NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- It was clear when Marcus Mariota stood frustrated and, in his own words, "embarrassed" at the podium following a 35-14 playoff loss to New England last week that the Tennessee Titans were at a crossroads.
"You play to win the whole thing," Mariota said after the game. "Yeah, it's nice to be in the playoffs, but again, you don't play to get in, especially coming into the divisional playoff and losing the way we did."
It felt as if Mike Mularkey began to dig his heels in Sunday afternoon as he had an entirely different take from his starting quarterback, talking status quo and continuity in his season-ending press conference.