With the NFL cutdown day officially in the rearview mirror, it’s time to re-evaluate the Tennessee Titans’ roster as a whole.
Technically, we could still see some changes to this group over the coming week, but for the most part the initial 53-man roster is set and it’s now a waiting game until the start of the regular season.
The Titans had several surprises in their initial group and noticeably stacked some positions with extra bodies (offensive line) while keeping other groups on the lighter side (tight ends).
This article is going to rank each position group from strongest to weakest based on the combination of the starters atop the depth chart, as well as the depth pieces listed behind them.
This isn’t a perfect list by any means, as I definitely struggled at certain spots when trying to decide how high or low certain position groups should be.
Nonetheless, I walked away relatively satisfied with my final rankings as we rapidly approach Week 1. Let’s not delay this any longer and find out how I personally ranked each position group following cutdown day.
No. 11. Inside linebackers
Inside linebacker: Azeez Al-Shaair, Jack Gibbens, Luke Gifford, Monty Rice, Otis Reese IV
Thankfully, this isn’t the 90s or early 2000s when an inside linebacker was once considered one of the most important positions on the football field.
Simply put, outside of Al-Shaair, it’s truly hard to get excited about anybody in this room until they give us a valid reason to be.
No. 10. Offensive line
Offensive tackles: Andre Dillard, Chris Hubbard, Jaelyn Duncan, Nicholas Petit-Frere (suspended)
When the most promising player in the room is someone who essentially flopped out of his first stop, that’s usually not a good sign. For the most part, Dillard has looked much improved over the last few weeks, but the logical thing to do is take a wait-and-see approach when it comes to him.
As for the other starting tackle, Hubbard has only played a combined 78 snaps since the start of 2021. Needless to say, that’s less than ideal, although he should only be a short-term solution, considering Nicholas Petit-Frere’s suspension will end after six games.
Nevertheless, when that’s the guy you’re ultimately forced to rely on at right tackle, that’s not exactly a good sign for what’s behind him. Although, to be fair, Hubbard hasn’t looked horrible since joining the team, so let’s hope he can turn the corner now that he’s seemingly healthy and ready to roll.
Interior offensive linemen: Peter Skoronski, Aaron Brewer, Daniel Brunskill, Corey Levin, Xavier Newman, Dillon Radunz
The offensive line depth got a massive boost once Dillon Radunz, who can play both guard and tackle, surprisingly returned from his ACL injury. Even still, it’s hard to consider this entire group as anything more than average, at best.
The Titans do have someone who has the potential to eventually become one of the best in the league at his position in Skoronski, but it will likely take some time for him to reach his full potential.
9. Tight ends
Tight ends: Chigoziem Okonkwo, Trevon Wesco, Josh Whyle
The Titans have one of the most promising young tight ends in the NFL in Okonkwo while Wesco should bring some stability as a blocker. Meanwhile, Whyle looked horrendous this preseason, so it’s hard to give him the benefit of the doubt.
This group is probably one serious injury to Chig away from being a borderline disaster.
8. Wide receivers
Wide receivers: DeAndre Hopkins, Treylon Burks, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Chris Moore, Kyle Philips (IR), Colton Dowell, Kearis Jackson.
This group probably would’ve been last had the Titans not signed DeAndre Hopkins last month, but thankfully, the wide receivers room got a big boost the second he arrived.
— Deandre Hopkins (@DeAndreHopkins) July 21, 2023
Both he and Burks should be a potent tandem as long as they stay healthy. Outside of them, let’s just say it’s questionable, at best, especially with Philips being out for at least the first four games with his MCL injury.
7. Cornerbacks
Cornerbacks: Kristian Fulton, Roger McCreary, Sean Murphy-Bunting, Kindle Vildor, Tre Avery, Anthony Kendall
Tennessee has a strong group of starters in Fulton, McCreary and Murphy-Bunting, but the players behind them are largely unproven.
That said, Avery and Vildor have looked decent during their respective careers, so they give this group the edge over the positions that follow.
