Christmas has come and gone, but if you're like me, the tinsel still clings to the floor and presents remain stacked in the corner.

So, what are you getting for Christmas next year?

Hard question to answer? Premature? Lot could happen between now and then?

The same is true with the Titans 2005 Draft plans.

I listened Tuesday night as Titans Radio's Jennifer Cissel fielded phone calls for Coach Fisher. Roughly one-third of the questions concerned (a) what are the Titans going to look for in the draft or (b) will position x be the first priority.

When Coach has been asked this on previous shows, he has simply told the truth: ''I haven't studied the upcoming draft very much. We're focused right now on trying to win games.''

Many fans just want this season-gone-wrong to end, and they want to look to the future. Not a bad course of action for those off viewing as fans. But Fisher believes that winning is not a lever than a team can turn on or off. He's going to coach his team whether they are 15-1, 1-15 or anywhere in the middle until someone tells him he does not have the chance to play another snap.

That will come around 3:00 Sunday afternoon and then the head coach will turn to the draft, the salary cap, and all the other issues he and General Manager Floyd Reese must deal with.

Still, even Tuesday night, I'm not sure Jeff Fisher will be able to shed a lot of light on the Titans draft plans. I doubt Reese, who's been busy working with the scouting department finishing up evaluations of this college football season, will be able to tell Mike Keith very much during their pregame visit Sunday.

In short, like next year's Christmas gift, trying to find what's on the list may net one with a lot of frustration. I'm not even sure there's a list right now.

Don't get me wrong -- it's a fun question to consider -- especially for us soon-to-be-done-with-the-season broadcasters. The question becomes even more interesting when one considers the kind of pick the Titans will be preparing to make.

If you're an NFL general manager, you do not want to become experienced in making one of the first five-to-seven picks in the draft. It means you are not doing very well. The indictment becomes more severe if you pick there more than a couple of times each decade.

A high pick also means your front office staff and your scouts have to work harder than ever to make sure they get the maximum benefit from the pick. In today's NFL, it's hard to miss on ANY draft pick, but the long-term impact of botching a top five pick can derail you both short-term and over a four-to-five year period.

See San Diego Chargers; Leaf, Ryan.

In the coming weeks, Fisher, Reese, General Counsel Steve Underwood, the scouts, and the assistants will go through a series of steps to prepare for the draft. Those steps include (in no particular order):

1. An evaluation of every player on the roster from his position coach and coordinator.

2. An analysis of trends around the NFL, how other teams scored and stopped other teams from doing so, as well as a self scout of the Titans offense and defense, to determine strengths/weaknesses of the scheme, the personnel, and the gameplans.

3. Completed reports on all the seniors who will be available in the upcoming draft, as well as information on juniors as they make themselves available.

4. Completion of the organization's salary cap plan, a process started by Reese and Underwood this fall. This plan will guide decisions about trimming the $20-$25 million needed to get below the cap.

5. A discussion of free agency, including the Titans' own restricted and unrestricted players and what the team plans to do.

6. The contact with agents and players regarding the moves needed to get under the cap.

Off-season? Not a lot of it for the Titans as they complete a lot of this work by March 1 when the new NFL calendar begins. Only at that point, will we have a true picture of how the Titans might best use a high draft pick. Only then, will the speculation end as to who will or will not be back in 2004 and the Titans can truly look at their roster to determine their most glaring first-round need.

One other note: keep in mind that early second round pick as well, where you often get a player graded with first-round talent. It's an important pick too.

So if you hear us over the next couple of weeks talking indecisively about the Titans' draft plans, know that it's not a Christmas surprise we're hiding away. A lot of questions remain before you can make a truly educated decision.

And when it comes to a top five pick, you cannot afford anything but.