I am no fan of Ken Whisenhunt, but I will say that he is a known quarterback guru. From reviving guys like Kurt Warner and Philip Rivers to grooming a young quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger Whisenhunt has a great track record when it comes to developing quarterbacks. The Titans select No.2 in the upcoming NFL Draft, and it is up in the air that Jameis Winston will be available. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers were projected to pick Winston as a no-brainer, but as of late conversation of them selecting Marcus Mariota has heated up. It would be a blessing for Titans fans and Winston that he passed up on by the Bucs to land in the country music capital of the world.
The Buccaneers have more weapons in Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson, but head coach Lovie Smith has a shaky history with developing quarterbacks. Smith is a defensive guru, and it’s hard to pair a young quarterback with a defensive guru right at the early stages in the quarterback’s career. It would be a lot different if Winston would be paired with a QB guru at the offensive coordinator with a proven track record as someone that has groomed young QB’s, but I don’t know if Dirk Koetter is that guy. Not taking anything away from Smith or Koetter, but it would be better to see Winston with someone with a proven track record with quarterbacks.
Winston fits the mold of Ben Roethlisberger as a prototypical NFL quarterback. Whisenhunt has worked with and helped develop Roethlisberger in his earlier years when Whisenhunt was the offensive coordinator with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Whisenhunt has seen it first-hand how to coach a player with a similar skill set of Winston, and he would know what coaching methods that would help Winston reach the potential that everyone salivates over. I don’t know if it’s coincidental or if it’s the magic of Whisenhunt, but quarterbacks improve under his tutelage. During his time as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals, he took a “washed up” Kurt Warner and helped turned him back into MVP form and he led the Cardinals to the Super Bowl and a playoff run the following year which was unheard of at the time when talking about the Arizona Cardinals.
It is unknown where the chips may fall, but it’s no secret that the Titans need a quarterback. In the AFC South quarterback play is vital, because there is only one team with great quarterback play and that is the Indianapolis Colts with Andrew Luck. With an upgrade at the quarterback position it would upgrade Titans making them a legit second-tier team in the AFC South. The Titans know that they can’t win with Zach Mettenberger and it’s not a top free agent available at the quarterback position that can fill the void.
Titans fans should be praying that the Buccaneers make a mistake in selecting Marcus Mariota first overall in the NFL Draft. If that happens, it would be a match made in heaven to see Jameis Winston fall to the No.2 spot to the Titans to pair with the quarterback whisperer in Ken Whisenhunt.
Very true, he would blow up fast in Tennessee.., but the Bucs would be silly not to draft him.