ATLANTA -- All 18 finalists came here and were told what time to be in their hotel rooms to await a phone call to learn they missed out or a knock on the door from Dave Baker to learn face-to-face from the guy who runs the Pro Football Hall of Fame that they were a new member.

Former Tennessee Titans center Kevin Mawae got the knock, no small accomplishment considering predictions of three first-ballot selections came to fruition with Tony Gonzalez, Ed Reed and Champ Bailey earning their gold jackets and bronze busts. Ty Law fills out an impressive class modern-era class.

Contributors Gil Brandt and Pat Bowlen and veteran committee selection Johnny Robinson are also in.

The first five of the 15 finalists who were eliminated were: Isaac Bruce, Don Coryell, Tom Flores, John Lynch and Richard Seymour.

The five who advanced to the final 10 but then missed out were Steve Atwater, Tony Boselli, Alan Faneca, Steve Hutchinson and Edgerrin James.

Some thoughts on what unfolded inside the off-the-record meeting, where I was one of the 48 selectors for the sixth time.

ATLANTA, Ga. – I’ve been working hard on my part of the case for Kevin Mawae as a Pro Football Hall of Famer.

The panel of selectors will meet Saturday to trim a list of 15 modern-era finalists to five and then vote yes or no on those five, who will need 80 percent to be enshrined. Gary Myers, who covered Mawae when he played for the Jets, will present the center. I will speak about him after that and John Clayton who covered Mawae with the Seahawks will also speak before the full conversation opens up.

Here is the sheet I will put at every seat in the room.

I sent selectors this remarkable highlight reel this week:

The Titans are moving to a variable pricing structure for their tickets in 2019, moving in line with the vast majority of the NFL.

Season ticket-holders are being alerted to the change in an email Thursday morning. Preseason ticket prices will come way down. Six regular season games will have a baseline price. And home games against the Chiefs and Saints will have a premium price.

Some upper deck seat season totals will stay flat or even come down. But other areas in higher demand, like sideline lowers will increase as much as 10 to 14 percent. [Unlocked]

The NFL offers us snap counts on a game-by-game basis, which we like to examine on Monday mornings.

But I've never found a great spot that compiles the totals as the season builds or gives the final numbers.

In a recent podcast about the Titans' five worst contracts I was able to include the amount of work guys for in 2018. And now thanks to the work of a friend of the site, I can present a new feature here.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The 2018 Tennessee Titans didn’t seem mean enough to me, and it was evidenced by two things:

The first was that beyond Taylor Lewan players had a hard time naming a mean football guy.

The second was that at the Senior Bowl recently Jon Robinson told Jim Wyatt he was looking to add a trait to the string of words he typically uses to characterize the sort of players he wants to compose the Titans’ roster. He has often said he was tough, dependable, team-first, physical guys.  

“We’re looking for smart, fast, and nasty,” Robinson told Wyatt. “Maybe I’ll add 'nasty' to my (list).”

It’s a wise move.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Hope you're having a big weekend. I'm getting ready for a Monday departure to Atlanta, Tuesday's big 50th birthday, a glorious week on Radio Row and what should be a fascinating Pro Football Hall of Fame selection meeting.

I got some very interesting mailbag questions this week and think they make for an enjoyable read.

Have you changed your opinion on the trajectory of the Titans roster construction to favor riskier personnel decisions ? If not, and given Titans lack the transcendent talent of their direct competition, what are they on track to do beyond scrapping until Wk 17 for a wild card?

— TitansNotes (@Titans_Notes) January 25, 2019

PK: Define riskier? I’m guessing you are talking about going and getting someone like Antonio Brown. He’d give

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – On our private Facebook page, Brett Gordon recently posted this:

I was initially dismissive, which is a dangerous default setting I need to do better to fight.

There are certain things a GM needs to get any coach, and so picking one of the NFL’s best safeties in Kevin Byard was the right move no matter who Jon Robinson’s coach was.

But on a lower level, Brett is onto something, at least for a few players. I don't think it was on a scale to set things back much once Mike Vrabel was hired. I think.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – When Kevin Mawae was a free agent looking for a final stop in 2006, a team that had faced him twice a year during his eight seasons with the Jets wanted him.

Zach Thomas battled with Mawae on a twice-annual basis in the AFC East. The way Thomas remembers it, he was with coach Nick Saban at a dinner trying to court Mawae to Miami.

“Saban asks me, he says, ‘Hey, Zach, what do you think his strengths are?’ Thomas remembers. “And I used to say a lot of the same stuff. And at the end, I said, ‘He’s a little nasty, he’s kind of a cheap-shot Christian, you know?’ And Nick said, ‘What’s that mean?’ [Unlocked]