Losing Peyton Manning Doesn't Mean the Tennessee Titans Will Be Losing

The Tennessee Titans didn't land Peyton Manning, but that doesn't mean they can't win now.

While not convincing the greatest quarterback of his generation to come back to Tennessee is a depressing development, it doesn't leave the Titans any further from a championship than they already were. In fact, there are some silver linings. Everything good the Titans had going for them two weeks ago is still there today.

• Jake Locker has a real chance to win and keep the starting job at quarterback. The Titans should know very soon if he has what it takes to lead an NFL team. Assuming he does, the Titans could be set under center for a long time.

• The Manning obsession kept them from making other big splashes in free agency. Why is that a silver lining? Because free agency is a great way to waste money. Yes, Mario Williams would have been nice, but the Titans are more than a Mario Williams away from the Super Bowl. Now the Titans have the money to add multiple players to shore up a mediocre defense.

• They could still land another Colts great. Dwight Freeney is available, and had Manning signed with the Titans, there was next to no chance the Colts would have dealt Freeney to them as well. Now that Manning is in Denver, the Titans could have Freeney for far cheaper than what Williams would have cost. For a third-round pick and a new contract, they could have a hundred-sack player who still has some juice in the tank. Unlike Manning, Freeney would actually meet a real need the Titans have.

• The division is winnable. The Colts aren't going to be competitive. The Jaguars still have Gabbert at quarterback, and the Texans have already lost quite a bit of talent. The Titans only needed an extra win or two to be hosting a playoff game in 2010, and with the way the rest of the division is going this offseason, they just might find it by default.

The Manning decision is much more of an emotional blow than a football one. The Titans have a rabid fanbase, but have been perpetually frozen in the NFL's middle class. Signing Manning would have been like landing a big house in the ritzy part of town. Sure, the mortgage payment would have been crippling, but Titans fans were excited about the chance to live the high life, if only for a year or two.

So it's back to hot dogs and Kraft macaroni and cheese as the caviar dreams and champagne wishes gallop off to Denver. That's OK, though. It's not sexy, but it's a damn fine meal.