Tennessee Titans fire GM Jon Robinson following loss to Eagles, A.J. Brown

The Tennessee Titans fired general manager Jon Robinson on Tuesday, ending a seven-season run that made the Titans the class of the AFC South but also brought scrutiny about Robinson's ability to build a championship-winning roster.

The Titans went 66-43 under Robinson, reaching the AFC Championship during the 2019 season and securing the No. 1 seed in the playoffs in 2021. But despite postseason berths in four of Robinson's six full seasons, including the past three, a confluence of failed selections at the top of the NFL draft, the untimely trade of star receiver A.J. Brown and some uncharacteristic performances this season put Robinson's tenure in the cross-hairs.

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"Since becoming controlling owner in 2015, my goal has been to raise the standard for what is expected in all facets of our organization," Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk said in a statement. "I believe we have made significant progress both on and off the field through investments in leadership, personnel and new ideas. This progress includes the core of our business, the football team itself, which is regularly evaluated both by results (wins and losses) and team construction/roster building. I am proud of what we have accomplished in my eight seasons of ownership, but I believe there is more to be done and higher aspirations to be met.

"I want to thank Jon for his dedicated work to set this organization on an upward trajectory and I wish him and his family the best."

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Ryan Cowden, the Titans' executive vice president of player personnel since 2018, will take over for Robinson in the interim. Cowden oversees college and pro scouting and free agency preparation. He has been with the franchise for seven years.

The Titans (7-5) hold a three-game lead over the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South but haven't looked particularly dominant. They have lost three of their past five games, including a 35-10 loss at NFL-leading Philadelphia on Sunday that saw Brown torch his former team for 119 yards and two touchdowns.

The Titans host the Jacksonville Jaguars (4-8) at Nissan Stadium on Sunday.

Robinson, 46, was hired as Titans general manager in 2016 and also has been executive vice president since 2017. Under Robinson's leadership, the Titans have won back-to-back AFC South titles after hiring Mike Vrabel in 2018. Last season, Vrabel was named the NFL's coach of the year.

The Titans' moves in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft under Robinson have largely been hit or miss. Dating back to 2016, he used first- and second-round picks to select stars like running back Derrick Henry, defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons, Brown, outside linebacker Harold Landry III and offensive tackle Jack Conklin. But Conklin and Brown are no longer with the Titans, nor are 2017 first-round picks Corey Davis and Adoree Jackson, 2018 first-round pick Rashaan Evans or 2020 first-round pick Isaiah Wilson, who only played in one game for the Titans and is now out of the NFL. Robinson used his first-round pick in 2021 to draft injury-prone cornerback Caleb Farley, who has had both of his professional seasons capped by season-ending injuries and was primarily used on special teams in 2022 before his injury.

A first-time general manager who had previously worked for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New England Patriots, Robinson caught flak this offseason for failing to extend the contract of Brown, who the Titans traded to the Eagles for draft picks on the first night of the 2022 draft.

The Brown trade wasn't the only big swing Robinson took in player acquisition. He took chances on big-name edge rushers Jadeveon Clowney and Bud Dupree in free agency. He traded draft capital to acquire future Hall of Fame wide receiver Julio Jones. Perhaps most notably, he executed the trade to bring quarterback Ryan Tannehill to the Titans from the Miami Dolphins.

While the Tannehill acquisition went well for the Titans, Clowney and Jones barely contributed in their short Titans tenures and Dupree has struggled to stay healthy in his two years in a Titans uniform.