McNair?s situation mishandled

It?s pretty sad to see the final tie to the old Houston Oilers bidding farewell to the Tennessee Titans.

How the Titans have handled the Steve McNair situation, however, is even sadder.

McNair, who after the release with Brad Hopkins was the final Titan player who had also been an Oiler, officially became a Raven on Thursday, after passing a physical exam.

What did the Titans get for McNair, a former league MVP and three-time Pro Bowler who was their franchise player during the tumultuous transition from Texas to Tennessee?

Chump change, that?s what.

According to reports, McNair was traded for a fourth-round pick in next year?s draft. A fourth-round selection was enough to get rid of a man who literally broke his body trying to bring success to his team.

It?s just not right.

And what?s even more disturbing is the way the Titans have handled this situation from the get-go.

Yes, they knew McNair was on his last legs. We all did. The greatness of youth was being replaced by the skill of experience, and injuries were doing more than their part to keep that skill off the field.

With a trio of quality field generals available at this year?s draft, and the Titans holding the No. 3 pick, it was a safe bet Tennessee?s front office would find McNair?s heir apparent ? if not his outright replacement ? in the first round. They did exactly that with Vince Young, who is thought by many (including the Titans? brass) to be all but a clone of McNair, minus 10 years.

So, lo and behold, offseason workouts arrived in April, and with McNair?s future with the Titans growing less and less feasible, the team decided he wouldn?t be allowed to train at their facility. Heaven forbid he tear a muscle and have to go on the injured list, meaning they?d have to pay his salary. No, since he?s going to another team, let?s let him flap in the breeze while we wait to see who makes an offer.

McNair ultimately won the right to return to team headquarters, and just a week later the Ravens and Titans reached their deal.

And how did the Titans react, when news of the pending trade hit the street? A simple, two word statement.

?We have granted permission to Baltimore to give Steve McNair a physical, which we expect to take place in the next 24 hours. Upon passing a physical, final trade terms will be agreed upon.?

That?s it. That?s all they had to say about the leader of their team for all these years ending his days as a Titan. There were no emotional press conferences, no ?I?ll miss him,? not even a ?wish him luck.?

Will there be a ?Steve McNair Day? at LP Field, when he brings the Ravens into Nashville during the upcoming season. Let?s hope so. The Braves did it for Dale Murphy years ago, after he went to the Phillies, and it was a classy way to pay homage to a man who had meant a lot to the program.

There?s the key word, though: Classy. The Titans will be showing a lot of class if they decide to give McNair the credit he earned through his years of work with the team. And it will be the class they?ve most certainly not displayed toward him so far this offseason.