Draft Profiles

 3/23/12

DE Nick Perry, USC

The Tennessee Titans have to be looking towards the future of the DE position. Nick Perry is one of the top rated DE’s in the draft and there’s a possibility he’s still on the board when the Titans pick. After missing out on Mario Williams in free agency and John Abraham, the Titans have a need at the DE position. They have added Kamerion Wimbley, but they’re not sure what they’ll get from him or Morgan this season, so DE could very well be their first choice.. Nick Perry increased his stock when he came into the Combine at 6-3 and 271 lbs, over ten pounds heavier than his college playing weight. He still showed great athleticism and speed.

3/22/12

DE Tyrone Crawford, Boise State

The Tennessee Titans are a little thin at the DE position and will certainly be drafting at least one in the upcoming NFL draft. Tyrone Crawford out of Boise State is a prospect that the Titans will definitely be taking a close look at. A little lower down on the draft board, Tyrone could be had for a mid-round pick.

2/10/12

CB Stephon Gilmore, South Carolina

Here we are with our fourth draft profile of the year. The Tennessee Titans secondary could be pretty vacant after free agency starts up. Cortland Finnegan, Michael Griffin and Chris Hope all look like they won’t be returning for another year.

The Titans are a young team and look to get even younger. They may very well look for an able body in the draft to replace Cortland Finnegan. There’s almost no way they find someone with the fire that Finnegan has, but that doesn’t mean they can’t find a good replacement.

That brings us to CB Stephon Gilmore of South Carolina. He’s a big corner, tipping the scale at 193 lbs with a 6-1 frame to match. Let’s take a look!

2/4/12

DE Whitney Mercilus, Illinois

Here it is. Our third draft profile of the year. I’ve chose to look at the defensive end from Illinois, Whitney Merciless (Mercy-less). Merciless is considered a “one year wonder”, as he only recently burst on to the college scene after three years.

Many compare him to another recent “one year wonder” who was taken in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft: Jason Pierre-Paul. We’ve all noticed how that has turned out for the New York Giants after they took him just one pick before the Titans.

The Titans were second to last in the league in terms of sacks and will be looking to add someone who’ll turn that number around, whether they do it via the draft or free agency. The draft has a lot of defensive end prospects. For this specific post, I’d like to focus on Merciless, as his name has been thrown around a lot in mock drafts and other sites as a possible selection by the Titans with their first pick in the 2012 draft.

Last year the 6-4, 265 pound Merciless wasn’t even on the radar. This year, he may very well be a first round pick.

 1/17/12

DE Jared Crick, Nebraska Cornhuskers.

For the second draft profile of the year I’ve decided to look at Nebraska’s DE Jared Crick. The Tennessee Titans had the leagues second worst pass rush this last year and if they expect to make the playoffs this next year, they gotta improve on that.

Derrick Morgan managed a meager 2.5 sacks, though he was battling injuries for the first half or so of the season. He began to make a larger impact towards the end of the year when he was healthier. Hopefully he continues to show growth going into his third year. On the other end of the line, Jason Jones didn’t fare so well in his move to DE. He stayed healthier, as coaches hoped he would, but he only came up with 3 sacks. He still bounced back and forth between DT and DE but  his main position was DE. Jones is set to be a free agent this year, as well as Dave Ball. Ball will probably return but Jones may very well disappear.

Either way the Titans will be looking to add to the position and I expect them to do it via the draft. That brings us to the 6’6″, 285 lbs DE from the Nebraska Cornhuskers, Jared Crick.

 1/14/12

FS Aaron Henry, Wisconsin Badgers.

Here is the first of hopefully many draft profiles. The Tennessee Titans have had a lot of issues with the safety position of late, having poor play from both FS Michael Griffin and SS Chris Hope. Both are set to be free agents this year and there is a high probability that they both don’t return. In that case the Titans will be looking to bring in some new, young guys. Hopes position has been pretty well taken over by Jordan Babineaux, but if Griffin is let go during free agency, there’s gonna have to be a starter brought in from somewhere. Robert Johnson doesn’t appear to be the answer. As I said in my last free agency article, the Titans could look at bringing in LaRon Landry. They could also look at drafting another guy. Today we’re looking at Wisconsin Badger FS Aaron Henry.