NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Well after the locker room had cleared out, Burke Nihil and Chad Brinker were outside one of the main doors in deep conversation.
I doubt they were reaching the sweeping conclusions that come at season’s end. But they also don’t need to find fuel to take the field in a week against the Bengals and they aren’t pro athletes programmed not to admit really bad things about themselves or their team. So I sure hope they were realizing and talking about things players can’t.

Such as: That after a 10-6 loss to the lowly Jaguars the Titans are unmistakably contenders to be the worst team in the NFL.
They were beaten by a team that looked to be as bad as anyone in the league – though the Giants and Raiders might ask the Jaguars to hold their beer. The Tennessee team that beat woeful New England has sunk to new depths the last two weeks, falling behind by four touchdowns in 20 minutes in Washington and failing to find the end zone against the Jaguars, who came in giving up an average of over 28 points.
With their 10th loss, Tennessee poses a challenge to them all, perhaps not in record (tied for third worst) or draft position (sixth), but there is time. How many teams would you pick them to beat on a neutral field right now? Players didn’t start out their post-game explanations as poorly as Brian Callahan did, emphasizing there were a “lot of positive things.”
Bring in The Tank ‼️@tank_bigsby | #JAXvsTEN on CBS pic.twitter.com/XtGAtBEbk2
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) December 8, 2024
But at least three didn’t like the idea that if they aren’t the worst of the 32 teams, they’re nearing bottom.
“No, not even close,” said Nick Westbrook-Ihkine. One of the team’s best stories this season, he said he should have caught a slippery, high 9-yard, fourth-and-goal pass in the fourth quarter. “It’s the NFL. Everybody knows it’s not easy to win in the NFL. Regardless, any given Sunday, you hear all the phrases for it. I wouldn’t say that’s even close. Nah, that’s a crazy question.”
Sebastian Joseph-Day maintained the Titans are “still a great team,” listing the talent on the roster and suggesting it all needs to find a way to play more consistently and close games out.
“(The Jaguars) went toe to toe with the Vikings, a top 10 team; the Texans are a pretty good team and we beat them,” JC Latham said. “So I can’t sit here and say they’re the worst team. I can’t sit here and say we’re the worst team.
“If we don’t show up to play on a Sunday, we’re going to lose. I don’t really care what the record shows, what it might be. If you don’t show up ready to play you’re going to lose the game.”
.@JoshHinesAllen brings the BOOM 💪#JAXvsTEN on CBS pic.twitter.com/H4CcSEzngX
— Jacksonville Jaguars (@Jaguars) December 8, 2024
What got them so deep into this conversation instead of to 4-9?
Pitiful red-zone offense.
Twice they practically parked inside the Jaguars’ 20 and played aggressively there, ultimately going for it on fourth down.
Jacksonville entered the game with the NFL’s 26th red-zone defense, allowing TDs 63 percent of the time teams’ advanced to the most dangerous territory. The Titans were oh-for-two, failing on 11 plays inside the 20, which included seven inside the 10, four inside the 5 and three inside the 3.
In a game during which Tony Pollard ran 21 times for 102 yards, only two came in the red zone, a 2-yard gain on first-and-goal from the 4-yard line and a 3-yard gain on a first-and-10 from the 16.
21 yards from @Tp__5 on 1st down brings him to 90 yards on the day!
— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) December 8, 2024
📺: Watch #JAXvsTEN on @NFLonCBS stream on NFL+ pic.twitter.com/YbpamnUMsw
He had a second-and-goal 4-yard run that was nullified by a questionable Dillon Radunz hold, which officials seemed to offset with a questionable pass interference on the next play against Jarrian Jones.
Shredded a week ago, a defense missing five starters from what it planned did fine in allowing just 10 points, though the pass pressure hit Mac Jones just six times and the one sack was Harold Landry chasing Jones down before he gained a yard. The offense has not had similar attrition. Lloyd Cushenberry is out and DeAndre Hopkins is gone, but Westbrook-Ikhine has been very productive since becoming the No. 2 receiver.
They had a chance to close it out with a touchdown near the end and should have had an additional set of downs.
On third-and-5 with 1:20 in the clock, Will Levis rolled right and hit Calvin Ridley who was moving sharply to the sideline. He caught the ball for a 2-yard gain and went out of bounds, but it appeared he had a chance to plant a foot and make a play to move for the marker.
“I thought it was a cover-2 look and the corner was with me, he was already over there waiting on me,” Ridley said. “When I got over there I took a picture of him and I just lost track of him. I thought someone was on me. I should have done way better with it, no doubt.”
NWI’s end-zone drop came on the next play and while the Titans got the ball back with 49 seconds, a four-and-out ended it.
“We had a chance with two possessions in red zone and came away with no points, and that's ultimately the difference in a game that you got to score,” Callahan said. “Especially a limited possession game and the way it was playing out, didn't have an opportunity to win the game. But again, there's a lot of other things that were good, but no one gives a shit anyway. So, we got to find a way to score more points.”
Besides the two blown red-zone trips and the end-of-game scenario, the offense produced two field goals and three punts. The Titans were only outgained by 19 yards, they intercepted Jones twice while Levis didn’t turn it over and they got penalties down to four for 25 yards and no first downs.
The Titans have four left. Several talked about playing for pride. They’d pushed their scoring average up to 18.4 but the 6-point effort got it back down to 17.4. Brian Callahan has to find some offensive juice.
“My message is, don’t think you don’t have nothing to play for,” Jeffery Simmons said. “Because you do. You’ve got to play for the name on your back.”