No. 1 pick secured, Titans fire GM Ran Carthon

The Tennessee Titans fired general manager Ran Carthon on Tuesday after two seasons with the organization.

Two days after the Titans concluded a 3-14 season and gained ownership of the top overall pick of the 2025 NFL Draft, there is another layer of mystery around the organization. Tennessee went 9-25 in two seasons under Carthon's watch.

President of football operations Chad Brinker will lead the search for a new general manager, while Brian Callahan will return for a second season as the head coach, the organization confirmed Tuesday.

"I've loved the time I've spent with Ran. He's a talented football mind, a great man, and friend to everyone along his path," Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk said in the statement. "It's impossible to ignore that our football team hasn't improved over the past two years. I am deeply disappointed in our poor win-loss record during this period, of course, but my decision also speaks to my concern about our long-term future should we stay the course."

Carthon was hired as Tennessee's general manager in January 2023 and added the executive vice president title in January 2024.

The Titans' spending spree last offseason resulted in the additions of wide receiver Calvin Ridley, running back Tony Pollard, cornerbacks L'Jarius Sneed and Chidobe Awuzie and defensive tackle Sebastian Joseph-Day. However, the fortunes of the team didn't change.

"We just haven't improved this football team for the last couple of years," Titans president and CEO Burke Nihill said. "We've won nine of the 34 games we've played over the past two seasons, and as much as the record was concerning to Amy as it was to all of our fans, her assessment was also that we're not on course to get where we need to go moving forward. As difficult as these decisions are, she believed it was the right one.

"Speaking of a change of the general manager specifically, Ran was hired into a very different job description than the one that exists today. Ran was hired for a general manager position that was very specific to the circumstances at the time, and the forecasting was the general manager would be able to partner very closely with the head coach, the existing head coach, and as the circumstances exists today, the general manager position is different. And so, what Chad, who is leading the search, will be looking for is a very different skill set for a very different job description."

--Field Level Media