When Ryan Tannehill became the Titans starting quarterback in 2019, he finished the season playing the best football of his career. In 12 appearances with 10 starts, he completed 70.3 percent of his passes for 2,742 yards with 22 touchdowns and six interceptions — leading the league with 9.6 yards per attempt, 13.6 yards per completion, and a 117.5 passer rating.
That year, Tennessee fell to the eventual Super Bowl champion Chiefs in the AFC title game.
Tannehill hasn’t reached those kinds of numbers since then, though he did lead the Titans to consecutive AFC South titles in 2020 and 2021.
This year, Tannehill missed five games due to injury, including the last three while on injured reserve. He ended the season completing 65.2 percent of his throws for 2,536 yards with 13 touchdowns and six picks. He also rushed for 98 yards with a pair of TDs.
Tannehill, 34, is under contract for 2023, but given that his cap number will be just over $36.6 million and the Titans could save about $18 million from cutting him, there’s no guarantee he’ll return.
But he said on Monday that he’d like to.
“Of course, I’d love to be back here,” Tannehill said, via Jim Wyatt of the Titans website. “We’ll just have to see what happens.
“I definitely have some good years left. I feel really good, even coming off this injury. I feel really good and looking forward to some bright years ahead.”
Tannehill said it was tough to watch the last games on TV, though he was proud of the way his teammates fought.
He also noted that he elected to get surgery in December because he tore several ligaments in addition to the ankle sprain. But Tannehill is on the mend and should be jogging soon.
“Everything is trending the right way, and rehab is going well,” Tannehill said. “I’m really happy with how things are going, it just sucks I had to go through it. Unfortunately, it’s a part of the game — I was able to stay away from it for a long time, but it finally caught up to me. I am looking forward to being healthy again.”
