NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Positional value was a central topic in the long, slow build-up to the draft.
Big Draft’s widespread presumption was that Jeremiyah Love and Sonny Styles were the talent values that fit around the Titans’ spot at No. 4, though running back and inside linebacker are not positions teams prefer to spend such a value pick on.
Some of it was based on league rumblings, certainly.
Text from a respected NFL GM in response to a heated discussion we had on "The Schrager Hour" over whether a team can really take a safety (Downs) in the top 5 in 2026:
— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) April 15, 2026
"Throw positional value out this year."
Food for thought.
But in Nashville, we generally let outside forces lead us astray, or joined their thinking, while the team did well to stay quiet.
The Titans went premium at No. 4 with Ohio State receiver Carnell Tate, then traded back into the first round to hit another premium spot with defensive end Keldric Faulk at No. 31.
It’s hard not to like the spots the team addressed.
The Titans have long struggled to find high-quality receivers. They had a rare breakthrough with second-rounder AJ Brown in 2019 only to trade him after three seasons. Titan-era first-rounders – Kenny Britt, Kendall Wright, Corey Davis and Treylon Burks – failed to become top-tier players.
And they’ve not spent a first-round pick on an end/ edge since Derick Morgan was the 16th pick in 2010, a ridiculously long drought.
But the issue is that neither Tate nor Faulk comes to Nashville with the sort of premium big-program production that provides big confidence about what’s ahead for them as pros.
The eighth pick in 2025, Tet McMillian, went to Carolina, having played two fewer college games at Arizona than Tate played at OSU. And McMillian had 92 more catches, 1,551 more yards and 12 more touchdowns. Different circumstances for sure, but that's a ton more collegiate production.
It’s not Tate’s fault that he played with Jeremiah Smith, who will be a huge prize in next year’s draft and was the Buckeye’s No. 1 receiver. And Faulk had 30 pressures in his final year at Auburn, and just two sacks last year. He did some two-gapping, which could slow him down at times. You can’t be that close to the QB that often and get him down that little.
“Every situation is different – what position they play, what the scheme is, talent,” Borgonzi said. “We certainly 
think they are going to be very productive at this level. Keldric talked about things that he can improve and Carnell has gotten better every year and played with some pretty good receivers at Ohio State as well.”
Projecting is a big part of scouting, he said.
“Production is part of the evaluation but it’s not the entire evaluation,” Saleh said. “you’ve got circumstance, you’re always looking at situations and these two young men are going to produce in this league. You can make an argument for Carnell that every opportunity that he got, he took advantage of it. It’s not his fault that they are blocking teams out in the first half and they’re only playing half a game.
“They are two extremely talented young men and they are going to be very, very productive for us.”
The Titans addressed the right positions. Now they need Tate and Faulk to prove they are the right players.
