NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Congratulations on making it through the darkness.

Sunday there will be extended light.

I do not want to hear a single complaint about a lost hour of sleep donated to springing ahead. Springing ahead is amazing. The payoff is huge.

I hope you didn’t miss our Periscope on Friday, but in case you did, here it is.

Watch on #Periscope: .@pickersvodka #Titans talk, March 9 https://t.co/gx7tZOwpcL

— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) March 10, 2018

Send questions for this popular weekly file to @PaulKuharskyNFL on Twitter or through the member Facebook page. (Keyword there, member.)

In your mind how similar is free agency to college recruiting and will Vrabel be able to influence a player’s decision as much considering the moneyaspect? #PKMail

— The General (@mac9nj) March 9, 2018

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – We now know, according to ESPN, that free-agent cornerback Richard Sherman ranks the Titans as an interested team.

What we don’t know is the degree of interest, and how that compares to the interest level of the 49ers, who Sherman is visiting already, as well as the Lions, Raiders, Texans, Buccaneers and Packers.

ESPN’s Josina Anderson reported Sherman saying those are franchises he has heard from.

As he recovers from Achilles repair, he said he wants to be with a contender. Every one of those teams can sell themselves as one, with the Bucs having the hardest case to make.

Money will certainly play a role – it always does.

But I’ve gone too long here letting those of you who are big-name hunters get excited.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Titans have told DeMarco Murray he will be released, and a team that spent a 2016 second-round pick on Derrick Henry is ready to move forward at running back.

Murray brought the team the sort of intensity that had often been missing during the Ken Whisenhunt regime and his work in 2016 shouldn’t be forgotten.

Murray was Jon Robinson’s first big move. He swapped fourth-round picks with Philadelphia as the Eagles undid a free-agent signing that did not work for Chip Kelly. And to bring Murray to Tennessee Robinson got him to agree to a re-worked contract.

The running back helped the Titans re-establish themselves with 293 carries for 1,287 yards and six touchdowns. He also caught 44 passes for another 322 yards and an additional score.

He was a reliable third-down player, good running routes and effective at keeping blitzers off of Marcus Mariota.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – No position is of bigger need for the Titans heading into 2018 as edge pass rusher.

Their depth is lacking and their two incumbent starters, Brian Orakpo and Derrick Morgan, are getting older and heading into the last year of their deals.

We will look at a lot of guys at the spot, but as I discussed one of them -- Ohio State's Sam Hubbard --  with a scout, he gave me a comparison that I couldn’t wait to discuss.

“Good player, smart guy, very tough,” he told me. “Average athlete. But makes plays. Reminds you of a young Mike Vrabel.”

It’s clear how much Jon Robinson liked Vrabel’s playing style and leadership. It’s clear how much Vrabel prided himself on using his smart to help him be a playmaker.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Like most writers/reporters/analysts who closely follow a team, I have certain insight into the Titans.

It doesn’t make me good at predicting things about them, because, as I say, again and again, the single biggest attraction the NFL has is its unpredictability.

The desire fans have for predictions is strong, but it’s not as strong as the urge to bash people for missing on predictions.

Sometimes I have a strong feeling about whether they will win or lose the upcoming game. But I don't know who's going to win on a given Sunday. Such fortune-telling better coming from Vegas guys, who advise you on which way to bet, as it's their job.

For a writer/reporter/analyst/columnist, the job is to find out new information, to tell you what new information means when it surfaces and to craft opinions based on information and what we see and hear.

When I recently wrote about how NFL reporters seem wary of saying they were wrong, I saw, again, how people mix things up. A news report that is wrong is a far different than a game prediction that is wrong.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – No one had a bigger role in creating the opportunity Mike Vrabel has stepped into than Marcus Mariota.

It’s a bit odd to think of it that way.

But in no uncertain terms, Mike Mularkey’s inability to maximize Mariota’s talents was the chief reason Mularkey lost his job, creating an opening Jon Robinson picked Vrabel to fill.

That, combined with the fact that the quarterback is any team’s most popular topic, creates questions for Vrabel about Mariota.

But the new coach has been reluctant to talk much about his signal-caller.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – That stereotypical crusty old scout chomping on a cigar with a billion Holiday Inn points in his account isn’t part of the Tennessee Titans anymore.

Among the changes Jon Robinson has made in his two seasons as the franchise’s GM is a significant turnover in the scouting department.

Gone are old-guard guys like Phil Neri, Marv Sunderland, Tim Ruskell and Mike Yowarsky.

The college scouting staff Robinson inherited in 2015 had an average of 22.8 years of NFL experience heading into that season. By my count, the current staff has an average of 8.3 heading into this season.

Old scouts can be set in their ways and that can be a positive or a negative. New scouts haven’t seen as much and that can be a positive or negative.

The overall shift is not good or bad, but it is different. I think this is the youngest college scouting staff the franchise has had in the Tennessee era.

“I want them to continue to improve as evaluators,” Robinson said. “We’ve obviously tried to teach them what we are looking for in players, certain skills sets, position skills, critical factors, developing relationships

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Greetings from Music City, where I've returned from the scouting combine. The Midday 180 had a successful trip, and you should head here to catch up on all our interviews, including sit-downs with Mike Vrabel and Jon Robinson.

@PaulKuharskyNFL Why are these GMs and Scouts hand timings 40’s at the combine. Do they believe their timing is more accurate than NFL timers? #PKmail

— Heath Greenwell (@heathbgreenwell) March 3, 2018

PK: The answer is one people who embrace change won't like. It’s mostly because they’ve always done it that way.

If you’ve "hand-timed" for year and years and you want to be able to compare Player A from this year to Player B from 10 years ago (when he was hand timed) and to everyone else you’ve ever timed, then it’s more apples to apples.

I’d think at some point you’d flip the switch to going by official electronic time, but that doesn’t seem to be happening.

I keep hearing about Ben Jones’ issues at center last year. Will the Titans look to move him to guard and find another center in free agency or the draft? #PKmail

— Ed Triplett (@Wakeforest88) March 3, 2018