Tennessee Titans position breakdown: Center
By Will Lomas
With the 2015 NFL Draft now over, it is time to get a look at what the roster looks like heading into the 2015 NFL season. Today we will look at the position responsible for touching the ball on every play on the Tennessee Titans roster: center.
Starter
Brian Schwenke is the starter for the Tennessee Titans and that is not something that fans should be overly confident about. While Brian Schwenke’s speed and athleticism is evident on some plays he lacks a true anchor and really doesn’t have that mean streak that he showed in college.
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If the Tennessee Titans can somehow get Brian Schwenke his confidence back, he could be a key cog in an offensive line that could move a lot more to help merge the Ken Whisenhunt offense and the Oregon Ducks offense.
Backups
This is one of the more intriguing positions on the Tennessee Titans in terms of back up potential.
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First of all, the Tennessee Titans drafted Andy Gallik of Boston College in the 2015 NFL Draft. Andy Gallik is very similar to what Brian Schwenke was in college, except he is a better technician. The rookie uses his hands well, and ultimately ends up walling guys off and giving running backs creases to run through.
Also, Gabe Ikard is on the team and many people saw him as one of the top centers coming out last year. The former Oklahoma Sooner also plays with finesse, and while he hasn’t shown anything similar to what he showed in college yet, a year in an NFL strength and conditioning program could definitely pay off.
Future
Ultimately, I see the Tennessee Titans sticking with Brian Schwenke until his contract expires. Hopefully in the mean time one of the two backups (preferably Andy Gallik) steps up and shows that the Tennessee Titans don’t need to draft or sign another center.
In an offense that should move a lot more this year, center scares me more than any other position. Interior pressure is a killer for a quarterback and inconsistency here could lead to Chance Warmack and Andy Levitre being put in bad situations.
If the Tennessee Titans get this position figured out, things will go very smoothly for the their running game. That in turn should help Marcus Mariota develop nicely. And if that happens, everything will fall into place, so don’t underestimate the importance of this position.