback.
"I would say the level of preparation and the 'in-tuneness' to the details that's necessary at the position," Levis said. "The situational awareness as to what to expect from a team or what their tendencies are. Just little things in either matchups or positioning wise or alignment wise that I wasn't really in tune to in college, and now that I understand the smallest things that can give you a tell as to what to expect, and then in turn, if you can get a jump on that to then make your decision that much faster to put your guys in a better position to make a play with the ball in their hands.
"My preparation has gone to a whole other level than it was in college, just obviously with this being my job now and not having anything else to worry about it's really exciting. And because of that, I feel like I've been able to improve a lot as a player, but it definitely is challenging and it's something that I'm going to have to continue to keep tweaking and understanding what's going to be best for me to help us win games moving forward."
Levis spoke to CBS Sports in promoting EVO Implantable Collamer Lenses.
"It's a newer breakthrough FDA-approved implantable lens that helps people with vision problems, and people like myself who have been dealing with the problems that come with glasses and contacts their whole lives. To find a resolution to those problems that I've dealt with for so long was incredible for me."
