Mike Mularkey, Titans Mutually Agree To Part Ways Despite Contract Extension Talks

Mike Mularkey and the Tennessee Titans have mutually agreed to part ways.

Mike Mularkey and the Tennessee Titans have mutually agreed to part ways, the team announced.

"I want to thank Mike Mularkey for his contributions to our franchise over his tenure with our organization," owner Amy Adams Strunk said in a statement. "He took over our team during a low moment and together with Jon built a solid foundation for our franchise. I appreciated that Mike devoted himself to this team and the community. In fact, we did discuss extending his future with our team over the past week, but in those discussions about the direction of the team, it became evident that we saw different paths to achieve greater success. It is certainly unfortunate that we couldn’t find enough common ground. I generally believe that continuity is the best path for success, but I also view this as an important moment for our football team as we try to make that next step to sustained success on the field. Jon will begin the search immediately to identify that person.”

The news was first reported by ESPN's Field Yates.

The news comes less than 24 hours after it was reported that the team was negotiating the terms of a contract extension for the head coach. Mularkey held a press conference on Sunday in which he said he did not anticipate any staff changes for next year, which would have been the final season of a three-year deal. 

Mularkey is 21–22 in his three seasons as the Titans' head coach. The Titans are coming off back-to-back years in which they finished with a 9–7 regular season record. Tennessee clinched its first playoff berth for the first time in nine years. The Titans' victory over the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Wild Card Game was their first postseason victory in 14 years.

The Titans' season came to an end on Sunday with a 35–15 loss to the New England Patriots in the divisional round.

The Titans may be considering Josh McDaniels as a possible replacement for Mularkey.