The Tennessee Titans have lost 11 straight games at home and now the team has the worst record in the NFL coming out of Week 12. The team may try to target Chip Kelly as a head coach option to take over in 2016 if Kelly wants to leave the Eagles, as his former quarterback Marcus Mariota from Oregon is the starter in Tennessee.
The Titans fired head coach Ken Whisenhunt in the middle of the season and interim coach Mike Mularkey has not done much so far to prove that he should keep the job. Speculation about Kelly and his future has been going on since last season and while leaving the Eagles is unlikely, numerous reports have come out that suggest that teams are interested in going after Kelly in both college and the pros. According to NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport, the Titans could be an option for Kelly, while the USC Trojans previously showed interest, although that is not an option now with Clay Helton keeping the job.
UPDATE: "USC hires Clay Helton as their full-time head coach," per Rand Getlin at NFL.com.
Rapoport reported that the Trojans "reached out" to Kelly to "alert him about their interest" and he writes that people should "not discount" the Titans from also getting into the mix. USC now is out of the mix for Kelly with Helton staying on. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported on the possibility of Kelly going to Tennessee earlier in the season and he also reported on how it could happen while speaking on Football Night in America on Sunday night.
Florio writes that the prospect of Kelly re-teaming with Mariota is an idea that the coach could be interested in, as the two had great success at Oregon and Mariota is a quarterback that fits Kelly's offensive system. Things in Philadelphia have not gone well this season for Kelly and after losing a third straight game on Thanksgiving and getting blown out by the Lions, there is a chance Kelly could consider moving on.
Florio reports that if the Titans did want to go after Kelly, the team would simply have to request permission from the Eagles to talk to Kelly and Philadelphia would have to agree to let him out of his contract for compensation. Things have not gone that far and there is a chance that the Titans may not go that route at all, but it remains a possibility with how Philly has performed this season.
Eagles owner Jeffery Lurie may not want to get rid of Kelly after how much he has invested in the coach, but if the team keeps underperforming, changes could be made. The Titans are heading for a top five pick in the draft again, but the team is set at quarterback with Mariota heading into 2016, making the coaching job a bit more favorable.
Rapoport said after the Thanksgiving game: "My understanding is that after the ugly loss to the Lions in front of the entire country, Chip Kelly was despondent, frustrated and feeling the heat for the first time, aware it seems that his job status may actually be in doubt after grabbing all the power this past offseason. That said, he seems intent on fixing this issue, understands that his back is against the wall and is looking at making some possible changes with a little mini break after the Thanksgiving day game."
