Tennessee Titans general manager Jon Robinson gets plenty of credit for some of the great moves he has made over the years, but he does have his warts with some of the contracts he has handed out since 2016.
Here’s a list of the worst contracts he has inked players to based on the amount of money handed out and what the team ultimately got from the player in return.
Beyond the five worst, we’re also going to list some honorable mentions that include one contract that could be among Robinson’s worst but is still too early to judge.
Disclaimer: Not all of these contracts were Robinson’s fault, as some of them looked like the right moves at the time. Nevertheless, all of these were the biggest contracts that didn’t work out.
Sylvester Williams | NT
Contract: Three years, $16.5 million (2017)
With a need along the defensive line, Robinson inked Williams to a three-year deal after he had four decent seasons as a member of the Denver Broncos, one of which resulted in a Super Bowl win.
The nose tackle’s time in Tennessee was short. In 15 games (11 starts) for the Titans, Williams totaled 20 tackles (four for loss).
It didn’t take Robinson long to move on. Williams would get cut the following offseason, which cost the Titans a dead cap hit of $2.58 million in 2018.
Johnathan Cyprien | S
Contract: Four years, $25 million (2017)
Cyprien was a serviceable safety when the Titans signed him and even though it wasn’t his fault that an injury led to his eventual release, I’m not sure he was worth the money Robinson gave him from the start.
In his first in Tennessee, Cyprien played in just 10 games, totaling 38 tackles, one sack and zero interceptions. His second season ended before it started, as he suffered a torn ACL prior to the start of the 2018 campaign.
To replace him, the Titans inked Kenny Vaccaro, who eventually played his way into an extension in 2019. With Vaccaro proving to be an upgrade, the Titans released Cyprien in March of that year.
Dion Lewis | RB
Contract: four years, $19.8 million (2018)
The Titans were looking for a veteran back to complement Derrick Henry in 2018, and while the fit was right with the pass-catching specialist Lewis, his stay in Nashville didn’t exactly pan out.
Lewis saw steady involvement in the offense in his first season in Tennessee and did total over 900 yards (517 rushing and 400 receiving) and two touchdowns, but his role diminished near the end of the campaign.
In 2019, Lewis was simply unable to make a significant enough impact with the ball in his hands to justify him getting snaps, especially with Henry dominating the way he did en route to a rushing title.
After two seasons and averaging a disappointing 3.5 yards per carry and 6.7 yards per reception, the Titans cut bait with Lewis, who will account for over $1 million in dead cap in 2020.
Malcolm Butler | CB
Contract: Five years, $61.25 million (2018)
This is not to say that Butler has been horrible during his Titans tenure or that he isn’t important to the team in 2020, but he certainly hasn’t been the caliber of player who should command a deal that ranks sixth in total value and 11th in annual average salary among NFL cornerbacks, per Over the Cap.
After getting off to a horrid start in Tennessee in 2018, Butler improved enough to earn his way onto Pro Football Focus’ list of “Second-half stars”, and he continued that with nine solid games in 2019 before his campaign was cut short due to a wrist injury.
Still, Butler’s 2019 PFF grade in coverage was lower than veteran Johnathan Joseph’s, who the Titans recently signed to a one-year deal worth $2 million.
Butler and his $13.3 million salary remain safe with the Titans for this coming season, but it wouldn’t be at all surprising if Robinson decides to cut the corner in 2021. He’ll be set to make $14.2 million and the team might have already found his future replacement in Kristian Fulton.
Cameron Wake | EDGE
Contract: Three years, $23 million (2019)
Robinson’s head was in the right place when he decided to ink the veteran Wake to a contract, as the Titans desperately needed to improve a pass-rush that was pedestrian in 2018.
While the early returns were fantastic, Wake ended up playing a limited number of snaps on a weekly basis and failed to record another sack after the 2.5 he totaled in the Week 1 win over the Cleveland Browns.
The only saving grace was that Wake was still getting pressure despite it not showing up in the box score.
The veteran’s season was eventually cut short after just nine games, and the Titans decided to end Wake’s tenure after just one season, leaving them with $2.6 million in dead cap for the 2020 season.
Honorable mentions
Ryan Succop | K — 2018 (Five years, $20 million): Leading up to Succop signing what was the second-richest contract for a kicker in NFL history, he had always been solid for the Titans. However, Succop lasted just two seasons after inking the deal, and his tenure ended after a disastrous 2019 campaign.
Delanie Walker | TE — 2018 (Two years, $17 million): You can’t blame Robinson for this decision, as signing one of the faces of the franchise to an extension was the right move at the time and it only failed because of injury. Walker suffered a gruesome ankle injury in 2018 that limited him to one game, and then he simply couldn’t recover to 100 percent in 2019. That led to the Titans cutting the tight end earlier this offseason.
Adam Humphries | WR — 2019 (Four years, $36 million): The reason this falls in the “honorable mention” category is because it’s still too early to judge after just one season. Humphries certainly brings value as a chain-mover and he still has time to fully justify this contract, but I’m not sure he can do so in terms of raw production because of the Titans’ run-heavy offense. The slot receiver missed four games during the regular season and two during the postseason during his first year in Nashville, and was barely utilized when he was healthy.
