November 25, 2012; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kendall Wright (13) is defended by Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Jeremy Mincey (94) and cornerback Derek Cox (21) during the game at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Rob Foldy-USA TODAY Sports

Competition brings out the best in any true competitor. Fans should anticipate much competition from the Tennessee Titans, who prepare for training camp with many roster spots that are up for grabs. There’s a logjam of talent on the offensive line and defensive line. That doesn’t include John Abraham or Israel Idonije, who may join the rotation at defensive end.

Kendall Wright and Derrick Morgan are two players who are locks for the 53-man roster. Both players are all-but-guaranteed starting jobs or key role positions (e.g. slot receiver). Despite that, they’re searching for every advantage that will help them take their games to the next level. Simple things that will make them more productive on Sundays—and a Thursday night.

Craig Peters from Titans Online wrote an article about how Wright and Morgan have both spent this offseason focusing on their health. Wright lost 14 pounds after he eliminated junk food from his diet. He has replaced his junk-food habits with fruits, vegetables and a daily breakfast that often consists of turkey, bacon and either eggs or egg whites. This puts Wright at 5-10 and 187 pounds.

Will Morgan enjoy a breakout campaign during the 2013-14 NFL season? He’s another player who has emphasized a stronger focus toward strength and conditioning. According to Morgan:

That’s one of my major goals, is to be in the best shape of my life coming into the season and just taking care of my body.

With or without Abraham, the Titans need Morgan to develop into what that they had hoped for when they drafted him with the No. 16 pick of the 2010 NFL Draft. A perceived lack of depth at defensive end has made it more important that he’s in the best shape possible. The Titans can’t afford any long-term injuries similar to his ACL tear from 2010.

What can fans expect from this offense? A lot of change. Dowell Loggains will get his first full-season opportunity to install his offense and everything that goes with it. Jake Locker will have a healthy shoulder. Two-fifths, possibly three-fifths of the offensive line have been upgraded. Jared Cook has been replaced with Delanie Walker, a more-complete tight end. While Wright has lost weight, the Titans have asked Justin Hunter to gain weight. Kenny Britt is another season removed from his 2011 ACL injury.

Many different faces. Many different philosophies. For the Tennessee Titans, it all starts with getting the players physically and mentally prepared for training camp. Good to see two of the future cornerstones taking their off-field responsibilities seriously.

Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

It’s funny to think how quickly Kendall Wright, and his draft selection, went from reviled to applauded from the Tennessee Titans faithful. I think it’s safe to say neither fans nor pundits alike had this guy anywhere on our radar, but after we looked at his tape and got to know him, we were happy to have him. All of this was before any actual football was played, of course.

Now, the immediate surprise that followed his pick was really predicated on the fact that, after the start to his 2011 season, a healthy Kenny Britt was going to come back and have a beast of a year. He didn’t have quite the impact many expected, though, and was featured about as evenly as Wright. It’s hard to say how much the presence of Wright affected his looks this season.

Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

So how did Wright pan out his first year? If you watched the Tennessee Titans throughout the season, you noticed that he was definitely a featured player in the offense, even if he didn’t have a huge year statistically. His numbers on the season when all was said and done worked out to 64 receptions, which he led the team in, for 626 yards and 4 touchdowns.  Only Nate Washington had more yardage at 746.  Additionally, Tennessee didn’t have the strongest play at quarterback this year, so it would have been difficult for any but the most elite receivers to put up gaudy numbers.

If Wright was limited by anything, it was an often times confusing offensive attack employed throughout the season by Loggains, and Palmer before him. The team tried to force Wright the ball by way of receiver screens that never seemed to garner any yards, and he wasn’t used as the deep vertical threat the way he was at Baylor. Suffice to say, the next offensive coordinator needs to find a way to get Kendall the ball in medium and deep routes, as this seems to be where he is most effective. Using him as a short-route, DeSean Jackson type threat would not seem to play to his strengths, which is surprising given his tangibles.

Kendall Wright will no doubt prove to be a strong addition to the Tennessee Titans franchise. We are currently experiencing some growing pains on both sides of the ball, but in just his first year of professional football, Wright has shown that he is already on par with respected veterans of the league, and he will only continue to get better as he matures as a player, and the offense begins to find it’s identity.

Grade: B

Follow me on Twitter @TitanSizedJason

Oct 28, 2012; Nashville, TN, USA; Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kendall Wright (13) runs after a reception against the Indianapolis Colts during the second half at LP Field. The Colts beat the Titans 19-13 in overtime. Mandatory credit: Don McPeak-US

Nate Dunlevy of Bleacher Report posted an article the other day that I found to be a little hard on the Tennessee Titans’ WR Kendall Wright. He did end his article with a bit of praise for Wright:

Wright has tremendous potential and can develop into an effective slot receiver. If he’s going to be a difference maker on third downs, however, he’s going to have start hanging onto the ball and do a better job getting open.

Dunlevy’s article focused on Wright’s yards per catch, which was a unfortunate 9.8 YPC.

I know that’s a shockingly ugly number, but I think people like to overlook the fact that the Titans were so desperate to get the ball in his hands that they’d repeatedly try failed plays, most noticeably the WR screen. There didn’t seem to be a game the Titans played where they didn’t pull that play out, even after firing OC Chris Palmer.

I’m sure other teams keyed in on that.

It was painful to watch the Titans execute it repeatedly, rarely earning anything more than 2-3 yards. I only remember seeing them make it worthwhile twice during the season, with the typical result being Wright swarmed as soon as he caught the ball or inadvertently colliding with the other receiver.

I don’t know the numbers of Wright’s routes if you broke them down into the depth of his routes, but most of his action seemed to come short and inside, which was a bit of a surprise, seems as in college he was the deep threat that helped QB Robert Griffin win the Heisman trophy.

While Wright did have shortcomings in his rookie season, I loved his play. He showed a never quit attitude and heart. Hopefully the talk surrounding him next year will be about him blossoming in his 2nd year. Wright was the least of the Titans offensive problems.

You can find me on Twitter @JustinLStewart