Will Levis‘ 2025 campaign has ended before it began. The third-year Titans quarterback is set to undergo surgery on his throwing shoulder, as first reported by Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. 
The procedure is scheduled for July 29. Levis has elected to prioritize his long-term health by going under the knife in anticipation of the 2026 campaign. Today’s news ends the possibility of any competition between Levis and No. 1 pick Cam Ward for the starting gig during training camp.
“After consulting with doctors and his representatives, Will Levis has decided to undergo shoulder surgery that will sideline him for the entire 2025 season,” a team statement reads. “We support his decision to focus on his long-term health. He approached the offseason with professionalism and showed clear growth as a leader. We remain confident in his full recovery.”
Levis took over starting duties from Ryan Tannehill during his rookie season, logging nine appearances. He largely remained atop the depth chart for 2024, the first year with new head coach Brian Callahan in place. Things did not go according to plan for Levis, who struggled with poor play and injury during the campaign. Once the Titans secured the No. 1 pick, the possibility remained that a new quarterback starter would be targeted (especially given Mason Rudolph‘s free agent departure).
Indeed, Ward’s showings in the pre-draft process confirmed his status as Tennessee’s preferred option at the top of the board. He and Levis shared first-team reps during the spring, and a similar arrangement may have been in store for training camp. Despite participating in OTAs and minicamp, however, Levis will miss the coming campaign in its entirety.
The former second-round pick will have one year remaining on his rookie deal once the 2026 season begins. That year will obviously be key for Levis, who was linked to trade rumors this offseason. The Titans have insisted no efforts were made to move on from the 26-year-old, and given today’s news there will obviously be no market in his case at least until he returns to full health. Ward will now enter camp even more assured of the starting gig than he already was.
Behind him on the depth chart are veterans Brandon Allen and Tim Boyle. Those two were in position to compete for the third-string role during camp, with the runner-up being a release candidate during roster cutdowns. Instead, Allen and Boyle could be in position to remain in place unless a new signal-caller is brought in during the summer.
Tennessee’s success in 2025 was already going to depend in large part on Ward’s development as a rookie. That is especially the case now that Levis will not be available as a backup option. As the Kentucky product’s attention shifts to recovery, it will be interesting to see if the team pursues a depth addition for at least the summer.
It will be baptism by fire for Cam Ward.
It was gonna be anyway.
It’s better for Levis’s long term health because now there’s less risk of Brian Callahan snapping and murdering him after a chaotic interception.
Dammmit he was competing for that job!! Damn it!!
This will cut down on his int’s!
Let’s see how the strategy works out for him, Cotton.
RIP the memes
I hope Brian’s Dad, Big Tom, approves of the job he’s doing. I’m sure he has a job waiting for him at the tire factory after he gets fired for kill killing Ward
Great timing to have season ending surgery. Who’s next? Anthony Richardson?
If Anthony doesn’t get winded first. Hard to get hurt when you choose to ride the pine.
Levis the new Chad Pennington on another team next year.
Chad Pennington was actually good. The only two times Brady didn’t win the AFC East, he was the QB of the team that knocked them off. Levis, well, is not.
He’s like the exact opposite of Chad Pennington. Pennington saw the game really well and had great judgement, but had extremely limited physical tools. Levis is a big, strong, mobile quarterback with a big arm and some of the most head-scratching decisions you’ll see from a starting quarterback in this era.
Does he have Michael Thomas’s doctor?
Tim Boyle’s desire for playing time strikes again. Won’t be doubting we’ll see him suiting up in Nashville this upcoming season.
Doesn’t the season have to start for it to be season ending? See why guaranteed money is a joke? I’ll guarantee it if you play, otherwise I’ll guarantee you won’t get paid is how it should be worded.
So players with short shelf lives who have to live with the physical damage for the rest of their lives should take on all the risk and owners with indefinite careers and appreciating assets shouldn’t? Besides, teams get insurance on contracts.
So playing football is mandatory? Guys sign up for EOD in the military. People sign up to work with lions. The risk is part of the payoff. I don’t feel sorry for any of them.
Who said anything about mandatory? Playing football is extremely competitive. So is fielding a football team. There are very few people who can do it at the highest level, and the highest level is an extraordinarily profitable industry. Rookie contracts are artificially suppressed. So are all contracts in a way–if everyone were a free agent and there was no salary cap, someone would pay Patrick Mahomes $80 million. If there were no draft or no rookie wage scale, early round picks would be paid much more. This has nothing to do with military or lions or whatever other irrelevant jobs.
Why is it a joke? without guaranteed money, a team can cut a player and not have to pay them a dime. Doesn’t really sound like a contract to me.
Does your job have guaranteed money? Thank you.
Regular jobs don’t have guaranteed money because the employees are free to seek other employment you dope. Sports contracts they can’t just up and leave to another team whenever they want. Different “Contracts”.
