Titans keep losing as coach Brian Callahan tries to show some progress

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Brian Callahan insisted Monday he's busy preparing to coach the Tennessee Titans against the Jacksonville Jaguars, not what controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk thinks of his first season.

“It’s a bottom line business and we’ve got to show progress and we haven’t shown enough,” Callahan said. “I would like to see more and we got two more opportunities to do it."

The Titans have lost four straight after a 38-30 defeat in Indianapolis, dropping the season series to their AFC South foe. They also have lost six of seven to drop to 3-12, putting the franchise two losses from matching the most in a season set in 2014 when the NFL played a 16-game schedule.

Asked if he thinks he will have to make a case to keep his job when this season ends, Callahan said he has no idea.

“My job is to coach the football team and get ready to go play Jacksonville,” Callahan said. “That’s the only thing that I focus on. And anything other than that, is out of my control.”

The Titans played a season-high 10 rookies in Indianapolis. Even with all that youth, they were flagged only four times matching their second-lowest total of the season. That was a huge improvement from the week before when Tennessee was penalized 12 times for 110 yards.

Callahan said every time they try to fix one thing, another issue pops up. Against Indianapolis, the run defense simply disappeared. They gave up 335 yards rushing, the most in franchise history since Oct. 1, 1961. They gave up touchdown runs of 65 and 70 yards to Jonathan Taylor.

A defense that entered Week 16 ranked 12th allowed Taylor to average 7.5 yards per carry and meant Anthony Richardson needed to throw just 11 passes. The Titans gave up 38 consecutive points — the third most allowed in a game all season just a week after giving up 37 in a loss to Cincinnati.

TE Chig Okonkwo. He led the Titans with nine catches and 81 yards receiving — both career highs. He also scored his the second 2-point conversion of his career. He became the first tight end with nine or more receptions in a game since Delanie Walker had nine Nov. 13, 2016, against Green Bay.

Mason Rudolph. Callahan defended the veteran's three interceptions with one going off running back Tony Pollard's hands and the third a last-gasp play to end the game and said he thought Rudolph had a good performance.

That said, Rudolph's numbers are almost a mirror image of the quarterback he replaced. Rudolph has eight touchdown passes and eight interceptions. He's completing 63.8% of his passes and has a 78.8 passer rating. That's nearly the same as Will Levis completing 63.7% of his passes with 12 TD passes and 12 interceptions.

Callahan said turnovers from the quarterback spot has sort of been “our Achilles' heel” swinging games. But he also hasn't made a decision yet on who starts Sunday, saying stats don't always paint the full picture.

“My goal is to try to put the best chance to win on the field for us and we’ll see what that looks like,” Callahan said.

Callahan said K Nick Folk might have a chance to be back after an abdominal injury sidelined the veteran in Indianapolis. The Titans are practicing with a walk-through Tuesday and taking Wednesday off for Christmas so the coach said he'll have a better handle on injuries Thursday.

But Folk's replacement Brayden Narveson missed a 53-yard field goal that would have given Tennessee a 10-0 lead.

The Titans waived Narveson on Monday afternoon. They also activated Jaelyn Duncan, hurt four snaps into his lone start at right tackle in a loss to Buffalo on Oct. 20, from injured reserve.

121 — Number of points allowed off turnovers this season. It's the most in a season for the Titans since at least 2000, topping the 108 given up in 2015. The Titans lead the NFL with 32 turnovers, which Callahan called their biggest issue.

“That’s insanity,” Callahan said.

The Titans visit Jacksonville on Sunday for their final road trip, trying to avoid being swept by their division rival. Then it's back home for the regular-season finale, hosting Houston before more changes this offseason in some form.

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Tennessee Titans safety Amani Hooker (37) celebrates his interception during the first half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner (99) pressures Tennessee Titans quarterback Mason Rudolph (11) as he throws during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner (99) reaches past Tennessee Titans offensive lineman Daniel Brunskill, center, to pressure quarterback Mason Rudolph (11) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Tennessee Titans quarterback Mason Rudolph (11) looks to throw a pass during the first half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Tennessee Titans tight end Chig Okonkwo, right, scores a two point conversion against the Indianapolis Colts safety Nick Cross (20) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan looks onto the field during the second half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan looks up from the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

LEAVENWORTH, Wash. (AP) — The scent of bratwurst and pretzels filled the air as horses clopped down the main street, hauling a carriage full of tourists. Nestled in her mother's arms, a baby reached out to touch a shop window display, peering toward the sequin-covered reindeer behind it, as colorful ornaments twirled nearby.

