The Tennessee Titans released veteran defensive tackle Jordan Elliot on Tuesday without offering much information. Details finally emerged over the course of Tuesday evening, and the situation is wilder than we can possibly imagine. Not only did Elliott threaten a teammate, but another player intervened to talk Elliott out of going to his vehicle and retrieving a firearm — which he presumably planned to return to the locker room with, either to threaten another player, or worse.
The first statement from the Titans did very little to explain what occurred. At first glance it reads more like some beef on the practice field led to a fight in the locker room, but it intentionally chose to gloss over the severity of what actually happened.
The statement is technically accurate, though most people would agree that there is a chasm of difference between "an incident at our team facility" and "he was going to his car to get a gun, potentially coming back to shoot someone."
Here's what we know from reports about the alleged situation, with details provided by Austin Stanley and Easton Freeze of AtoZ Sports , as well as Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 :
The Thursday, October 15 practice at the Titans facility was especially heated, particularly between Jordan Elliott and 2024 1st-round pick OT J.C. Latham. A fight between the two occurred on the practice field, but initially other teammates and coaches chalked it up to emotions boiling over, fairly commonplace when it comes to the NFL.
Elliott continued yelling at Latham and was sent off the field — ending his practice early. Irate on the sideline, the defensive tackle removed his pads, threw them on the ground, and was recorded by security cameras leaving the team facility. Fellow defensive tackle John Franklin-Myers followed Elliott to talk to him further, meeting him at his vehicle in the player parking area next to the facility.
It's reported that Elliott had gone to his vehicle to retrieve a firearm, allegedly with the intention of returning to the facility with it. Little is known about what Elliot's intentions were with the weapon, but it has been reported that Franklin-Myers managed to convince his teammate not to retrieve the weapon. It's unclear if Elliott returned to the practice facility, or left following the incident.
No incident report was filed with Nashville police. A source told Wilson that Elliott was having intense personal issues off the field involving his family, but "obviously he brought it to work with him." In addition, the source added that everyone in the locker room felt that Elliott's reaction was overblown and "crazy."
Elliott did not play in the Titans' win over the Colts on Sunday. The team reviewed the incident from the Thursday practice, much of which was captured on facility cameras, and made the decision to release him on Tuesday.
It's the second bizarre event involving a player to happen to the Titans in less than a week. Top cornerback Alontae Taylor was a healthy scratch against the Colts, with Robert Saleh offering a rather cryptic update on the player's future with the organization.
"As it pertains to Alontae, we'll discuss it as a staff and make a decision that's best for the team moving forward," Saleh said.
Taylor was the team's biggest free agent acquisition this past summer, while Elliott followed Saleh from San Francisco as a player the coach specifically wanted to be a part of his defense. Only six weeks into the season one has been released, and the other is seemingly on the trading block.
