Tennessee Titans, A Decade In Review : A Closer Look At The First Round Picks
By Josh Gunnels
Apr 26, 2012; New York, NY, USA; A general view of the NFL shield logo before the 2012 NFL Draft at Radio City Music Hall. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
How well have the Tennessee Titans done with their last 10 top picks in the draft?
Tick, Tock, Tick, Tock… goes the sound of the clock to a mad man enduring the infinity until the draft finally arrives. (Dramatic enough?)
It is close to draft time so I went back to look at the Titans 1st round picks over the last 10 years to see how they fared in relation to those that went around them. The context of the approach is what’s important. It’s too easy to say in hindsight who a team should or should not have taken. What we’re looking at here is how the picked worked out compared to the players taken directly before and after that pick. Especially in regards to the next handful taken at the position. If the Titans took a Safety for instance that ended up being an okay starter, but the next 3 Safeties taken were complete busts, then the pick was a good one. They maximized their value with what they had to choose from.
The results are very interesting when looking at past drafts. You’ll see 4 or 5 of a position be taken that never made it as a starter and then finally someone hits on a perennial pro bowler. Obviously coaching staffs and team conditions have a lot to do with some of the results as well.
*Notice that in the draft position pictures there is a year in the final column. This is the last year the player was active in the league, which gives some reference for how good the player was as well. All draft position displays courtesy of Pro Football Reference.