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Titans' Brian Callahan handing over play-calling duties to QBs coach Bo Hardegree after 0-3 start

The Tennessee Titans are 0-3 and rank 28th in the NFL with 17 points per game after drafting quarterback Cam Ward with the No. 1 pick this past spring. The Titans have lost nine straight regular-season games, a streak that dates back to the 2024 campaign, and have scored more than 20 points only twice in that span.

And, so, second-year head coach Brian Callahan is making a change.

He announced Tuesday that he's handing over play-calling duties to quarterbacks coach Bo Hardegree, who served as the Las Vegas Raiders' interim offensive coordinator during the final nine games of the 2023 season after Josh McDaniels and his OC, Mick Lombardi, were midseason that year.

Even though Hardegree will now be calling the shots, Nick Holz will remain the Titans' offensive coordinator.

"He took it well," Callahan said, when asked how Holz handled Hardegree getting tapped to call plays.

"He's a professional. He understands that that's the way that these things go sometimes. But his role isn't changing in terms of what he's doing and how he's doing it. His role in the process, his role on game day, all those things are exactly the same as they were before."

Callahan maintained that Hardegree will still be in charge of third-down game plan, wide receivers coach Tyke Tolbert and senior offensive assistant Mike McCoy will still be responsible for red zone, Holz will still prep all the base downs and running backs coach Randy Jordan remains the point man for screen plays.

"So all those things are all going to stay the same," Callahan said. "It doesn't change that process any bit whatsoever. It's just the plays are, at the end of the day on Sunday, coming out of somebody else's mouth. I'll be still very present in the process. I'm involved in it, but it's going to allow me to do more around the team and in other phases besides offense and special teams and defense."

In the nine games Hardegree was the Raiders' interim offensive coordinator, Vegas went 5-4. At the time, the Raiders were quarterbacked by 2023 fourth-round rookie Aidan O'Connell. He piled up 1,905 yards and 11 touchdowns through the air during that stretch. Along the way, the Raiders averaged 22.9 points per game, a significant increase from the 15.8 points per game they averaged over the first eight games that season.

In addition to helping O'Connell turned some heads as a first-year signal-caller out of Purdue in 2023, he also coached Derek Carr during his fourth Pro Bowl season and was an offensive assistant for the New England Patriots in 2021 when rookie quarterback Mac Jones reached the Pro Bowl himself.

As a play caller, Hardegree will have an even bigger role assisting Ward in his development.

"Bo interviewed with some teams for some coordinator jobs," Callahan said Tuesday. "He's widely respected around the league. I've got a lot of respect for how he goes about his business. I know the type of coach he is. I know what he's capable of. And I know how he goes about his process."

Perhaps most notably, Hardegree interviewed for the Chicago Bears OC job this past offseason.

Callahan sees Hardegree as a rising star in the industy. While he has the 41-year-old on staff, he's taking advantage of his schematic and coaching skill set while giving himself more time to focus on his head coaching role.

"One of the things I told the team and told the players after our [Week 3 loss to the Indianapolis Colts] is that, look, everyone owns a mirror, right?" Callahan said.

"We can all look at it. We can all see where we need to be better and what can help us be better. And I think this is one of the best things for us at the moment to help me do a better job as a head coach and be more present and available for the football team and less involved in just the day-to-day minutia of getting ready to call a game."

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