Titans President & CEO Steve Underwood yesterday said that he is "not aware of other owners being disgruntled with the Titans" over the state of their ownership, according to John Glennon of the Nashville TENNESSEAN. Underwood said, “I’ve never heard that. I’ve never heard a single other person say that.” He added that it "didn’t matter if the league hypothetically might feel the Titans needed new ownership, nor that the NFL might hypothetically be lining up potential buyers for the team." Glennon notes those scenarios "have been the subject of reports, though there has never been a firm, on-the-record source associated with any of them." Underwood: "It’s really hard to do that when it’s not for sale. You can have all the buyers in the world, but if there’s not a seller, you can’t sell anything. The team is not for sale. It’s never been for sale." Glennon notes what "has been acknowledged since owners’ meetings in March is that the league has some issue -- though never publicly specified by either side -- with the current ownership group, which consists of controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk, Susie Adams Smith, Kenneth Adams and Barclay Cunningham Adams." Underwood said that he did not know when fans could expect a resolution to the ownership situation "because the matter 'has been ongoing' since the death of franchise founder and owner Bud Adams" in October '13 (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 1/19).
SEARCH PARTY: In Nashville, Jason Wolf notes the Titans yesterday formally introduced new GM Jon Robinson and coach Mike Mularkey, who "retains the permanent job despite a 2-7 record as interim coach." Robinson, who will have control over the 53-man roster, said, "I’ve been a Titans fan ever since ’97 when this team moved here. We’re going to build this team the right way. All decisions that we make will be made in the best interest of this team." Wolf notes four candidates "interviewed for the head coaching position over a period of three days -- two from outside the organization -- before it was officially handed to Mularkey." Underwood said that Adams Strunk "selected each candidate and was present in Nashville for 'every word and every question of every interview.'” However, she "was not at the press conference" yesterday (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 1/19). ESPN's Adam Schefter noted Mularkey returned as coach in part because the Titans "wanted some continuity" and because "ownership stood behind" him." Schefter: “There’s been a sense of apathy around this team, and there really should be a sense of excitement being that they have Marcus Mariota, they have the No. 1 overall pick, they have a new general manager. They’ve got some things really going on for this franchise. But yet there’s some apathy surrounding it because I think they see some more of the same.” ESPN’s Louis Riddick said, “It will be interesting to see how Mike Mularkey and Jon Robinson merge their philosophies and whether or not they can come to a common ground” (“NFL Insiders,” ESPN2, 1/18).
THAT'S IT? ESPN.com's Paul Kuharsky wrote the Titans' decision to retain Mularkey "qualifies as uninspired." The team "opted for familiarity and missed out on an opportunity to take advantage of its position as the last team in search" of a coach. The move "suggests several things," one being the team's ownership "put too much of a premium on their comfort with the familiar." Bud Adams and his heirs have "too often been accused of being cheap." The Titans have paid Jeff Fisher $4M "not to coach as well as salaries for both Fisher's coordinators after he and his staff were out." The team also paid about $5M for Titans Senior Exec VP & COO Mike Reinfeldt "not to be the team's president" in '13 and '14 and about $3M for Mike Munchak "not to coach" in '14. In this instance, it is "hard not to think the price of Mularkey helped make him attractive" (ESPN.com, 1/16).
