While we knew Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill suffered an ankle injury during the Week 6 game against the Baltimore Ravens, the specifics of the issue weren’t known.
However, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Turron Davenport shed some light on the injury, reporting that Tannehill is dealing with a high-ankle sprain and could miss time. The good news is, he won’t need surgery.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter then added that the injury is to the same ankle the veteran signal-caller had surgery on last season.
Now, there are scenarios where players make a faster recovery, but many times such an injury can take about four to six weeks to recover from, and more severe ones can take longer.
Tannehill initially missed two games with the aforementioned ankle injury in 2022, and then suffered a high-ankle sprain later on in the season and was forced to miss the final three games.
Unlike last year when Titans QB Ryan Tannehill suffered a similar ankle injury, I’m told Tannehill will NOT require surgery this time around. He’s currently in a cast diagnosed with a high ankle sprain, and there’s no definitive timeline for recovery… but “overall good news.” pic.twitter.com/u2WKtqG5Xr
— Jeff Darlington (@JeffDarlington) October 17, 2023
So, it would appear Tannehill won’t be ready to go when the Titans come out of their bye week, which leads to the question: who will start in his place?
Second-year quarterback Malik Willis came off the bench for Tannehill in Week 6 but had no success, with his best play coming on a screen pass to running back Tyjae Spears that saw the rookie do all the work.
Rookie Will Levis has been serving as the emergency quarterback behind Willis, but it isn’t out of the realm of possibility that he jumps the Liberty product on the depth chart and gets the nod against the Atlanta Falcons.
When asked about the situation on Monday, head coach Mike Vrabel said no decision has been made about who will start if Tannehill can’t play. He did say, however, that Tannehill would keep his job if he’s healthy enough to play.
