While the Tennessee Titans are focused on the current free agency period, it’s never too early to start looking ahead to the 2021 class.
In that class, the Titans will have some of their most important players set to hit the open market, which can be avoided by extending them prior to the start of the 2020 season.
We saw Tennessee do that last year with a pair of impending 2020 free agents in Kevin Byard and Ben Jones, both of whom had their contracts extended before the 2019 season.
But until extensions are given out, these are the Titans’ highest-priority free agents for the 2021 offseason.
Derrick Henry
Until Henry gets a long-term deal and sheds the franchise tag, he’s on track to become a free agent in 2021.
Based on how general manager Jon Robinson talks about a potential deal, combined with the fact that Henry signed his franchise tender, things look positive for a deal to get done and for the Titans to avoid this situation.
Jayon Brown
The Titans’ inside linebacker has been a revelation since being taken in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft. Brown has emerged as one of the better players at his position in the NFL, and he’s an elite coverage linebacker.
He’s also a tackle machine, as Brown has finished second and third on the team in tackles the last two seasons, respectively. What makes that even more impressive is that Brown wasn’t a full-time starter in 2018 and he missed two games in 2019 due to injury.
Brown should be priority No. 1 for the Titans to extend this offseason or else the team could be faced with an expensive bidding war for his services in 2021.
Jonnu Smith
After answering the bell in the absence of Delanie Walker last season, Smith has firmly placed himself as the team’s starting tight end for 2020 and could be the long-term solution for Tennessee at the position.
His off-the-charts athleticism makes him a great pass-catcher much like Walker was, and we’ve even seen the Titans use him as a rusher (he had four carries for 78 yards in 2019). On top of that, he has no doubt improved as a blocker when called upon to do so.
Smith is a candidate to get a contract extension prior to the start of the 2020 season, and the Titans would be wise to get that done sooner rather than later before the young tight end has a true breakout campaign.
Corey Davis
The Titans will have to make decisions about whether or not to pick up the fifth-year options of both Davis and Adoree’ Jackson by May 3. While Jackson is a lock to have his picked up, Davis is not.
The former No. 5 overall pick took a step back in production last season and a back seat to A.J. Brown as the team’s No. 1 receiver. While we can certainly point to his value as a blocker, that won’t be enough to have his option picked up, which would make him a free agent in 2021.
As was the case with Jack Conklin in 2019, Davis could emerge and have a great season in 2020, which would make him a priority free agent for the team. Even if that happens, I’d expect the Titans to prepare for his potential departure by drafting a receiver at some point during the 2020 NFL Draft.
DaQuan Jones
With only one year left on his current deal, Jones is set to hit the open market next year. If he has anything like the year he had last season in 2020, he will stand to get paid.
Jones was stellar along the defensive front for Tennessee in 2019, posting an impressive Pro Football Focus grade of 77.2. Sure, Jones isn’t great at creating pressure up the middle, but he is a plus against the run.
With Jones making $8.3 million this season, he has the potential to be as expensive next offseason. Of course, with the salary cap expected to increase significantly in 2021, there’s a chance the Titans can make room for him.
Vic Beasley
One of the newest Titans, Beasley has only been inked to a one-year deal, so the Titans will be back in the boat of looking for an edge rusher again in 2021, unless one of the younger guys steps up in a big way in 2020.
Should Beasley perform somewhere in the middle of his 2016 15.5-sack season and his 2019 eight-sack season, he’ll be a high priority for the Titans to re-sign next year.
Should Beasley revert back to the five-sack guy he was in 2017 and 2018, he’ll be much further down on the list.
Of course, sacks don’t always tell the whole story, so we’ll also have to see what kind of pressure he generates when determining if he’s a priority for the Titans to retain after this season.
