One of the Tennessee Titans‘ most consistent weapons was their rushing attack in 2024, and head coach Brian Callahan believes they could be better in 2025.
During his media session, Callahan touched on the running game and how he is working toward keeping the backs fresh going into the season. During the 2024 season, Tyjae Spears and Tony Pollard battled some nagging injuries, which caused some uneven moments.
“He was battling the second half of the year quite a bit. But I think in a perfect world, it’s a healthier division of labor. I think he ended up carrying the ball a lot. He was our most productive running back.” Callahan said about Pollard, “And then Tyjae (Spears) had some injuries early, too. So, he ended up playing a lot early, and then Tyjae sort of came on as the year went on further.”
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Throughout the offseason, Callahan has talked about the team’s desire to add a different type of back to the roster. They did just that during the NFL draft by adding Michigan running back Kalel Mullings in the sixth round. During this same availability, he mentioned Mullings and Julius Chestnutt and how they could add something to the backfield moving forward.
“So, I like really both of those players a lot, I think we can do a better job of managing that load so they both play a little more evenly and allows us to maybe have a spot for a third back between Julius (Chestnut) and Kalel (Mullings), some heavier style back and runner.” He said, “So hopefully that division of labor gets a little more evenly distributed, so he doesn’t have to take the brunt of it. And we can get 17 games out of all those guys at their best.”
Make no mistake, Pollard will still be the engine that makes the running game go and should be one of the cornerstones for an offense that may be breaking in a rookie quarterback in 2025. Hopefully, this new plan can keep him fresh and healthy throughout the season.
This article originally appeared on Titans Wire: Tennessee Titans’ Brian Callahan talks Tony Pollard and his workload