Now that the first wave of free agency is over, mock drafts from a number of analysts are looking a bit different than they may have over a week ago.
With Tennessee Titans general manager Jon Robinson addressing practically all of the team’s needs in the mid-March period, the Titans have a lot more freedom with the No. 19 overall pick.
So while drafting a tight end first may have seem far fetched earlier in the year, it seems much more plausible now.
In his most recent mock draft, NFL analyst Bucky Brooks projected the Titans to select Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. with their first pick of the day.
His reasoning behind the prediction?
The Titans need to start looking for an eventual successor behind star tight end Delanie Walker.
“It might be time for the Titans to find Delanie Walker’s successor based on his age and injury history,” he wrote. “Smith is an athletic pass catcher with the speed, quickness and burst to create problems between the hashes.”
Smith isn’t a name we’ve seen closely associated with the Titans up to this point, with names like Iowa’s Noah Fant and T.J. Hockenson more frequently mocked to Tennessee.
The junior has had a successful career with the Crimson Tide, totaling 44 receptions for 710 yards and seven touchdowns. On his career, he’s reeled in 58 passes for 838 yards and 10 touchdowns.
If the Titans do choose to go with a pass-catcher first, it will be interesting to see which name is called with so many being pinned to the Music City team in recent times.
