NASHVILLE – Titans head coach Brian Callahan is handing off the play-calling duties to quarterbacks coach Bo Hardegree.
Callahan made the announcement on Tuesday morning at Ascension Saint Thomas Sports Park after talking with his staff.
"A lot of things you self-reflect on with the start that we've had so far, and things we have to get better at, and one of the things that I think will help our football team, help me be a better head coach for our team, is I am going to hand over the play-calling to Bo," Callahan said. "Bo has had some experience calling (plays), he's been with a rookie quarterback before, and that part will make it a little bit seamless in that regard.
"The other part of it is our offensive staff, and our game-planning process and system, is going to remain in place. It is still collaborative process, and we rely on everybody to do their part."
Nick Holz remains as offensive coordinator for the Titans and will continue to work alongside Callahan and Hardegree, with quarterbacks Cam Ward, Brandon Allen and Trevor Siemian. Senor offensive assistant Mike McCoy has a key role as well.
Callahan served as the team's play-caller since taking over as head coach in 2024. Callahan said he'll still be involved in the process, but the change will give him more flexibility during the week and on game days.
"One of the things I told the team, and told our players, after our game (vs the Colts) is: Everyone owns a mirror, right? We can all look at it and see where we can be better and what can help us be better," Callahan said. "I think this is one of the best things for us at the moment, to help me do a better job as a head coach and be more present and available for the football team, and less involved in just the day-to-day minutia of getting ready to call a game. I think it is going to be positive for us, I think it will help."
Hardegree is in his second season with the Titans, and his 12th season coaching in the NFL. He was hired by Callahan and the Titans in 2024 after spending two seasons (2022-23) with the Las Vegas Raiders. A Tennessee native and University of Tennessee product, Hardegree arrived at the Titans with 16 total years of coaching experience.
Asked to describe his philosophy as a play caller, Hardegree said: "Protect the ball, and score points."
"We evaluate everything every week," Hardegree said. "We're just going to call the best plays for our players on Sunday, put them in the best situation possible. … It's all about the players and putting them in the best spot. You only get a certain amount of calls on Sunday, and you just have to hit on those."
During his first season with the Titans, Hardegree aided the development of second-year quarterback Will Levis, who recorded 12 starts. Meanwhile, veteran Mason Rudolph started five games, his highest total in a season since 2019. From Week 10 to Week 18, the Titans tied for eighth in the NFL in gross passing yards (2,116) and ranked seventh in yards per attempt (7.64).
Hardegree joined the Raiders as quarterbacks coach in 2022 and was promoted to interim offensive coordinator for the final nine games of 2023.
During the time Hardegree was offensive coordinator, fourth-round rookie quarterback Aidan O'Connell started all nine games and went 5-4. His 1,905 passing yards during that stretch ranked second among all rookie quarterbacks, as did his 11 touchdown passes. O'Connell also posted the third-best passer rating (83.9) among all qualifying 2023 rookies.
The 2023 Raiders offense improved in most major offensive categories with Hardegree as offensive coordinator for the final nine games, including the following: yards per game (268.3 in Games 1-8 to 308.4 in Games 9-17), yards per play (4.6 to 5.1), passing yards per game (198.3 to 199.3), rushing yards per game (70.0 to 109.1), third-down percentage (32.6 to 37.8), red-zone percentage (44.0 to 54.5), points per game (15.8 to 22.9) and sacks allowed per game (2.8 to 2.0).
In 2022, Hardegree guided Derek Carr to his fourth career Pro Bowl after the Raiders signal caller completed 305 of 502 passes for 3,522 yards and 24 touchdowns. Carr's 24 passing touchdowns ranked 12th-best in the NFL, while his 10 touchdown passes of 30-plus yards led the league. Hardegree also assisted quarterback Jarrett Stidham in his first two career NFL starts in Week 17 and 18, seeing him pass for 584 yards, four touchdowns and a 91.6 rating.
There was a point earlier this offseason when Callahan thought he might lose Hardegree from his staff.