Fulton is in a contract year and should be motivated to play the best ball of his career, so it wouldn’t shock me one bit if we’re looking at this group of corners in a different light by the end of the year.
6. Specialists
Specialists: Nick Folk, Ryan Stonehouse, Morgan Cox
This is an established group of veteran players who have all either been to a Pro Bowl or made an All-Pro team in the past.
Folk should provide some much-needed stability, Stonehouse can routinely flip field positions and Cox is about as consistent as you can possibly get at long snapper.
It’s hard for me to put this group higher than some of the others based on level of importance and how good some of these position groups are, but I think this is a great spot for it due to how good each individual player is.
5. Quarterbacks
Quarterbacks: Ryan Tannehill, Malik Willis, Will Levis
Obviously, you’d prefer to have one of the truly elite quarterbacks as your No. 1 signal caller, but as a whole, it’s hard to find a more intriguing quarterback room in the league.
Tannehill is an established and reliable veteran, and the Titans have two young quarterbacks listed behind him who will likely be fighting for the starting job next year.
4. Safeties
Safeties: Kevin Byard, Amani Hooker, Elijah Molden, Mike Brown, Matthew Jackson
This is another group that looks really good on paper. Tennessee has arguably one of the best safety tandems in Byard and Hooker while Molden should see plenty of action as the third safety in certain packages. Meanwhile, Brown and Jackson provide tremendous depth both on defense and on special teams.
Truth be told, I struggled when deciding whether to make this group No. 3 or No. 4, but I ultimately decided to give Tennessee’s talented pass rush the slight nod, especially now that they’ve added Gipson to the rotation.
3. Outside linebackers
Outside linebackers: Harold Landry, Arden Key, Trevis Gipson, Rashad Weaver, Caleb Murphy
Just looking at the five names on this list is enough to make Titans fans salivate over what this group could become.
Tennessee has two established players as full-time starters (Landry, Key), two players who could be on the verge of breakout seasons (Gipson, Weaver) and one young player who possess tons of untapped potential (Murphy).
Keeping Caleb Murphy was obviously the right thing to do. You’re not going to let this hit the open market because of special teams.
You keep developing him and occasionally find a way to get him on the field during obvious passing situations. #Titans https://t.co/J0lnY6EaUp
— Shaun Calderon (@ShaunMichaels31) August 29, 2023
Gipson could be the real wild card of the group that could ultimately take Tennessee’s pass rush to an entirely different level if he can get back to his 2021 form.
During that season, he played in a similar scheme to what he’ll play in with Tennessee and finished with an overall grade of 70.4 (PFF) while also recording an impressive 24 pressures, 13 tackles for loss, and seven sacks.
All 7 of Trevis Gipson's sacks in 2021. Dude's a MENACE 😈 #Titans #TickleTickle 🧤 pic.twitter.com/VaLdnWYZmg
— Justin Graver (@titansfilmroom) August 31, 2023
Since then, his production unfortunately fell off, largely due to the Bears switching to a 4-3 base defense under new head coach Matt Eberflus, which subsequently led to his overall grade falling all the way to 48.9 after he only tallied three sacks on the year.
The Titans’ newest defender also had the fifth-highest double-team rate a season ago, which is something that opposing teams simply cannot do to him in Tennessee because of the other talented pieces he’s surrounded by.
With Gipson now in the building, if Tennessee can get Landry back to his Pro Bowl form and Key continues his upward trajectory of the last two years, this outside linebackers room could be scary.
Hey @titans fans, how excited are you for five more years of @HaroldLandry sacks? pic.twitter.com/Em2nBdLWYi
— NFL (@NFL) March 10, 2022
2. Defensive linemen
Defensive linemen: Jeffery Simmons, Denico Autry, Teair Tart, Naquan Jones, Jayden Peevy
I was torn between outside linebackers and defensive linemen for the second spot, but I have to go with the group that’s headlined by Simmons, Autry, and Tart. As long as they stay healthy, this unit will be among the NFL’s best.
