The kids are alright: Tennessee Titans rookie report
By Will Lomas
The Tennessee Titans didn’t receive a lot of fanfare on draft day outside of their pick for Marcus Mariota, but so far it looks like another one of Ruston Webster’s quietly very good draft classes.
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Last year, Webster draft Taylor Lewan, Bishop Sankey, Daquan Jones, Avery Williamson, Marqueston Huff, and Zach Mettenberger and did that without having a third round pick. While that didn’t look great immediately last year, let’s look back:
-Taylor Lewan is an outstanding left tackle and will be key in protecting Marcus Mariota.
-Bishop Sankey is quietly having a good year averaging 4.3 yards per carry on the ground and over 10 through the air, not to mention two touchdowns this year.
-DaQuan Jones is starting on a defensive front seven that ranks 5th in the league in sacks.
-Avery Williamson is a very good run stopping ILB and looks to have a promising career ahead.
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-Huff had a rough week at cornerback this past week, but he is a serviceable special teams player and backup safety where he looks more comfortable.
-Zach Mettenberger gets mentioned every time someone talks about trading for a quarterback and it looks like the Titans may have a very good backup and possibly a big trade chip in the future.
Now, that was just to show why we should have some faith in Ruston Webster’s ability to judge talent in the draft. That is even more evident now, thanks to a rookie class that has had a pretty big impact already.
1st round: Marcus Mariota QB
-What can I say about Mariota that I haven’t already said? He looks like a top 10 quarterback right now, and he is bringing out the best in everyone around him. From Kendall Wright to Michael Griffin, everyone seems to have a new confidence in this team and I think they can feel just how close they are now that they have a quarterback.
2nd round: Dorial Green-Beckham WR
-So, remember when everyone said that DGB would get started until midseason well they are total idio-…oh that was me…whoops. In back to back weeks Marcus Mariota has targeted DGB in the endzone three times, twice he has caught touchdown passes over Joe Haden and Vontae Davis respectively and the third target was pass interference. So he already looks like a mismatch in the redzone, I imagine this team can’t wait to get him fully integrated into the offense.
3rd round: Jeremiah Poutasi RT
-Here is the thing, Poutasi is a very good mauling run blocker who struggles in space. That screams to me that he is going to be a guard in the future, and it is a little bit puzzling why he isn’t lining up to Taylor Lewan right now and why Byron Bell isn’t playing right tackle. However, he has struggled to pick up the speed, but he has definitely shown why the Titans like him so much. Once this guy gets his feet under him, he is going to be a force in the running game and whether he is next to Lewan or Chance Warmack there are going to be some huge running lanes.
4th round: Angelo Blackson NT
-I had no idea who Blackson was when the Titans drafted him, and many people said that he wasn’t even the best tackle on his own team. However, when he has been called on he has looked very good as a run stopper and he is athletic enough to develop into a pretty good starter under the tutelage of Dick LeBeau.
4th round: Jalston Fowler FB
-A fullback?! Well, yes but he is also a lot more. He is a short distance runner, he is a lead blocker, he is a pass catcher, he is a special teams player, and he give the Titans a player who can pay dividends immediately in the fourth round, which is hard to find.
5th round: David Cobb RB
-Cobb has been on boomerang I.R. so far, but when he gets back he should come back to an optimal situation at running back.
6th round: Deiontrez Mount EDGE
-Mount is one of the most underrated players in the league according to PFF. They have him as their top rookie 3-4 OLBs despite only playing 44 snaps. That may seem low, but Nate Orchard, Eli Harold and Mario Edwards were all more heralded players coming out and all got drafted higher. They all also happen to have lower grades and have played less snaps than Mount.
6th round: Andy Gallik C/G
-Gallik has been active on game days and even jumped in last week against the Colts. He will improve and eventually challenge for that starting center spot hopefully.
7th round: Tre McBride WR
-Practice squad prospect.
So looking back, the Titans have seven out of nine rookies that have played in the regular season already and they might have all nine play by the end of the season. Of those seven players, four already look like great value picks or outstanding players at their positions for their age (Mariota, DGB, Fowler, Mount).
That should inspire a lot of confidence to the fans. This team is young, and the Titans have a lot of money to play with and not as many holes to fill. This team is coming up, and they are coming up quickly.