In a flurry of moves in the legal tampering period, the Tennessee Titans came to terms with former Los Angeles Rams offensive guard Rodger Saffold.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport on Tuesday, both sides agreed on a four-year, $44 million deal.
The move is an important one for the Titans, who have seen regression within an already weak offensive line over recent seasons.
The unit allowed more sacks in 2018 (47) than it did in 2017 (35).
Players like Saffold can help fix this issue in 2019, after spending nine seasons with the Los Angeles Rams.
The veteran instantly brings a boost to the interior, and should make a rather easy transition after playing in a similar system under head coach Seab McVay.
Saffold is also an effective run-blocker, which bodes well for a team that wants to play physical football and give rushers like Derrick Henry a chance to make the Titans’ ground game one of the most formidable in the league.
According to NFL Next Gen Stats in a report by ESPN’s Turron Davenport, Saffold ranked third among all guards in ESPN’s Pass Block Win Rate (min. 300 blocks) in 2018. Saffold also held his blocks for at least 2.5 seconds 87.4 percent of the time.
With an addition like this one, it’s safe to assume the Titans will do a much better job of protecting Marcus Mariota and giving him more time in the pocket next season.
