Count Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning as yet another person who is high on the Tennessee Titans’ hiring of new head coach Brian Callahan.
Callahan and Manning are very familiar with one another, as the pair spent four seasons together when both were with the Denver Broncos, where Callahan served as a coaching assistant, offensive quality control coach and offensive assistant over six total seasons there.
Manning called Callahan a “great hire” for the Titans and proceeded to heap praise on the 39-year-old head coach, who he says was “extremely helpful.”
“I’m very happy for Brian,” Manning said, according to Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com. “Brian was extremely helpful to me during my four years playing for the Broncos, when he and I were together. Extremely hard working, extremely intelligent and just overall a great person. Not only did I benefit from his coaching and all the help that he gave me as a quarterback for the Broncos, but also just thoroughly enjoyed being around him and coming to work every day. The quarterback room is a small room, and you’ve got three quarterbacks and usually two coaches in there. So, Brian and I spent a lot of time in those quarterback meetings. So just enjoyed being around him. So very happy for him getting this opportunity. I think it’s a great hire for the Tennessee Titans. I know he’ll give the Titans everything he has.”
Manning added that he and Callahan have stayed in touch over the years and he revealed that another one of the quarterbacks Callahan worked with, Joe Burrow, is also very high on the new Titans coach.
Manning also believes that Callahan will “do great things” for quarterback Will Levis.
“Brian and I have stayed in touch since I stopped playing for the Broncos and all the places he’s been, Detroit, Oakland and Cincinnati,” Manning added. “I’ve talked to Joe Burrow about him a number of times. I know Joe’s a big fan of Brian and Brian’s helped Joe out a lot as well. I know he’s going to do great things for Will Levis. But really obviously he’s the head coach of the team and will do great things for the team as well.”
This isn’t the first time Manning has publicly praised Callahan, as he also spoke highly of him back in 2022.
“Cally — everybody (in Denver) called him Cally — was there all night, early in the morning, breaking film down nonstop,” Manning said, per Dan Pompei of The Athletic. “It’s a grind. I like coaches that are willing to do that. Some coaches just want to skip right to being a full-time position coach, coordinator, head coach, but Cally going through the grind made him learn a lot as a coach.”
“(Callahan’s) got fire in him, and at the same time, Cally is in control,” Manning added. “It’s the perfect mix. He’s got a great demeanor for a quarterbacks coach, offensive coordinator or head coach in my opinion.”
We were already high on Callahan, but Manning’s praise only makes us more excited for what’s to come.
