All that comes back to the forefront this week as Callahan, the first branch off Taylor’s “coaching tree,” now prepares to face his mentor. The Titans (3-10) host the Bengals (5-8) on Sunday.
Callahan’s first season is going about as well as that 2019 campaign in Cincinnati, when the Bengals finished 2-14, but he took valuable lessons from those foundational years that led to a Super Bowl run in 2021.
“I thought Zac’s vision, he saw from the get-go what he wanted it to look like, and he never wavered from it, and in the midst of all the challenges and all the things that don’t go your way, the losing wears on you, but he never let it wear on him,” Callahan said.
“He was always consistent. He knew exactly what he wanted and how he wanted it to look and he stayed at that process. … He was great at building relationships with players and finding ways to get the most out of them amidst difficult circumstances, and how he did that is something I’ve always admired about him and I think it served him well.”
Callahan said the most difficult thing he’s dealing with now is keeping players focused, continuing to try to improve as a team and motivated on game days to go play again. That was the case for Cincinnati in those first two seasons, but Taylor managed to build a team that was finally able to break through the adversity in 2021.
The situations aren’t entirely the same, though. Callahan doesn’t have Joe Burrow in Tennessee, and he will have to build his own way, currently around 2023 second-round draft pick Will Levis, who averages 182.7 passing yards per game in 10 starts this season with 12 touchdowns, nine interceptions and seven fumbles.
“There’s a lot of lessons and parallels to building football teams and how we did things in Cincinnati, but yeah, there’s no Joe Burrow waiting for me, you know what I mean?” Callahan said. “That’s just the nature of how this all works, and Ja’Marr (Chase) has turned into one of the best players in football and those things are just how it’s been built there, and our availability and what it looks like for us will be very different. I hope the result is the same and that we build a competitive football team that’s in a contending mode for a long time and there are similarities there,... but how and where we get there are both very, very different processes that ultimately aren’t going to mirror each other a whole lot when it comes to that.”
The Callahan era at Tennessee started with three straight losses, including the first two by a touchdown against Chicago and the New York Jets. The Titans have managed wins over Miami, New England (in overtime) and Houston since then, but added a 20-17 loss to Indianapolis and a 10-6 loss to Jacksonville on Sunday and the rest have been double-digit defeats.
Turnovers have been the biggest struggle, but Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo said Levis is starting to get the ball out more quickly and making better decisions if the pass isn’t there. Bengals coach Zac Taylor sees some similarities in the scheme to what Callahan had a hand in with Cincinnati, but Callahan’s dad, offensive line coach Bill Callahan, also brought some of what he did with Cleveland’s running game.
“I see a team on the rise, certainly,” Taylor said. “You’ve gotta start with the foundation of it. That first year is always difficult. Rarely do you get an opportunity to walk in and take a team to the playoffs and all the pieces are there. You can see them working through that. But you watch the tape and there’s a lot to be concerned about on our end. He’s got a really good coaching staff in place. Again, it’s one we gotta be ready for because they’ll be ready for us.”
Callahan said it will be “a little strange” to be on the other side of the field now and facing the team he helped coach for five years, but there will be friendly greetings before and after the game.
Taylor and Callahan still regularly talk or text each other — just not this week. Taylor said outside of his own staff and his brother, Jacksonville offensive coordinator Press Taylor, Callahan is the person he speaks to most often, so he looks forward to the reunion.
“It is a cool moment in pre-game to see Cally, and I’m so proud of where he’s at and what he’s building there, and so again, I’m happy for that, but at the same time, you’re able to remove all that emotion and just focus on the Tennessee Titans,” Taylor said. “And, you know, we’ll obviously get together briefly before the game starts on the field, but once the game kicks off, that all goes out the window, and you’re just trying to find a way to win.”
SUNDAY’S GAME
Bengals at Titans, 1 p.m., FOX, 700, 1530, 102.7, 104.7
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