With the 2019 NFL Draft now less than a week away, there’s plenty of buzz about the selections the Tennessee Titans will make in Nashville.
In Todd McShay’s latest dueling mock draft with fellow analyst Mel Kiper this week, he chose Notre Dame defensive lineman Jerry Tillery to go to the Titans at pick No. 51.
“A good one-on-one run-defender who flashes as a pass-rusher, Tillery fits in neatly next to Jurrell Casey on the Titans’ line,” he wrote.
The Titans would likely jump on the opportunity to get a player like Tillery here, but it’s also not likely he’ll slide that far down the draft board. They may have to do some trading up to acquire Tillery, which isn’t entirely impossible with general manager Jon Robinson’s history of doing just that.
In the same mock draft, McShay mocked Georgia cornerback Deandre Baker to the Titans in the first round with the No. 19 overall pick.
“Let’s start the run on corners,” he wrote. “There isn’t a ton of value here for a receiver or tight end quite yet, but getting Baker’s instincts into that defensive back unit will provide depth and force some turnovers — only five teams had fewer than the Titans’ 17 last season.”
McShay made his only selection for the Titans in the third round, projecting the team to pick up TCU outside linebacker Ben Banogu at No. 82.
McShay filled Tennessee’s needs with a defensive tackle and corner in the first two rounds. Banogu could help the void on the edge.
It will be curious to see how closely Robinson and the Titans’ plans fall in line with Kiper and McShay’s — and perhaps even more interesting to see if they pick in the current order.
