The Tennessee Titans enter the final week of the 2023 season with nothing to play for after the team was eliminated from playoff contention weeks ago.
Knowing that, a loss would benefit the Titans the most because it could help them move up in the 2024 NFL draft order, where they currently sit in the No. 7 spot.
The Titans can’t finish any lower than No. 8, but they could move all the way up to No. 4 with a loss and some help, which would guarantee them one of the top two left tackles coming out while also giving them a shot at wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr.
If there is one upside to winning, beating the Jacksonville Jaguars would not only spoil their hopes of winning the division crown, it could stop them from getting into the playoffs entirely.
But that isn’t the reason head coach Mike Vrabel wants to win on Sunday. He had a very different — and fiery — answer for why he wants to beat Jacksonville on Sunday.
“Cause it sucks to lose,” he said, per AtoZ Sports Nashville. “It [expletive] sucks, losing. Awful. That’s why I want to win. Because you don’t sleep. You want to win for the players that bust their tail, that’s it.”
The exchange can be viewed below (warning: NSFW language).
“It sucks to lose. Awful. It f—-ing suck”
FAIR or FOUL to ask Mike Vrabel a follow up question to “why it’s important to win in Week 18”?? pic.twitter.com/obZtfxgcYA
— AtoZ Sports Nashville (@AtoZSports) January 2, 2024
Vrabel’s response was to a question posed by Gentry Estes of The Tennessean, who had this to say after the presser was over:
And fwiw, I had zero problem with Vrabel’s response. I liked the answer. Thought it was one of his best, most genuine interactions with us this season.
— Gentry Estes (@Gentry_Estes) January 2, 2024
While I appreciate Vrabel’s competitiveness, losing definitely would not [expletive] suck for the Titans in this situation considering how much a higher draft selection would help their cause in improving the team in 2024.
