Jeff Brohm, who coached new Titans WR Taywan Taylor at Western Kentucky, was kind enough to speak with me about what his former player will bring to the next level. Here’s what he had to say.
When the Tennessee Titans selected Baylor wide receiver Kendall Wright with the 20th overall selection in the 2012 NFL Draft, they thought they were getting a dynamic, game-changing weapon who could add a new dimension to their offense as an explosive slot receiver. Aside from a stellar sophomore campaign in which Wright managed 94 receptions for 1,079 receiving yards, those expectations never came to fruition.
After his fifth year with the Titans, Wright departed for the Chicago Bears in free agency to reunite with former Titans offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains. Though Wright’s departure was very much a mutual decision between he and the Titans (he was a healthy scratch for a few games towards the end of the season), it still left a void on the roster at slot receiver.
To fill that void, general manager Jon Robinson traded up in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft to select Taywan Taylor of Western Kentucky. One of the reasons Robinson likely fell in love with Taylor was his incredible production in college, something Robinson greatly values. In his junior and senior seasons at WKU, Taylor amassed a combined 3,197 receiving yards on 184 receptions, with 34 touchdowns.
Taylor’s head coach at WKU was Jeff Brohm, a former NFL quarterback who has since moved on to greener pastures as the head coach of Purdue’s football program. In addition to working intimately with Taylor, Brohm aided in the development of Chargers second round pick, guard Forrest Lamp. Coach Brohm took some time to talk with me about what the newest addition to the Titans offense will bring the team as a rookie.
1. Jeff Brohm's a heckin' good hire for Purdue. Made WKU routinely dope
— Rodger Sherman (@rodger) December 5, 2016
2. Future Purdue tweets will feature the Inception noise #BROOOOOOHM
In 2016, the Titans’ only truly reliable option at wide receiver was Rishard Matthews. While Matthews certainly has the ability to make plays down the field, the bread and butter of his game is running intermediate routes. Because of this, and inconsistency from other receivers, the Titans lacked a legitimate downfield threat last season. Fifth overall pick Corey Davis will aid in solving that problem, but Taylor certainly will as well.
At WKU, Taylor was a consistent threat down the field and always had the ability to hit a home run after the catch. However, he recorded a mildly disappointing 4.52 forty time at the NFL Combine, a time that is much slower than we usually see from receivers who are best known for their downfield ability. According to Coach Brohm, Taylor has plenty of non-speed traits that will allow him to continue his dominance at the next level.
"“He is extremely strong and explosive in his lower body. When the ball’s in the air, he can accelerate and find a way to go get it better than any receiver I’ve seen. He just has that lower body strength that separates him from the others and gives him the deep ball threat, which he was very effective with us. He’s a hard worker, he’s self made, he spends a lot of time developing his craft, and each year he got better and better for us.”"
Seemingly after every game in which the Titans’ offense struggled to move the ball, Mike Mularkey made the comment that the receivers had been sloppy in their route running. Mularkey is perhaps the NFL’s pickiest coach when it comes to running routes and criticizes not just the proper depth and fluidity of a route, but even things seemingly simple like proper spacing between receivers on the line of scrimmage.
Even after last season’s completion, Mularkey continued to criticize his receivers’ precision, saying that postseason film study showed that things were even sloppier than he initially thought. I asked Coach Brohm if Taylor would be able to help solve this problem, and he certainly thinks that will be the case.
"“He’s run quite a bit of routes in our offense. We did throw the ball vertically, so he ran routes up the field; we didn’t throw it out to the sides a whole lot. I think he has the ability to run every route you need to run, whether it’s the deep post, the over route, the post corner, the deep comeback, the double move, or even a short hitch or slant to get yards after the catch. I do think he’s been exposed to all of that, and I think he’ll do a very good job in their offense.”"
Any scouting report you read about Taylor says that his future at the next level is in the slot. While the Titans do need a consistent option in the slot, a lack of depth at the position could force Taylor into an outside role as well at times. His college coach thinks he’ll be able to do just that, and at a high level.
"“For us, he was outstanding on the outside. He was really good and effective. He’s got very good quickness, and, like I said, against press coverage he’s got a very strong lower body, and he can get off very quickly and effectively. Without question I wouldn’t rule out playing on the outside because he’s played a ton there and has numerous receptions from that position.”"
Finally, as we all know, Jon Robinson doesn’t add a player to his football team unless he embodies the characteristics of being a tough and coachable player with a team first attitude. Though Taylor was, according to draft expert Nolan Nawrocki, a bit immature when he arrived at WKU, he eventually stepped it up in the character department, ultimately earning enough respect from his teammates to be voted a team captain.
Over and over again coaches praise players for their character undeservingly because they feel like they need to “hype up” one of their guys. When Coach Brohm spoke to me about the character of Taylor and the attitude he will bring to the Titans’ locker room, it was very clearly genuine, and something that every Titans fan should be excited about.
"“Without question he is a team player. Sometimes you have guys that you say that about when you aren’t really sure, but without question Taywan is just that. We had an offense early in his career where we had other receivers, and he didn’t get to play every single snap and he still put up huge numbers. This past year he had to play more for us because we weren’t as deep, and he accepted that role very well. He’s not selfish. If he’s not doing his part, he’ll let you know it. When something doesn’t happen right, he’ll take the blame. The leadership skills and the toughness that’s needed to play the position, he certainly has.”"
What Kendall Wright lacked perhaps more than anything else was the acumen of a leader and the constant drive to improve his craft. Taylor certainly checks all of the boxes in that department, and he will undoubtedly be a positive addition to an offense that’s primed to be one of the NFL’s best in 2017.