Wrong
Right… that’s why players act like 2 year olds and throw public temper tantrums and get traded where they choose most of the time. Normal people can’t do that in any job cause they’d get fired.
My job has a fair amount of guaranteed money unless I breach my contracts.
If you get fired today I almost guarantee you don’t get paid – unless maybe you have some PTO time they pay out, which is contractually obliged.. If the player didn’t want cut then either play up to the contract’s standards or sign a contract structured in a way that you’d get paid if cut.
People who say &%$# like this then get mad at guys for holding out to sign contracts with guaranteed money. Which they should. Football careers are short and can end at any time. Players should fight for what they can get, especially when their salaries are artificially deflated for at least their rookie contracts.
Anyone’s life can end at any time so that’s a joke of an argument if we’re going to be honest. They chose to get into the NFL, they chose the short career span, they chose to sign the contract I mean it is what it is. No one’s ‘mad’ at these guys lol, but most fans are tired of WR3’s complaining about their pay day like Jennings in SF. It gets old.
Veterans who are long retired chose the rookie wage scale. Guys entering the league didn’t. Guys also choose to fight for guaranteed money. I was responding to someone who called guarantees a joke when it’s non guaranteed money that’s a joke.
Jennings ended up as the WR1 in SF last year, so I’m not sure why you think most fans wouldn’t want him to be compensated for that. Yes I know Kittle had more counting stats.
He ended up the WR1 because of injuries, not skill. The dude just signed a 2 year deal last year March. Then they still went out in the 1st round and drafted Pearsall. Had he not gotten SHOT Jennings may have never even sniffed the grass last year. WR1 by default not by earning it.
If you leave out the part where he played very well. He’s a similar situation to Bateman, who got a new deal one year into a two year deal.
That’s the thing he wouldn’t of had production if there weren’t injuries… My whole entire point.. He wasn’t going to be on the field much otherwise. I do understand the Bateman comparison when it comes to production last year. Bateman is also 2 years younger and has draft pedigree that almost certainly helped in negotiations. His contract ends at Jennings’ current age. The 49ers have little money to go around in the next year + and Jennings is definitely not who they should invest it in.
Production doesn’t count if you get more opportunities than expected? Jennings got his first chance to show he’s a good starting caliber receiver and excelled.
No. You don’t project a contract off of a guy who’s top year is because of being an injury replacement…. Jennings averaged 321 yards a year for his ages 24-26 seasons. You pay the guy off of that, not the aberration of 975 yards when the other 3 guys are hurt.
Top year because of opportunity. It’s not his fault he was stuck behind two highly drafted, highly paid receivers, maybe the best tight end in football, and the best pass catching running back in football, all in one of the lowest volume passing attacks. He showed what he can do with a starting role, which is what a team would be paying for. He’s also one of the best blocking receivers in the league. Tutu Atwell and Dyami Brown both just got $10 million for this coming season almost entirely guaranteed and they were coming off career high years of 562 yards and 308 yards, respectively. Jennings is underpaid.
Jennings is properly paid, Tutu Atwell and Dyami Brown are overpaid. Once the opportunity dries up – once BA is back – Jennings will be forgotten about just as quickly as most learned of him. You don’t pay that guy. He makes enough.
He won’t be forgotten since Purdy clearly trust him. He trusted him when they had a fully stocked offense, they say 3rd and Jajuan for a reason.
He didn’t trust them with a fully stocked offense lol. The 3 years prior fully stocked he was beyond an afterthought. Jennings does get a lot of first downs though I’ll give him that they relied on him there last year.
I half agree with your hot take about not paying for a top year. But I also think you know in your heart that he is better than he was being paid. Like you said, he wasn’t expected to be that significant, until he was. Now he would like an increase. That shouldn’t be upsetting to anyone claiming to be a fan of the game.
He agreed to a contract last season and he should play it out. Like all of them should. Is he due for a little raise? Sure. Is he a WR1? Not in any world is this dude WR1 worthy.
Van Jefferson in 2021 went off for 802 yards. Half of those came AFTER Robert Woods, the incumbent 2, went down. He almost hasn’t got to that yardage for the rest of his career! Thank god someone didn’t pay him too.
Jefferson set that high in his second year. He wasn’t eligible to get a contract after that season. And unlike Jennings, who the 49ers signed to a second contract already, Jefferson got traded away for peanuts during his rookie deal, so the team that had him showed that they didn’t value him much.
Because he didn’t have value… One year that was an aberration.. Just like another guy… JAUAN JENNINGS! Lol.
Look at what Darnell Mooney got last year coming off two week years. Look at what Curtis Samuel gets every time he’s a free agent. You can pretend the market isn’t what it is, but I won’t.
Just because those guys are overpaid doesn’t mean Jennings needs more money…..
