The AFC South has officially become a three-team race.

The 2-5 Jacksonville Jaguars still have plenty of room for improvement after their poor start, with the 4-3 Indianapolis Colts two games ahead of them and the 5-2 Houston Texans three games ahead.

However, there is still a lot of time left in the season and the Jaguars obviously have yet to throw in the towel.

However, the same cannot be said for the Jaguars’ most bitter rival in the AFC South, the Tennessee Titans. The Titans started yesterday by trading star veteran wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Kansas City Chiefs, a move that can only be a sign that they’ve realized the Titans’ 1-5 start.

The Titans made one thing clear on Wednesday morning: They are waving the white flag for the 2024 season and are officially looking ahead to 2025. Otherwise, they would not actively put their offense at worst and receive a conditional Day 3 pick in return.

Simply put, the Titans offense was already a dumpster fire before the Hopkins trade. There was no shortage of weapons either, as Hopkins and Calvin Ridley were more than good enough in the passing game to at least stay afloat.

The main problem with the Titans’ offense and their lack of pass production is struggling second-year quarterback Will Levis. First-year head coach Brian Callahan — who may be coaching for the job at this point — has been openly frustrated with the error-prone Levis all year. Now it seems as if the frustration has boiled over.

Perhaps Levis will return to the starting lineup over Mason Rudolph once he recovers from his shoulder injury, but the Titans have made it clear that doesn’t actually matter. With this trade, they are saying that the season is longer about developing Levis and evaluating him – instead, that evaluation has already been completed.

If that wasn’t the case, the Titans wouldn’t have given up their top target for a Day 3 pick. The Titans are facing the cold reality of their 2024 season, and this week’s transfer of Hopkins makes that clear to the entire NFL world.

The Jaguars can keep their focus firmly on the two AFC South teams in front of them; the team behind them has already given up.

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