Before the Titans beat the Jaguars in Week 17 to book a trip to the playoffs, there was word that Titans coach Mike Mularkey could be fired if the team lost.
There was a similar report on Saturday ahead of the team’s Wild Card game in Kansas City, which meant that Mularkey didn’t have a totally celebratory press conference after his team came back for a 22-21 win. Mularkey called the talk about his job security “ridiculous” and “had a big effect on me” because it had a big effect on his family.
Mularkey also said he didn’t hear anything from the team that left him feeling like his job was secure.
“No, I haven’t had any support to say that I was. No, I just assumed the worst,” Mularkey said, via the team.
Mularkey’s players don’t seem to like that their coach was left to twist in the wind either. Cornerback Logan Ryan pointed out that the team hadn’t been to the playoffs since 2008 and linebacker Brian Orakpo brought up Mularkey’s 18-14 record over the last two years when asked about the chatter after the game.
“We’ve had back-to-back winning seasons. We made the playoffs. We won a playoff game,” Orakpo said, via ESPN.com. “What more do people want? It’s f---ing ridiculous.”
Assuming Mularkey avoids being fired whenever the playoff run comes to an end, the next question will be whether he gets a contract extension as 2018 is the final year on his current deal.