While we were able to nail down who will be the Tennessee Titans’ starters on offense for 2020 in a separate article, the defensive side of the ball still has a few questions to answer.
Granted, much of the Titans’ defensive starters can be figured out, but after the trade of Jurrell Casey, there’s a big hole to fill on the defensive line.
So, how can the Titans fill it right now based on the players currently under contract? Let’s take a look at that, as well as the rest of the projected starters with the roster as is.
Defensive line
Starters: Isaiah Mack, DaQuan Jones, Jeffery Simmons
While Mack did show some flashes last season, the only chance he’s starting on the defensive line is if the Titans do absolutely nothing to add it in order to replace Casey. I don’t think that will happen, but for now, he’s in line to start.
What I expect to happen is for the Titans to bring in a defensive end like Jadeveon Clowney, or perhaps a defensive line move of lesser note. Bringing Austin Johnson would have also been a possibility, but he has signed with the New York Giants.
Linebackers
Starters | OLBs: Vic Beasley, Harold Landry
Starters | ILBs: Jayon Brown, Rashaan Evans
Beasley is one of the newest additions to the Titans. He was signed to a one-year, $9.5 million deal after totaling eight sacks with the Atlanta Falcons in 2019. While there have been concerns about his consistency and effort in the past, the 27-year-old has a ton of upside.
Tennessee will return what should be an elite duo on the inside in Brown and Evans. Brown’s talent in pass coverage, along with Evans’ ability against the run and motor overall, makes the pair one heck of a combination.
Landry took a big step forward in 2019 with a career-high nine sacks, but his production did hit a wall after Cameron Wake was placed on Injured Reserve and could no longer help take pressure off him. The Boston College product should thrive with a guy like Beasley opposite him next season.
Cornerbacks
Starters: Adoree’ Jackson, Malcolm Butler
Slot CB: Amani Hooker
Hooker isn’t technically a starter here, but I would assume he’ll be taking over slot corner duties from Logan Ryan, who remains a free agent but doesn’t seem likely to return.
Hooker was an elite slot corner in college and the Titans drafting him in the fourth round of the 2019 NFL Draft might have been a sign Ryan would be done in Nashville after 2019.
Jackson took a big leap in year three for the Titans, as Pro Football Focus ranked him as the No. 15 corner in the NFL last season. Tennessee will have to decide whether or not to pick up his fifth-year option by May, but it’s a no-brainer that the Titans will.
Butler comes into 2020 after having played just nine games prior to suffering a broken wrist against the Carolina Panthers. Butler played well before getting hurt and has been much improved since getting off to a rocky start in his first season in Nashville.
Safeties
Starters: Kenny Vaccaro, Kevin Byard
Both Vaccaro and Byard are a perfect complement to each other at the position and will continue to form a formidable duo in 2020.
Byard, who agreed to a massive deal prior to the start of the season, picked off five passes in 2019, tied for the second-most in the NFL. He’s a security blanket deep, and his ball-hawking ability is second to none.
Vaccaro, on the other hand, is a great in-the-box safety and can play the run with the best of them. He’s also shown versatility to be an asset in coverage, as evidenced by his clutch interception of Lamar Jackson in the playoffs.
Both players play nearly 100 percent of snaps every game and make up one of the best safety tandems in the NFL.
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