The death of Titans Owner Bud Adams "leaves many unanswered questions about the direction of the Titans over the coming weeks, months and years," according to David Climer of the Nashville TENNESSEAN. Much depends on "how the leadership group is structured in the post-Bud Adams era." Sources believe that a revised organizational chart "will be unveiled within the next two weeks." There already is speculation that Tommy Smith, Adams' son-in-law, "will oversee operations," with Adams' grandson and Titans General Counsel & Administrative Assistant to the Exec VP Kenneth S. Adams IV "taking on a more significant role." Bud Adams "had the last -- and only -- word on all meaningful decisions," but there will now be "more voices." Given the "state of flux surrounding" the Titans, coach Mike Munchak’s future with the team "now seems more secure." Munchak had the "ability to sell Bud on returning the franchise to its past glory," but in this "period of transition, nobody knows how these blasts from the past are going to fly." Adams' heirs are "more likely to be interested in current events than a history lesson." Still, it is "hard to envision that a new ownership group, regardless of how it is structured, will want to fire the coach that was hand-picked by the founder of the franchise" (Nashville TENNESSEAN, 10/23).