Most people would take the nfl players option if they were talented enough to. I’d love to work just 5-15 years and get generational wealth instead of having to work decades minimum just to retire. Normal people can’t pout for more $ and get rewarded for it so it’s annoying to see extra rich do it all the time and get rewarded.
100%. Us normal people realize that they can feed generations off their rookie deals, yet some people want to give them even more money because they like the color of their spikes today lol.
Jauan Jennings made less than $2.6 million on his rookie deal. If you think that can feed generations, especially after taxes and agent fees (and actually spending some on being a person), I’d like to know what century or third world country you’re living in.
2.6 Million?!?! Lol. If that’s not feeding at least 2 generations (you know, investing it into a portfolio or properties to rent) then you’re doing something wrong. I’d like to know what Beverly Hills democratic ran state you’re living in that 2.6M can’t last you a lifetime.
$2.6 million after taxes and agent fees would be about half that, likely less. Let’s call it $1.3 million. Now let’s assume that over the four years of that money he had to pay rent, have a vehicle, and eat. How much you think he has left? How many generations are you feeding with that? It’s not like $2.6 million in pre-tax earnings means a guy is sticking two million in a Roth IRA.
It’s roughly 1.6M he takes home. Maybe a little less because CA is a crap state with awfully high taxes and probably has the highest jock tax. Then he got another $6M. He’s doing JUST fine man. You want your team to pay a WR3 WR1 money? Fine with me lol.
You talked about rookie deals before you edited your comment. $2.6 million was his rookie deal. Even if you go with $1.6 million, after agent fees and living expenses over multiple years, he’s not taking home enough to “feed generations.”
WR1 money is well over $20 million a year now. Nowhere have I suggested Jennings should make this. I compared him to Rashod Bateman who got a two year deal last year, then got a new deal for 3 years $36.75 million this offseason.
I didn’t edit any of my comments, nor did I ever bring up rookie deals. You are the only one here discussing them. 1.6M home. 1M invested into properties or stocks or whatever of his choosing, 600K a year to live. You can’t live off of 600k? Must have a lavish lifestyle. He’s feeding his generation, and with the investments the next one too if he and his kids do it correctly.
$1.6 million TOTAL for his whole career until last season. Now do you get it?
So 400K a year isn’t enough? Once again. Invest 200. Live on 200. My statement stands if you can’t live off of 200K in a year then it’s time to step down the lifestyle lol.
Yes. I did mix up total compared to AAV. (edit here) I can admit when I’m obviously wrong. (end edit) But my point still stands it is plenty enough money to live off of. And if done correctly it is still generational. We aren’t going to agree here. He singed the deal he should honor the deal it’s super simple to me personally. You ask for a raise at the end of the contract. And that team is going broke they’re not paying WR3 when they have easy replacements in Pearsall and Demarcus Robinson.
That $400k a year to live in the Bay area is fine, but it’s not going to leave you with a ton to invest for future generations.
And if you get this wound up about a guy advocating for himself for new money when he’s going into the last year of a contract, maybe you shouldn’t visit an NFL transactions site.
Most high level football players have a physical toll without making the NFL. Most players who make the NFL don’t make it 5-15 years and certainly don’t earn generational wealth. Most players don’t even make it past their rookie deal and rookie deals are kept way below market value. Jennings made less than $2.6 million in his whole career before last year. Between taxes, agent cut, training/recovery expenses, cut out more than half of that. He’s 28. I don’t blame him for fighting to make that generational wealth you’re talking about. I get what you mean about football player contract reality versus regular people finances, but he’s not taking it away from regular people. Jed York is a billionaire CEO without ever having needed to have another actual job.
Those rookie salaries are deflated for good reasons. Veteran players got sick of big contracts going to unproven rookies who wound up being terrible players. JaMarcus Russell is the poster child for rookie contracts. Besides, the NFLPA signed off on this through the CBA. The real issue is waiting up to 5 years before Free Agency hits, or even the stupid franchise tag. Free agency should be bumped down to 3-4 years.
I believe a spot for cousins just opened up
Would be interesting to actually read some factual information with regard as to WHEN this injury took place, WHAT type of injury is being repaired and WHY it took until now to determine that a surgical solution was necessary. This “article” is just a rehash of known information and contains noting worthy of reading except that he is going under the knife. GICE US FACTS!!
It’s a moot point because I think those shoulder surgeries are 12-month injuries at least. Even if he had it right after the season, that puts him out until after the Super Bowl. He probably just tried to work through it since his spot on the team is tenuous at best with them taking a QB #1 overall and with him sucking and all, and with it not getting better, this at least brings in checks until he passes a physical.
Got this one right in his draft class. People still get mesmerized by the big arm though.
Well that’s a kick in the groin on the first day of Camp. Drag.
Career is shot lol
More time for mayo commercials. Seriously though Levis may get another chance when cut. If Liam is still coaching Jags he can go there.
Career’s over
Levis will have a new team in 2026.