Simmons, in particular, is legitimately capable of being the Defensive Player of the Year if he stays healthy and plays to his full potential.
The Mississippi State product was having a ridiculously dominant start to his 2022 campaign before getting hurt midway through the year. Prior to the ankle injury, the former Simmons recorded a whopping 31 pressures and six sacks over the first seven games.
Sadly, those numbers drastically declined over the back half of the season (Weeks 9-18), with Big Jeff finishing with just 22 pressures and two sacks during that time.
Uncoincidentally, that’s the period where the Titans defender was hardly practicing and was forced to shoot up his ankle before every game.
Outside of Simmons, Autry battled injuries of his own, missing a total of five games in what was arguably the best year of his Titans tenure prior to being injured.
It’s such a shame that Jeffery Simmons & Denico Autry got hurt in the middle of the season.
Those two were legitimately dominating together before injuries slowed them down.The two of them combined for 66 pressures & 12.5 sacks over their first 8 games of the season.#Titans ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/0UAalMpDpz
— Shaun Calderon (@ShaunMichaels31) March 30, 2023
Despite the adversity on the injury front, Tennessee still finished with the No. 1 run defense in the league and statistically one of the best run defenses of the last decade.
it has to be emphasized just how good the Titans run defense was last year.
their defensive rushing success rate (higher = good) was at 69.8%. Tied for the 9th-best rate since 2013 (via @TruMediaSports) and one of the best marks in years. pic.twitter.com/TFuCePxsOP
— Nate Tice (@Nate_Tice) June 23, 2023
Needless to say, this group is going to be a real problem for opposing offenses now that Simmons and Autry are fully healthy again, on top of having a financially motivated Tart upfront.
1. Running backs
Running backs: Derrick Henry, Tyjae Spears, Julius Chesnut.
Anybody who watched the Titans this preseason knows just how potent Spears and Chestnut both are.
More importantly, Tennessee has arguably the best running back in the NFL atop the depth chart who is once again surrounded by adequate talent out wide, which should help to make his life much easier than it was in 2022.
Now, compare that to 2022, where Henry faced the HIGHEST stacked box percentage of his career (38.11%).
For comparison, Nick Chubb only faced similar defensive fronts on 28.81% of his carries, while Josh Jacobs (2022 rushing champion) faced stacked boxes on 20.59% of his rushes pic.twitter.com/aHl5sCbpwE
— Shaun Calderon (@ShaunMichaels31) July 30, 2023
Pairing the King with a dynamic weapon such as Spears should provide a massive challenge for the opposition.
Henry is a bruising back who can physically wear you out while Spears is an electric playmaker who can make defenders miss, both in space and in a phone booth.
Tulane RB Tyjae Spears’ explosion has been dropping jaws at the #SeniorBowl.
Here’s one of my favorite runs from his CFB career.
He’s unfair in the open field — cuts are so sudden, and his decisions are so resolute at high speeds… a natural.
— Thor Nystrom (@thorku) February 1, 2023
That type of change of pace between two completely different ball carriers is going to give defenses headaches for four quarters, but lest we forget that Spears can be a physical runner, also.
According to Warren Sharp of Sharp Football Analysis, Spears led the NFL this preseason with 4.73 yards after contact per carry and dished out some mean stiff-arms in the process.
Tyjae Spears has already learned the stiff arm from hell from Derrick Henry pic.twitter.com/m1A4xbedIT
— Sam Monson (@PFF_Sam) August 26, 2023
Spears also finished No. 9 in yards per carry (5.3 YPC) while tallying the eighth-highest EPA (Expected Points Added) per rush (+0.09).
Arguably what’s most impressive about this type of production is the fact that he put up these stats while facing eight or more men in the box on an eye-popping 41 percent of his rushes, and seven-plus defenders in the box on approximately 82 percent of his carries.
It honestly wouldn’t shock me one bit if Nos. 22 and 32 combine to make the best running back tandem in the league by season’s end, which is why I give them the slight nod over the next two position groups.
With that said, if you want to flip any of the first three groups, you wouldn’t get much of an argument from me.
