The Train Daddy is back with sports news, life lessons and politically incorrect talk. All aboard!

Goodbye ’23 and hello ’24. What should I talk about in this article? With 2024 being a fresh start for us all—including the Tennessee Titans—let’s spend some time airing out those grievances for this daggum team I spend so much of my energy on!

Was 2023 a good year? I guess it depends on who you ask. For myself it was a good year, no complaints. My business is going well, my family is healthy and my dogs are healthy; with my New Year’s diet starting Jan. 1, hopefully in four months—and after 20–40 pounds lost—I will then be able to say I am healthy.

Was it a good year for the Tennessee Titans? Can you milk a chicken? No! What a disastrous year for this franchise. I go out of my way when talking about this team to focus on the positives, but they are few and far between this season.

Photo by Mike Welsch

First let me say, aside from the Titans’ 2023 first-round draft pick Peter Skoronski, the rest of this offensive line needs to pack its bags and never return. These starters wouldn’t make most teams’ backup rotation.

This Titans team has plenty of issues, but none worse than protecting its signal caller. It wouldn’t matter what quarterback was calling plays for the Titans, it’s dangerous work back there! The simple fact that Will Levis was able to generate excitement with those liabilities protecting him is a sure sign Levis has what it takes to be a starter in this league.

Titans fans should be excited about Levis even with his rookie mistakes. Under all this pressure and despite a horrendous line, he showed poise. Levis has a cannon with a quick release and his passion is unmatched. He is a fun player if he pans out. I can’t even blame him for forcing it. What else was he supposed to do? Give him another training camp and some actual protection, and he may be a franchise guy.

Photo by Kevin Sabitus

Levis has shown me enough to be given the keys to this offense entering 2024. Titans GM Ran Carthon has it made: he has a QB on a rookie contract for years to come and has more cash to play with entering this off-season than any other team in the NFL.

I can respect Ran in 2023, his first year as GM not totally blowing up the team like many expected. It didn’t work out, but he attempted to compete. The 2024 season, for all intents and purposes, was always going to be Ran’s beginning. There are no more excuses now, no blaming former GM J-Rob for the state of this roster. Ran has the salary-cap space and he is the one getting paid to make the big decisions regarding how this new-look Titans team will be built.

What else is there to say about this team? It wasn’t so long ago that the Titans overcame a ridiculous number of injuries and still managed to take the number-one seed in the AFC. That’s why Vrabel was named NFL coach of the year in 2021. I still believe in Vrabel, but I hear the concerns from Titan Nation. This team has fallen apart these last two seasons and Vrabel appears lost. It’s more than just him seeming constantly angry. It seems to me that he would rather be doing anything else every time he talks to the media. Maybe I am wrong? I am still rolling with Vrabel and putting trust in him to prepare these men for the game, but his leash is short if this coming season doesn’t show promise. It wasn’t long ago at all that Coach Vrabel’s job was one of the safest in the NFL.

I complained about the offense and coaches, so I reckon it’s time to complain some on the defense. I don’t have much to say here; the group wasn’t awful by any means and outshone its counterpart, but this 2023 defense was very average, in terms of both its rushing defense and passing defense.

If I were to carry anything from this team over to 2024, it would be the historically good red zone numbers that this defense put up. This group has the 4th-best mark in the entire NFL since 2014 and the best mark any Titans defense has ever put up, as far as stopping teams from scoring once they crossed the 20-yard line. Opposing offenses scored touchdowns on just 38% of their trips into the red zone against this Titans team. This group looked lost outside of the 20, but once an opponent was knocking on the door, they locked up. The stout red zone defense was probably a big reason that this team also led the league in one-possession losses with 7 on the season.

The only other thing I can think of that I would carry over would be Ryan GOAThouse! I truly hope he is healing well, and that the punter’s leg is the same next year. Ryan Stonehouse, two years into his professional career, was doing unheard of things at his position. Dude is an absolute cheat code and easily has been the best punter in the league these past couple of seasons. Nobody kicks them further! That’s why his cleats currently sit at the Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio.

I will end my Titans rant by saying I will always love this team. It’s a passion and pain that will follow me into my elder years. I have only one demand: that they win at least one Lombardi before I die! I could die tomorrow but I imagine I have at least 40 seasons left in me, which would take me to 80 years old. Just ONE, Titans! One in the next 40 years.

Let me rant about one more thing. The NFL presents its awards after the season wraps up, and one of the big ones is Comeback Player of the Year. My vote down the stretch was Baker Mayfield, but I am currently writing this after the Bucs lost to the Saints. The Bucs were all but written off after Tom Brady, but Baker, to everyone’s surprise, has them fighting this season. Old man Joe Flacco has burst onto the scene throwing 300-plus-yard games like it’s nothing, and has the Browns in the fight.

Yet more than likely the award will be given to Damar Hamlin, the Bills safety who went into cardiac arrest on the field last season and is back to playing football. “Back to playing football” may be a reach, as Hamlin still hasn’t even registered over 20 snaps on the season.

I hate the idea of giving Hamlin this award to appease the touchy-feely crowd. We all know this award is won by performance on the field. I find Damar Hamlin’s story amazing, and I am very happy he is back doing what he loves, but we need a new award for Hamlin because he isn’t Comeback Player of the Year. Maybe we make a new award and call it Inspirational Player of the Year. Depending on how the final week in the NFL pans out I would vote Baker Mayfield or Joe Flacco, but stop the pandering—it isn’t Damar Hamlin.

I still owe you something controversial. Easy enough for me! Biology matters in sports. Until this is acknowledged across the board in competitive athletics, there will continue to be a lack of integrity in female sports. It’s absolute insanity allowing biological males to compete with biological women. We have gender separation for good reasons in most sports. If biology doesn’t matter, let’s just end gender separation in sports. Polls show overwhelmingly that people are not okay with this nonsense. As we head into 2024 it’s time for more female athletes to take a stand and speak out, regardless of the consequences. If this nonsense is allowed to continue, female sports is doomed.

The Z-Train is ready to roll back into the station. To all my loyal readers, thank you. To the haters, thank you! I wish you all a Happy New Year. Yee-yee Tennessee!