By MIKE HERNDON, columnist

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- It’s officially NFL Draft week, one of my very favorite weeks of the year. Rumors are already flying and Thursday night we’ll finally get some real answers about the direction of the Tennessee Titans under Ran Carthon as well as the rest of the league.

Every year, I like to put together a list of “my guys” in the draft… the quick explanation is simply that it’s players that I’m either higher on than most or simply would pound the table for them to be drafted specifically for the Titans.

By BLAKE BEDDINGFIELD, special correspondent

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Drafting for your team is about roster construction. Most of the teams picking in the top 15 should be looking to add quality players to their roster no matter what the position – draft the best player available. 

Most teams seem to select need positions and let better players fall to organizations that aren’t afraid to select talent.

There are teams like the Philadelphia Eagles, Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills that can draft for need or draft quality depth because of their quarterback stability and also their roster depth and talent.

A great example of taking quality players a year before they are needed is the Eagles draft in 2022.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Ran Carthon posed for a picture with a fan at a recent event and she leaned in.

“You better not trade Derrick,” she whispered sternly, Carthon said at his Monday pre-draft press conference. “And she scared the hell out of me because it came from a motherly, authoritative place. I was like, ‘Yes ma'am.’”

Usually, Carthon said, he doesn’t say anything to that common plea about Derrick Henry.

“I just smile and kind of nod and just hope that someone comes in a just kind of saves me,” he said. [Unlocked]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A former player with ties to the agency that represents Derrick Henry tweeted that the Titans' running back is heading to the Eagles in a trade and the internet went crazy the Saturday before the draft.

There’s just one problem.

The Titans and Eagles have had zero conversations about a trade for the running back who’s heading into his eighth season, his last under contract with Tennessee. [Unlocked]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A weekend off is upon us before a big Thursday-Friday-Saturday when the Titans will add key people to their roster.

You know I love digging into the mail and we go pretty deep here and this week is no exception.

First comes the podcast plug: Please find it on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn and YouTube.

Below you'll also find this week's members' chat.

Let's get to it.

Jim Belaskie With all the Cap space next year and the Cap situation this year, I don't understand why we would not extend Tannehill?

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- We're a week away from further transformation of the Tennessee Titans. 

Hopefully, they will have added a blue-chip player by the end of the first round.

It's hole-punching season, and I've been a big part of that and may have fallen victim to finding issues with prospects more than ever. I've had particular trouble falling in love with players at the team's two biggest positions of need: Offensive line and receiver for the No. 11 pick.

Many came and discussed that and whatever else was on your mind as we draw close to actual Titans news.

You can head to the private Facebook page or head below to rewatch.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- We've heard various things about Ryan Tannehill, Derrick Henry and Kevin Byard during this offseason, three key players for the Titans who are getting older and who carry three of the team's top four 2023 cap numbers.

A week before the draft is a good time to reconsider the status of each.

That's where this week's edition of The Paul Kuharsky Podcast starts. Please find it on Apple, Spotify, Google Podcasts, TuneIn and YouTube, which is below.

Whichever platform you prefer, please subscribe, rate, review and share.

Subjects I dive into:

💥 The state of the team's cap now without any action on Tannehill, Henry or Byard.
💥 Draft lists as opposed to guides or mocks.
💥 The meaning of the Chris Moore signing.

All brought to you by Jasper's

The podcast is just the front door to PaulKuharsky.com. If you like what you hear or see here, you'd really love the rest of the site. Come join the fun.

By MIKE HERNDON, columnist

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about what a trade-up might look like for the Titans if they decided that they wanted to pull the trigger on a quarterback from this year’s class. That possibility remains as rumors of the Texans looking to either trade out of the second overall pick or even take a defender continue to grow.

However, there is an argument to be made that the Titans should be looking to move down, not up, in the upcoming 2023 NFL Draft.