If Daniel Jones winds up with Titans, new stadium won’t have sun issues

Let the Daniel Jones-destination rumors commence. Granted his release Friday after making an authentic, classy statement, Jones is expected to become a free agent once he clears waivers.

Jones was in Nashville when the Giants drafted him sixth overall in 2019. Should he return to the Music City to resurrect his career with the Titans, he’ll play in a stadium opening in 2027 that will have taken measures to eliminate the late-afternoon sun.

That’s because designers and engineers collaborating to erect the new $2 billion Nissan Stadium have completed a solar analysis, according to CBS insider Jonathan Jones. The Titans’ new home will install retractable shades on its glass doors to prevent sun from causing incompletions on touchdown passes. Those shades also will be available when the Super Bowl comes to Nashville, where it’s expected to be received just as favorably as that 2019 draft.

For now, though, the Titans (2-8) have plenty of questions to answer before the 2025 draft. First is this week’s game against the Texans (7-4) at NRG Stadium (1 p.m. ET, CBS), where they’ll see their former defensive end Denico Autry. The Titans have missed Autry’s production — he had 28½ sacks over three seasons (2021-23) in a Tennessee uniform — but without him they’ve certainly prevented teams from piling up yards. The Titans have allowed an AFC-best 278.0 yards per game, second in the NFL behind Philadelphia (273.1). The Tennessee pass defense (164.6) is tops in the league.

Harbinger: Actions are louder than words. And while head coach Brian Callahan used his words to draw an unsportsmanlike-conduct penalty in last week’s loss to Minnesota, his players took notice. His team trailing 7-3 midway through the second quarter, Callahan exploded on officials after they flagged safety Mike Brown for unnecessary roughness on Sam Darnold’s fourth-down incompletion intended for Jordan Addison. Brown appeared to break up the pass with a perfectly timed legal hit, making contact with his shoulder pad. ESPN.com beat writer Turron Davenport noted that the way Callahan passionately fought against that call resonated with Titans players, one of the reasons the team is backing its head coach.

Titanic pass-rush: Linebacker Arden Key has a sack in four of his last five games. He’s tied with linebacker Harold Landry for the team lead with five sacks this season.

Longest in the league: Last week, Will Levis connected with Nick Westbrook-Ikhine on a 98-yard touchdown, the NFL’s longest pass this season. Westbrook-Ikhine has a receiving touchdown in five of his last six games. Levis had a season-high 295 passing yards against the Vikings.

For more information on the Titans and Texans, visit the Tennessee and Houston team pages at ProFootballPost.com.