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Turron Davenport, ESPN
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Something just wasn’t right for Tennessee Titans quarterback Will Levis.
So he finally relayed the thought to his new coach, Brian Callahan, during OTAs last month.
When Levis executed a play-action pass, he realized he was moving his feet too much and wanted to be “more stationary.” The pair made it a point to discuss it after practice.
Levis, obsessed with being in tune with his mechanics, is always searching for a correlation to the results, whether they are positive or negative.
“I’m not sure I’ve ever been around a guy who’s so in touch with all of his mechanical things,” offensive coordinator Nick Holz said.
As Levis looked back on his rookie journey where he took over as the starter seven games into the season, he recalled how he didn’t like the way throwing the ball felt at times.
“Quarterbacks are weirdos,” Levis said at the start of minicamp. “We’re always tweaking something, feeling like something might be off. The ball wasn’t coming out the way that I would’ve liked it to, and I just started looking at what could potentially be the cause of it.”
#Titans Will Levis has worked to tweak mechanics with Brian Callahan. He’s also worked with Rob Williams and QB Motion for quite some time. Levis said he plans to get them both in contact with each other to mesh what he’s working on pic.twitter.com/n1OmTn6RT6
— TURRON DAVENPORT (@TDavenport_NFL) June 4, 2024
THE DECISION TO make the tweaks became a joint project for Levis, Callahan, Holz and quarterbacks coach Bo Hardegree. Levis’ personal position coach, Rob Williams of QB Motion, will join that mix as well this summer.
After studying Levis’ game film, they found some specific areas to work on and focused on the changes throughout the spring and into the summer.
What are they looking to tweak?
“One of the big things we’ve emphasized with Will is his base, how important that is to playing quarterback,” Callahan said at the start of mandatory minicamp earlier this month. “Being able to play on time, being able to get the ball out quickly.”
Callahan said Levis has always had a natural quick release. But they’re dialing in on consistently playing with a great base. Two areas of focus include more discipline in his footwork leading into the base of the top of the drop and being able to take a shorter first step before the ball comes out. Tightening the footwork and combining that with Levis’ already quick release will help him be more on time within the system Callahan is implementing.
Callahan’s scheme is comprised of various offenses he’s been involved with that featured an impressive list of quarterbacks. Levis watches cutups of Hall of Famer Peyton Manning, Matthew Stafford and Joe Burrow — all of which have worked with Callahan over the years — to get a visual idea of how playing with a great base can help him play within the timing of the offense.
On the field, Hardigree spent the most time with Levis during OTAs and minicamp. He’s been the driving force behind nailing down the targeted adjustments. Hardigree puts the quarterbacks through a drill in which he throws small bags at their feet for them to avoid while throwing to a designated pass-catcher.
“It’s really for him to just tie in his lower body with the timing of the play and kind of learning what drops, what movements are required,” Hardigree said. “Certain routes take a certain concept, so we’re practicing it.”
THE RESULTS HAVE shown on occasion — like the final OTA practice where Levis connected with wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine for two touchdowns. But there’s also room for improvement — like when Levis was late on deep passes that should have been easy completions to Westbrook-Ikhine and Treylon Burks early in minicamp.
One thing Callahan has discovered is Levis is “incredibly coachable.” Holz complimented Levis for how he takes the suggestions to heart, showing how intentional Levis’ focus is on the specific adjustment the next time he’s on the field.
But not all changes come solely from the coaching staff. Callahan and the crew pride themselves on allowing Levis to make suggestions as well. This freedom has allowed the coaches to see just how in touch Levis is with his mechanics.
“He’s a guy that can feel it,” Hardigree said. “If a certain throw isn’t where he wants it to be or it didn’t go out on time, he has immediate feedback.”
The feel for everything comes from the immense work Levis has put in with Williams, his personal quarterback coach. The two first got together when Levis was at Penn State (before transferring to Kentucky in 2021). Levis credited Williams with helping him go from an arm thrower to a full-body passer.
“It’s a very different way to generate power using the big powerful muscles in the middle of the body, your hips and core and legs,” Williams said. “It is more efficient, you will be more accurate, you will have more power.”
#Titans QB Will Levis and QB Motion (a position specific coaching service from Canada) worked with a group of young QBs over the last couple of days. A lot of attention to detail. pic.twitter.com/S4OiUiGSvZ
— TURRON DAVENPORT (@TDavenport_NFL) May 12, 2024
WILLIAMS BELIEVES BY emphasizing footwork he can help quarterbacks discover the most effective way to deliver the ball in tight spaces with limited time to do so. He refers to the technique as “rotary mechanics.”
A good example of the focus on the lower body that Williams preaches was on display during a passing camp that Levis collaborated with QB Motion on in Nashville in the spring. The camp included a small number of high school quarterbacks along with Penn State quarterback Beau Pribula and former Georgia Tech signal-caller Aiden Semo.
With Williams leading the way, the group of passers spent a large part of the first session without the football in their hands as they focused solely on establishing a strong base from their feet to their hips. After almost two hours, they worked their way up to throwing the ball.
Callahan understands they can’t coach Levis year-round, so he sees a benefit in having a personal coach. But it will only work if everyone is on the same page. The Titans staff will communicate their goals to Williams through Levis.
“Will’s done this before — where I haven’t had direct communication with the coaches,” Williams said. “But we will get on a call, and he’ll say, ‘OK, we’re working on this footwork, or they want me to have my base a little narrower or they want me to shorten this step.'”
Williams then devises the most efficient way to carry out the mission but from a kinesiology standpoint. For example, Williams has already worked with Levis to shorten steps and “get more deceleration on his second step so that by the time he hits the third and final step, his hips are loaded, and he can easily transfer weight to get more on his throw.” The goal is to do things at a more rapid and efficient pace.
Williams said he intends to spend some time in Nashville with Levis, and the two have discussed Levis flying to Vancouver, where Williams is based, as well. When they aren’t together, they’ll have multiple weekly passing sessions with Williams overseeing Levis’ throwing motion by way of video cam.
Levis plans to resume work with Williams after taking some down time with his family, though, and he already began a retreat with his receivers in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico earlier this week.
In Year 1, Levis finished with 1,808 passing yards, eight touchdowns and four interceptions in nine games, so the Titans — and Levis — know that their success largely hinges upon Levis taking a step in the right direction. If Williams has it his way, the steps will be much shorter but much more efficient.