NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Titans could leave the first two rounds of this draft without addressing their premium positions of need.
It wouldn’t be a mistake. It would be how the board falls.
The Titans hold nine picks in the draft, four in the top 101, six in the top 144.
It’s not enough, which makes a trade down from No. 4 overall or No. 35 in the second round appealing.
I’m anxious for the franchise to reach a point where it isn’t two years away from being in position to really complete a roster, but that is where they remain.
And it feels like there are more scenarios than not in which Tennessee will leave a position it really needs to upgrade unaddressed.
I recently ranked the positions of need.
Here’s where the board can work against them.
Arvell Reese and David Bailey are gone before the Titans pick, likely leaving them to choose between Jeremiyah Love and Sonny Styles.
Either choice would be sticking to best player available.
I think the Titans would then be pressed to find a difference-maker at a premium position of need in the second round, if a pass rusher or receiver they savor is there.
But none of these would be a surprise at No. 35 either: a top interior offensive lineman to fill a hole at center or right guard, a high-level nickel, a left tackle who could challenge Dan Moore now and take over in 2027, or even an off-the-ball linebacker if Styles wasn’t the first choice.
Good answers while still missing the biggest questions.
Two rounds with no edge or receiver? Possible. Two rounds missing at least one? If they are truly going best player available, which generally amounts to best player available at a position of need, entirely possible.
(They aren’t drafting a quarterback with a value pick; an outside corner high is highly unlikely after adding Alontae Taylor and Cor’Dale Flott; With Jeffery Simmons and John-Franklin Myers, a defensive tackle in the first two days would be a big surprise.)
That’s how you come out of the top of the draft without addressing pass rusher, left tackle or wide receiver — the premium positions that are hardest to find.
And in this scenario, the Titans could wind up chasing those spots later in the draft.
If Ted Hurst lasts until No. 66 in the third round, maybe receiver remains in play. There could be another one there the team convinces me is an upgrade. But the Titans need a wideout who is a top-tier guy, not someone of a similar caliber to Chim Dike and Elic Ayomanor, fourth-rounders from last year.
Get to 101 in the fourth and, as impatient as I am for a prime playmaker at the position, I’d be OK with them bowing out to address other spots. Mike Herndon has very effectively argued why he wouldn’t go too deep into the draft for a pass rusher, either.
“I’d advise against swinging at this position on Day Three,” he wrote in his piece on his defensive favorites, “as those picks too often amount to nothing at this position relative to others.”
It’s reasonable to expect the first four picks – four, 35, 66 and 101 – to start or make big contributions as rookies. After that, you have to really hit. Borgonzi has made it clear he thinks the team can find a third-day offensive lineman with the toughness needed to be a rookie starter.
The Titans were very needy roster-wise as Mike Borgonzi’s first class came in, and they did better than that.
- 1 Cam Ward, 17 games
- 2 Femi Oladejo, 6 games, hurt
- 3 Kevin Winson, 10 games, six starts, began season injured
- 4 Chimere Dike, 17 games, 10 starts, All-Pro returner
- 4 Gunner Helm, 16 games, 10 starts
- 4 Elic Ayomanor, 16 games, 14 starts
- 5 Jackson Slater, 12 games, no starts
- 5 Marcus Harris, 14 games, five starts
- 6 Kalel Mullings, nine games, no starts
Give the Titans four starters: Love or Styles, say, a pass rusher, a right guard, a nickel.
Then be hopeful about an off-the-ball linebacker, another DB (who can contend to be the bigger or smaller nickel), a center.
That’s seven. Let’s say the other two are fallers too good to pass up, or traits guys, who may not look like needs or aren’t primary ones. Maybe there is a receiver there, a tight end, a running back, a tackle, another edge.
Then start the list for 2027: Left tackle. Big-time receiver. Probably pass rusher, again.