3rd Round: Made trade with Patriots (go figure) to acquire a second pick in round three. Selected TE Jared Cook out of South Carolina with the 25th pick of the round (89th overall). Then selected CB Ryan Mouton from Hawaii with the 30th pick of the round (94 overall). Mouton should add depth to the secondary and help out in the return game as well. Cook was the second rated TE on a lot of draft boards, and the Titans must have wanted him badly enough to give up their 2nd round selection in 2010 draft. This guy’s got a ton of potential and his prototypical size (6’5″, 246) and pass-catching ability could provide another huge option for the Titans. There is a great deal of concern about his blocking ability though. Maybe, but that’s not why they drafted him. Comparisons to Ben Troupe are already being made. Let’s hope not.
4th Round: Took LB Gerald McRath from Southern Mississippi with the 30th selection (130 overall). McRath will get to study the outside linebacker role under Keith Bulluck and David Thornton. Not bad guys to learn from. Tennessee also expects him to be able to contribute on special teams immediately. With their second pick of the round (compensatory pick- 35, 135 overall) they selected OT Troy Kropog from Tulane University. He should help fill the vacancy left by Daniel Loper when he signed with the Lions this off-season.
5th Round: Tennessee put the rest of the running backs on the roster (not named Chris Johnson) on notice when they selected Javon Ringer with the 37th selection (173 overall, compensatory) of the round. Ringer is a small back (5’9″ 205), but is a hard downfield runner and is more than willing to gain the tough yards after contact. He was a great value pick here and should push the competition in the backfield behind “Twitch” and LenDale White. And with White going into a contract year and likely looking for a big payday next off-season, Ringer adds some insurance for the Titans if they decide to let White walk. Former second round pick Chris Henry could be the odd man of this equation.
6th Round: The Titans went cornerback/wide receiver with their two 6th round picks. With their first pick (30, 203 overall), they selected another CB Jason McCourty from Rutgers. That’s two Scarlet Knights in this draft class. McCourty, much like 3rd round selection Ryan Mouton, will help replenish the depth in secondary after the loss of Chris Carr and Eric King to free agency. With their second pick of the round (another compensatory), the Titans took WR Dominique Edison (33, 206 overall) from Stephen F. Austin. Edison was a guy that many considered a late round sleeper in this draft, because his unique blend of size (6’2″ 204) and speed (4.36 40 time). Edison also has a track background (200 meter state champ in high school) to go along with a steady pair of hands so he should push for a roster spot in training camp.
7th Round: Two more picks in the 7th round, and they went offensive lineman/safety here. With their first pick 30, 239 overall) they selected OG Ryan Durand from Syracuse. Durand will add depth to the guard/tackle area and gives O-Line coach Mike Munchak another project to work with. He’s the best in the business though, so don’t be surprised if both Durand and Kropog are names that you see in the rotation in a couple of years. With the 33rd selection (242, compensatory) of round seven, the team drafted Nick Schommer from North Dakota State. Schommer is another depth guy for the secondary that could help on special teams next season.
We’ll be breaking down all the picks from this year’s draft and what roles they will play for the Titans in much greater detail throughout the week. Saturday was a long day with the FanSided.com Sports Network’s first ever Live NFL Draft Chat and the TitanSized Draft Diary, so pardon for the lack of coverage on Day Two. Kellen and I live blogged for over six hours on Saturday. Pretty cool dudes huh? It was well worth it though, as the all of the sites in the network covered the 2009 draft from top to bottom and with great insight. Thanks to everyone who participated in the Live Chat and well done. Congrats to all! Titan Up!
How do you feel about the Titans 2009 NFL Draft? Feel free to share your thoughts, grade the class and project how these picks affect the current Titans roster?