Hardegree interviewed for the offensive coordinator spot for the Chicago Bears during the offseason, but they ultimately hired Declan Doyle.
During an interview at the NFL Combine, Callahan said he was happy to retain Hardegree, but wondered how long he'd be able to keep him.
Callahan, in fact, said he believes Hardegree might be a head coach one day.
"He is such a valuable part of our process," Callahan said of Hardegree back in February. "I lean on him a lot, trust him. He is a really, really good quarterbacks coach. There's two parts to coaching – obviously the schematic part, and the position coaching part, technique and details and fundamentals. I think Bo is excellent at both. I don't think Bo is going to be with us forever.
"I think he is going to be calling plays, and I think Bo will be a head coach at some point, too. He's an excellent football coach."
Hardegree has worked closely with Ward since he was drafted first overall by the franchise.
In three games, Ward has completed 54-of-99 passes for 506 yards and a two touchdowns, an interception, with a 71.4 rating.
"Going from quarterback coach to a role like this, being a play-caller, I am with (Cam) every day, I talk to him every day, I check in on him at night, we have a meeting this afternoon," Hardegree said. "So that's not going to change. It will be just me and him rocking and rolling on Sunday.
"Brian made the decision yesterday and we talked about some things. He is involved, everybody is still involved – that's he good thing with the stability of everything. The only change is just me calling on Sunday."
In 2021, Hardegree played a key role in the development of Patriots first-round pick Mac Jones, who led all rookie quarterbacks with 3,801 passing yards and 22 touchdowns. Jones' 10 wins were the most in a season by a Patriots rookie quarterback, and his 67.6 completion percentage was the second best by a rookie in league history.
Prior to joining the Patriots, Hardegree logged two years as an offensive assistant with the New York Jets. Under the guidance of Hardegree in 2019, quarterback Sam Darnold improved in multiple categories from his rookie season, recording career highs in completion percentage (61.9 percent), passing yards (3,024) and touchdowns (19), while recording the league's 10th best passer rating (84.3) and compiling a 6-2 record over the final eight games of the season.
Before joining the Jets, Hardegree spent three seasons as quarterbacks coach of the Miami Dolphins, where he worked with quarterbacks Jay Cutler, Matt Moore, Brock Osweiler and Ryan Tannehill.
In his first season with the Dolphins in 2016, Hardegree guided Tannehill to then-career highs with a 93.5 quarterback rating, 7.7 yards per attempt and a 67.1 completion percentage. Under Hardegree's tutelage, both Tannehill and Moore led the NFL in red zone passer rating. Tannehill posted a 119.7 mark to lead the league, while Moore finished second at 118.8.
Prior to the Dolphins, Hardegree spent one season in Chicago as an offensive assistant with the Bears in 2015.
Hardegree entered the NFL as an offensive quality control coach with the Denver Broncos in 2014 while Brian Callahan served as an offensive assistant that same season. The Broncos offense ranked second in the NFL in scoring, averaging 30.1 points per contest with quarterback Peyton Manning.
Prior to Denver, Hardegree spent three years (2011-13) as an intern at Louisiana State.
Hardegree began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Duke (2008-10), where he earned his master's degree.
At the University of Tennessee, Hardegree played quarterback and was a member of SEC Eastern Division championship teams in 2004 and 2007. The Volunteers won the 2005 Cotton Bowl and the 2008 Outback Bowl during his tenure. He also played tennis for the Volunteers and earned a degree in exercise science in 2007.
Hardegree, a native of Jackson, Tennessee, was an all-state quarterback and tennis standout at Jackson Central-Merry High School.
The Titans return to action on Sunday at the Houston Texans.
For the first time, Hardegree will be preparing as a play-caller.
"It is a new challenge every week for an offense," Hardegree said. "You obviously see who the game-wreckers are, you deal with those first. Where are the advantages for us in the defense? Is it personnel, schematics, what are our guys doing well? What do we need to do more of? It is more about us than them."