Welcome to Leavenworth, Washington, the Christmas capital of the Pacific Northwest.

Decades ago, Leavenworth was a near ghost town on the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountains, one of the region's poorest communities. The mines and the sawmill had closed, and even the railroad left. In the 1960s, desperate business owners made a serious gamble. Without any state or federal help, they began taking out loans and remodeling the downtown in the style of a Bavarian village.

More than half a century later, the result brings tourists from near and far all year long — hikers and skiers, river rafters and fly-fishers, shoppers and day-trippers from Seattle, some 3 million visitors in all last year, according to Matt Cade, president of the Greater Leavenworth Museum. The crush has prompted concerns about the cost of living, and recent efforts, including some state funding for affordable apartments, have focused on ensuring that tourism industry workers can live in town.

But the town peaks in popularity during the holidays.

In December, it takes on the ruddy, warm glow of a German Christmas market, with the magic of choirs, carolers, food vendors and a gingerbread house contest. The longstanding practice of switching on the Christmas lights downtown on Saturday and Sunday evenings began to draw such large crowds that organizers eventually decided to just leave them on from Thanksgiving through February.

“Every time I go there, I just feel joy and excitement,” said Alison Epsom, of Sultan, who visited with her husband, Brian Jolly, and their 8-month-old daughter, Acacia.

The couple met nearly two decades ago, when they were performing at an international dance festival. For one of their first dates, Jolly invited Epsom, a native of England, to visit Leavenworth.

“I knew I had one opportunity that she was going to be here and I wanted her to fall in love with me,” he recalled.

As they drove through the mountain pass on their way, she told him to pull over. She jumped outside without a coat and made a little snowman.

“I had never seen that much snow," Epsom said. "So that was absolutely magical to me.”

They have made it an annual tradition to return to Leavenworth, and every year they pick out a new ornament for their tree at the Kris Kringl shop downtown. The town is a core part of the couple's love story. Jolly even proposed to her on a horse-drawn sleigh.

This year, it was their daughter's turn to pick out the new ornament — her parents decided they'd buy the first one she touched. She grabbed at a white owl, which now hangs from the family's Christmas tree, near the red- and gold-glittered star that Epsom picked out on their first visit.

A person rides their bike on Front Street in the fog on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A child looks out into the fog on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

People look up at trees decorated in lights at Front Street Park on Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Members of the Krampus Seattle and Krampus Bremerton groups gather before walking down Front Street as part of a Krampuslauf Leavenworth event on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A child stands on their toes to look out of a cut out on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Greater Leavenworth Museum President Matt Cade displays photos of Leavenworth, Wash., at the museum on Friday, Nov. 29, 2024, in Leavenworth. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A child walks past a trash can along Front Street on Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Erica Irwin, 6, looks out the door as she waits for her sister at the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum, Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Nutcrackers are displayed outside the Leavenworth Nutcracker Museum on Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A person walks up steps by a mural on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A person looks at a peacock display at Kris Kringl on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A person wearing a Christmas themed hat walks down the steps at Obertal Inn on Saturday, Nov. 30, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A person looks up at lights at Front Street Park on Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A person rides their bike on Front Street in the fog on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

People sit by a fire at Icicle Brewing Company on Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Alison Epsom looks at her 8-month-old daughter Acacia Epsom Jolly as she holds an owl ornament that she picked to be her first Christmas ornament at Kris Kringl shop on Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

A child looks up at a Santa Claus figure on a sled at Kris Kringl on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

U.S. Highway 2, top left, leads to downtown Leavenworth, Wash., as the Wenatchee River runs next to Blackbird Island, center right, on Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Anna Jarski, 8, of Seattle, waves to Olav the Belgian draft horse on Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

Coachman Teresa Eddings leads Daisy, a Belgian draft horse, as she pulls a carriage down Front Street, Monday, Nov. 25, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)

People walk along Front Street on Friday, Nov. 29, 2024, in Leavenworth, Wash. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)