Tennessee Titans Depth Chart 2019 Titans Depth Chart

Titans Depth Chart

In the draft, Tennessee selected former Mississippi State defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons at pick 19, Simmons’ showed premier talent as a pass-rusher and run defender, but an offseason injury and off the field issues pushed him out of the top 10. Tennessee selected Ole Miss wide receiver AJ Brown in the second round, who will most likely play a hybrid slot/outside role for Tennessee as he was a monster after the catch showing great speed and elusiveness.

Even though Tennessee finished with a 9-7 record last season, they didn’t do much offensively and were carried by their top-10 defense. Marcus Mariota struggled at times in the 14 games he played finishing as PFF’s 18th-highest-graded quarterback. In the two games Mariota missed, Blaine Gabbert grade ranked dead last in the NFL among quarterbacks with at least 100 dropbacks, so Tennessee made a change and brought in former Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehil to be their backup quarterback. At the skill positions, Derrick Henry was a revelation finishing as the NFL’s second-highest-graded running back according to PFF, while also ranking second in yards after contact. Wide receiver Corey Davis improved upon a dismal rookie year to score four touchdowns while also bringing in 42 first-down receptions, good for 30th overall at the position.

They also signed Adum Humphries from Tampa Bay who will play opposite Davis and A.J Brown. Deon Lewis will be the team's primary pass catching back while Delanie Walker is a veteran at tight end that Tennessee will be hoping has some left in the tank. At offensive line, Tennessee has mostly had the same starting five the past three seasons, but their PFF grading has gotten worse over that time. Last season they performed well in pass protection allowing a knockdown once every 20.0 pass-blocking snaps, while allowing only six hits all year after ending the season allowing 131 pressures on 519 passing plays.

On defense they bring back Jurrell Casey at defensive tackle who was once again a strong pass-rushing force racking up 44 pressures. Since 2011, he’s accumulated a total of 339 QB pressures. Outside of Casey however, Harold Landry was the only Titans defensive linemen to rank inside the top 50 in QB pressures last season. At linebacker Jayon Brown had a breakout season impressing in coverage and as a pass rusher, while Rashaan Evans also flashed big-time potential throughout stretches of the season. Kevin Byard had another great season as their deep safety limiting receivers in his primary coverage while also sticking his nose in run defense and as a blitzer. He finished the season as the Titans’ highest-graded player on defense according to PFF, grabbing four interceptions while not allowing a reception longer than 17 yards on 30 targets as the primary coverage defender.

Cornerback Malcolm Butler is coming off his best year in red-zone coverage ranking second in forced incompletion rate in the red-zone among cornerbacks with at least eight red-zone targets, while his 45.8 passer rating allowed ranked fifth. Even though Tennessee had their moments last year, they will have to tighten up their protection and hope for more from an offense which ranked 27th in points scored. The Titans are currently expected to finish last in their division with 7/1 odds after finishing in third place last season. The Colts are heavy super bowl favorites, while the Texans made the playoffs last season and Jacksonville is only two seasons removed from an NFC Championship game. If they're lucky health wise and Mariotta shows some improvement, Tennessee could hopefully finish around 9-7 again in 2019.

Tennessee had some good moments on offense last year but with some improved protection, hopefully more will come from a middling offense that ranked just 27th in points scored 2018. Mariota was limited to 14 games and put forth just the 18th-highest-graded season among quarterbacks. Derrick Henry was a revelation, finishing as the second-highest-graded PFF running back last season, while also ranking second in yards after contact. Deon Lewis possesses superior pass-catching skills but may get less receptions with some new receivers coming to Nashville.

Wide receiver Corey Davis improved upon a dismal rookie year to score four touchdowns while racking up 42 first-down receptions. Rookie A.J Brown will provide Tennessee with a versatile and dynamic presence after the catch that they lacked last season. He broke 40 tackles over his past two seasons at Ole Miss. Adam Humphries was signed from Tampa Bay and had the 28th-most yards among receivers in 2018, but he ranked 52nd among 96 qualifying receivers in yards per route run. At tight end Delanie Walker will be back after playing in only one game before dislocating his ankle and spending the rest of the season on IR.