NASHVILLE, Tenn. – It’s not easy to smooth over a case like that of Jeffery Simmons, who was captured on video repeatedly hitting a woman in 2016, was found guilty of malicious mischief and plead no contest to simple assault.

(Photo courtesy of Mississippi State athletics.)

Thursday night, Jon Robinson and Mike Vrabel were ready to do so as they spoke of the defensive lineman from Mississippi State they chose for the Titans with the 19^th pick in the draft and the edges were already softened for me – probably too easily. [Unlocked]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Jeffery Simmons should ultimately bring the Titans a very good defensive lineman.

But first, the 19^th pick in the 2019 NFL Draft will bring a bunch of questions:

How long will it take his knee to be healthy? He tore his left ACL in February training and will not be ready until well into the season, which would wind up a redshirt deal.

And how will he and the franchise that chose him explain an ugly 2016 incident that resulted in him being found guilty of malicious mischief and pleading no contest to simple assault?

[Unlocked]

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- I'm not going to pretend to know who the Titans are taking if they pick at No. 19 tonight. If you forced me to give you a name, it'll be Clelin Ferrell, the Clemson edge rusher. (Pictured.)

My favorite analysts talk of his smart hand use, his balance, his toughness and his variety of rush moves. And, oh yeah, he notched 27 sacks in three seasons at a high level.

Here's what Jon Robinson told me about Ferrell: "Edge guy. 4-3 end to outside linebacker in an odd-man front. Good technician. Savvy rusher. I don't think he's going to win with a ton of just flat-out speed. But I think he's a really good football player."

Some Robinson thoughts on some other prospects, starting with a Clemson teammate of Ferrell's, who I don't think will last until the Titans' pick.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – At what point in the draft equation does a high-quality player destined to miss a big chunk of his rookie season, if not all of it, become worth selecting?

That’s a question facing the Titans at No. 19 where Mississippi State interior defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons may well be available, and would likely bring them a skill set of which they are in dire need. He’d also bring a repaired left ACL he tore in February.

That could see him return during the course of the 2019 NFL season, but he’s won’t be making an impact on opening day or anywhere close to it. And it’s possible his first year could be a wash.

BY BLAKE BEDDINGFIELD, special contributor

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- In every draft room, there is a draft board with 1,000-plus names that are not draftable and won’t get a chance as a free agent and a second draft board that contains 300+ names that will get drafted or sign free agent contracts. 

There are also other boards in the draft room. A Top 100 player board ranked in order. A board with all seven rounds with each pick in order. There is a board with all 32 team’s draft choices that they own by number under the name. And last, in Nashville, there is a Titans’ team needs board to fill out the remaining roster spots.

The most important of these boards is the Titans’ positional grade board. It will be used the most during the draft.

The board is set up by position starting with C, G, T, TE, QB, RB, WR, DE, DT, ILB, OLB, CB, S, Spec. Every team uses their own specific numerical grading system to determine the value of the player. The most popular grading system is the “old” national football scouting grading system.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Draft excitement is about to boil over. I've worked hard on this mailbag to help us work our way to Thursday night.

Here's some schedule talk from earlier this week.

Titans’ schedule chat https://t.co/H6Y8TDdSNQ

— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) April 18, 2019

On to your fine questions, which I appreciate.

In your years of covering the Titans and in honor of the nfl draft, who is the biggest bust and biggest overachieving draft pick made by Titans???

— Robert White Stuard (@Robertdeerfish) April 20, 2019

PK: It’d be hard to find anyone who did better than Cortland Finnegan, a seventh-rounder who was a first-team All-Pro

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- NFL owners tend to be eccentric and somewhat mysterious, operating behind the scenes.

Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk interact with fans more than most, and Thursday night she made the sort of appearance that few of her peers would consider.

In front of an audience of 300 people in downtown Nashville at an event to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society of Tennessee, she spoke for over an hour with John McClain of the Houston Chronicle. It was an off-the-record conversation -- no reporting, no recording. [Unlocked]

By BLAKE BEDDINGFIELD, special correspondent 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Paul asked me for a look at the pre-draft process through the eyes of someone who's been involved. So here we go.

Draft Meetings: The pre-draft meeting process for most NFL teams start two weeks before the draft. Depending on who runs the draft (GM, HC or owner) the pre-draft meetings could range anywhere from a month long to just a few days. The process can be a long one for all involved. Most meeting times will start at 7 am and run until 9 pm in the evening.

Photo: Outside linebacker Sharif Finch got $42,000 guaranteed as an undrafted free agent from the Titans last year.

The pre-draft meetings and the process that the teams go through are vital to stacking the board and properly categorizing players into groups. Ranking players within position groups and also in tiers. A draft board is stacked by position vertically with players in groups based on their final “team grade.” Grades are given by multiple scouts/coaches in an organization, but the final team grade is determined by the decision-maker.

The vertical stacking is important to rank players at each position, but the tier group stacking is also important to rank players at each level or round. The vertical stacking makes it easy for the GM to decide on players when it is the team's