Titans head coach Brian Callahan says exactly what fans have known about incoming NFL rookies for a while now

"Yeah you do. It's different...Let's not pretend guys weren't coming into the league with money before...But the kids coming in now, it's a different style. They've already been paid, you know, so this isn't the first time they've had money. And I think that part is unique, that the money thing isn't new."

Fans, coaches, and the vast majority of everyone involved doesn't have any issue with players getting paid in college. However, the mindset as it relates to transfers does seem to be having an impact on players as they enter the NFL.

"But what is new for them is that now they can't transfer, and they are under contract. I think that's a different mindset for them. Like they're used to being able to kind of freely move wherever they want in college football. Transfer two, three times. And [there's] nothing wrong with transferring, but it's a different mindset. When things are hard in the NFL you're under contract. And you're either going to get cut or you're going to figure it out. And I think that's where it changes for [incoming rookies and young players in the transfer and NIL era]."

Football fans in college and the NFL have known for a while now that the "transfer mindset" can easily become a negative thing that incentivizes players to bounce any time that things become difficult or expectations aren't met just right. And that certainly does not gel well with the mindset necessary to succeed in the NFL. And it actually seems like that kind of mindset is intentionally being avoided by general manager Ran Carthon as he builds the Titans' roster for the most part.

Titans Mostly Avoiding Transfers?

It's only been two years, but Ran Carthon has only selected two transfer players in the NFL Draft. The most notable of course is quarterback Will Levis, who began his career at Penn State before transferring to Kentucky. The other is cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr., who started at Florida State prior to joining the Louisville Cardinals. But neither of them look like the typical transfer types where coaches worry about their mindset.

Levis and Brownlee both play with an undeniable intensity and physicality that clearly exemplifies the kind of culture fit Carthon (and new head coach Brian Callahan) is looking to add to the Titans. They're both "DAWG" types, as Ran Carthon recently described players he likes at a special 104.5 The Zone interview event. DAWG stands for "Disciplined ***holes With Grit", and based on how they both play and act, that's the perfect description for both.

It seems like head coach Callahan and general manager Carthon are on the same page when it comes to avoiding players with certain kinds of weaker mindsets, susceptible to leaving when things get hard. It will be interesting to see how the transfer and NIL eras in college football continue impacting incoming NFL rookies of the future. But for now, it seems the Titans are avoiding those kinds of "transfer mindset" players who could have a negative impact on team culture.

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