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Prediction week: This one's about tight ends

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – As we move on with prediction week, we shift to tight end.

The Titans seemed more satisfied with Luke Stocker in that blocking tight end role than most of us on the outside were in 2018, and then he got a free agent deal to catch up to the coach who brought him to Tennessee.SmithWattHouston

Stocker is with Mike Mularkey and the Atlanta Falcons now.

Because of injuries to Delanie Walker and Jonnu Smith, Stocker wound up playing 49 percent of the Titans’ offensive snaps.

Hopefully, Walker and Smith are good to go and show no ill effects of the injuries that ended their seasons last year. Anthony Firkser proved to be a super-reliable pass-catcher, but the primary blocking tight end role that Stocker held now belongs to MyCole Pruitt.

We cannot gauge anything pertaining to blocking out of offseason, non-contact, non-padded work.

But the role has to have a route-running/ pass-catching element to it, and it that Pruitt did not look good. Some bad stuff unfolded when he was central, and he was central more often than you’d like as Walker was limited at best in team work and Smith wasn’t in it at all.

Marcus Mariota and Pruitt didn’t seem to have much of a feel for each other.

The Titans tried to sign Lee Smith when the Raiders cut him, but Buffalo won out. They put in a claim on Jordan Leggett when he was released by the Jets, but the Buccaneers got him.

apple icon 144x144 precomposedPer Pro Football Focus, while Pruitt didn’t play a ton of snaps, he actually posted a better overall grade in their metrics than Lee Smith, Stocker, Leggett, Firkser and Jonnu Smith.

Pruitt only played 14 pass blocking snaps, though, versus 72 for Stocker.

Maybe the Titans found an answer after things wrapped up when they brought in veteran Ryan Hewitt, who had a better run-blocking PFF grade in 2018 for the Colts than any of the six tight ends we mentioned above.

Nevertheless, I believe ...

Prediction 3: The Titans will continue to look to upgrade tight end depth.

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