With the firing of former Titans head coach Brian Callahan, Cam Ward is in desperate need of a strong and steady voice to help calm the rough waters of his rookie season. With the development of Cam Ward in mind, the Titans named an offense-oriented interim head coach. However, the Titans tabbed someone for the gig that no one saw coming.
The Titans are out of realistic playoff hopes, so their priority should be developing Ward to the best of their abilities. With that in mind, the team selected a former offensive coordinator with an extensive history of strong quarterback play. This former head coach has called plays for the likes of the legendary Payton Manning and Phillip Rivers, but hasn't found himself as the lead coach in almost a decade.
For their final 11 games, the Tennessee Titans will lean on a two-time former Broncos offensive coordinator. He left the Broncos to head to San Diego and lead the Chargers, where he saw one playoff season before everything fell off the rails. This coach returned to Denver for a second stint as offensive coordinator under Vance Joseph before being fired just 11 games in. However, here he is, back in the NFL, but this time as a head coach.
Mike McCoy is back as an (interim) NFL head coach with the Tennessee Titans
Mike McCoy is back as the lead man for an NFL team. Yes, you read that correctly: Mike McCoy, the former Broncos offensive coordinator under John Fox and then head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers, is now an NFL head coach again. The Titans will be rolling with McCoy for the remainder of the season after their 1-5 start.
The good news for McCoy is that there is virtually zero risk to his new gig. He was most recently in Jacksonville as the quarterbacks coach from 2022 through 2024, coincidentally overlapping with the two worst seasons of Trevor Lawrence's young career in 2023 and 2024.
He joined the Titans this past spring as a senior offensive assistant, but it is clear now that he was identified as a candidate for an interim coaching gig if Callahan didn't survive the season.
Broncos fans should be happy for McCoy, who gets a second leash in life in the NFL. He had a major hand in helping build the most prolific offense in NFL history in 2012, and was a solid coordinator for the Broncos in his first stint. His second left almost no good memories, but his overall body of work in Denver will always be positive. Could he be the one to help Cam Ward finally begin to figure things out in the NFL?