The Tennessee Titans had a miserable day for their special teams on Sunday. On Monday, the team fired coordinator Craig Aukerman.
The Tennessee Titans have fired special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman, according to TennesseeTitans.com reporter Jim Wyatt. The move comes one day after the team lost in overtime to their AFC South rivals, the Indianapolis Colts, and ahead of a Monday Night Football meeting with the Miami Dolphins in Week 14. Aukerman has worked with the team since 2017 and has been the special teams coordinator since 2018.
Aukerman has been a consistent target for fan frustration over the last several years as the Titans have been inconsistent on special teams. On Sunday against the Colts, Tennessee had two straight punt attempts blocked. Indianapolis scored 10 points off those turnovers and punter Ryan Stonehouse suffered a season-ending injury to his leg on the second botched punt.
“We try to get a feel for what’s best and what’s needed,” head coach Mike Vrabel said after making the coaching change. “When we’ve done some things in the past, there are times when we didn’t run a certain coverage or didn’t run a certain play. Those decisions are about timing and feel. That’s the decision that was made. We’re going to get back to work here, moving forward, and try to get as healthy as possible and go down and win a game against a very good opponent on the road on a big stage.”
The Titans and Dolphins kick off at 8:15 p.m. on Sunday. Tennessee is a 13-point underdog for the game and could also be without running back Derrick Henry, who is dealing with a head injury.
For more on the firing of Aukerman and all things Titans, check out Music City Miracles.