State Of The League: Tennessee Titans

Training camp and the NFL preseason are here! We are going over all 32 teams’ offseason moves, division by division: their player personnel changes, projected preseason depth charts, and more! We wrap things up in the AFC South with the Tennessee Titans!

AFC South: Houston Texans, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars

Tennessee Titans Preseason Projected Depth Chart

*BOLD player name = Rookie*

Tennessee Titans 2021 NFL Draft Class

Round 1 (22nd overall): CB Caleb Farley, Virginia Tech

Round 2 (53rd): OT/OG Dillon Radunz, North Dakota State

Round 3 (92nd): LB Monty Rice, Georgia

Round 3 (100th): CB/S Elijah Molden, Washington

Round 4 (109th): WR Dez Fitzpatrick, Louisville

Round 4 (135th): EDGE Rashad Weaver, Pittsburgh

Round 6 (205th): WR Racey McMath, LSU

Round 6 (215th): S/CB Brady Breeze, Oregon

Tennessee Titans Offseason Player Personnel Moves

Tennessee Titans Offseason Notes/Review

• Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith left this offseason to become the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. Tennessee named tight ends coach Todd Downing the new offensive coordinator. The offense should mostly remain the same, with the emphasis being a punishing ground game led by Derrick Henry.
• Losing Corey Davis and Jonnu Smith in free agency hurt, but trading for Julio Jones was one of the biggest moves of the entire offseason. He could take this passing game to the next level, and his presence opens up more opportunities for AJ Brown and Henry. Some are wondering if nagging injuries will limit Jones, and if his best days are behind him, but I’m not buying it – 2013 was the last time Jones didn’t play at least 14 games in a season due to injury prior to 2020, and he had almost 1,400 receiving yards in 2019. He may not be a top three wide receiver anymore, but that speaks more about the talent around the league at the position than it does Jones’ impact or ability when healthy.
• The starting lineup for the offense is mostly set, with the only open competitions coming at tight end (between Geoff Swaim and Anthony Firkser) and right tackle (Ty Sambrailo and Kendall Lamm). 2021 2nd round NFL Draft pick Dillon Radunz was expected by many to be in the mix for the starting job at right tackle, but he has been working at both guard and tackle, and might be slated for backup duty early in the season. 
• After getting routinely torched in the passing game last season, big changes were made at the cornerback position this offseason. Adoree’ Jackson, Malcolm Butler, and Desmond King are out. Janoris Jenkins, Caleb Farley, and Elijah Molden are in. Jenkins was signed as a free agent to be one of the starters on the outside, but the rest will be sorted out in training camp and the preseason. If Farley and Molden need more time than anticipated to get acclimated, it will give Kristian Fulton and Chris Jackson a shot to claim starting roles (Fulton on the outside; Jackson in the slot).
• The secondary was a big liability on defense, but the Titans shored up the front seven as well. Jadeveon Clowney was a huge disappointment in Tennessee, and the team looked to bolster the pass rush by signing Bud Dupree and Denico Autry in free agency. Dupree signed a five year, $82.5 million contract this offseason, but is coming off of a torn ACL. Autry adds some pass rush ability that was lacking up front, but a healthy Dupree is vital to this defense getting better in 2021.

The Tennessee Titans are coming off their first AFC South title since 2008 after winning 11 games in 2020, but they took a step back last season – losing to Baltimore in the Wild Card round one year after making it all the way to the AFC Championship. The offensive line must come together, but the talent is there at the skill positions to be an elite balanced offense and a top five offense again. If this team is going to be taken seriously as a Super Bowl contender, however, the defense has to get to the quarterback more consistently and show massive improvement against the pass and on 3rd down.