Titans clinch No. 1 pick after loss, Patriots win

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Titans secured the top overall pick in the draft with a 23-14 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday after the New England Patriots defeated the Buffalo Bills.

Entering the final week of the season, the Titans (3-13) would have the No. 3 pick in the draft if the New England Patriots (No. 1) and the Cleveland Browns (No. 2), according to ESPN Analytics. But Tennessee, which had the second-best odds of securing the No. 1 pick (11.6%), got the top spot after losing to the Houston Texans and the Patriots beat the Buffalo Bills 23-16 on Sunday.

Titans coach Brian Callahan elected to play both Will Levis and Mason Rudolph against the Texans in the season finale. Callahan said splitting time between the quarterbacks was done more to get them both one last chance to play and not based off trying to lose to improve draft status.

The Titans finished the year with a 3-14 record in Callahan’s first season as coach. This is the worst season for the Titans since 2015 when the team finished with a 3-13 record. Former Titans coach Ken Whisenhunt was fired seven games into that season after finishing with a 2-14 record in 2014, his first season.

Callahan is likely to remain the coach next season, according to a team source. Team ownership is not happy about the season, and it feels like people in the organization are uneasy and bracing for something to happen, according to a report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

“I don’t really pay much mind to those reports,” Callahan said. “I just come in and try to do my job as best I can and do it as long as they allow me to do it.”