What Mike Vrabel said about Tennessee Titans firing Jon Robinson, impact on rest of season
One day after the Tennessee Titans fired general manager Jon Robinson, coach Mike Vrabel didn't have many answers about why the move happened.
"I know that (owner) Amy (Adams Strunk) informed me of the decision," Vrabel said Wednesday. "I can’t speak to the timing of it and I can’t speak to the decision of it."
Strunk fired Robinson in the middle of his seventh season running the team's front office Tuesday. Though the Titans went to the playoffs four times in Robinson's six full seasons, never posted a losing record and are on pace to win their third-straight division title, ownership decided it was time for a change.
Vrabel said he spoke to Adams Strunk on Tuesday about the decision but did not ask about timing and was not informed why the decision was made. He said his relationship with Robinson was strong and he doesn't believe there was any "misalignment" between the front office and the coaching staff.
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"I spoke with him at length last night and thanked him for the opportunity to coach this football team and lead this football team," Vrabel said. "I asked him if there was anything he wanted me to share with the players, which I did because of the timing of it. There were some things where he wanted to thank the players for their efforts. He saw them every day. He signed them, drafted them. He thanked them for what they went through."
The Titans (7-5) host the Jacksonville Jaguars (4-8) at Nissan Stadium on Sunday (noon, CBS).
Robinson hired Vrabel in 2018. Ryan Cowden, the vice president of player personnel, will take over as the interim GM while a search to replace Robinson commences. Strunk has not publicly commented on the firing since her statement Tuesday, which said "there is more to be done and higher aspirations to be met."
Vrabel said the only message that Robinson's firing sent to the team is one that had already been ingrained in the roster before the decision.
"I think the message is the same as it’s always been," Vrabel said. "We’re charged to win. We’re here to win championships. We all have a job to do. We’re held to a high standard. We’re evaluated each and every day on that job. It’s the same thing I told the players this morning."
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on Twitter @nicksuss.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel on why GM Jon Robinson was fired
