Tennessee Titans free agent connections: Sammy Watkins

Sammy Watkins is almost destined to be a Tennessee Titans.

While I really want to spend time on the draft (and I will soon) the immediate interest for Tennessee Titans fans should be free agency.

Not only do the Titans have a ton of money, but they have a new coaching staff. That means that there is likely to be an influx in new talent.

Having said that, this roster is already pretty talented so maybe there won’t be big budget moves like some think.

Still, there are guys who have sort of fallen through the cracks that could be cheap and one of those players is Sammy Watkins.

More from Titans Free Agency

Who is that?

Watkins was a first round pick to the Buffalo Bills. Last year he was traded to the Rams in a huge deal.

Over his four year career (52 games) he has 3,052 yards and 25 TDs.

What is his connection?

Maybe no one is more connected to this coaching staff than Watkins. His career started in Buffalo where he was coached by Rob Moore (new Titans WR coach).

There he had nearly 1,000 yards and in a rookie class that included Odell Beckham Jr. and Kelvin Benjamin, only Mike Evans had more yards per catch than Watkins.

On top of that, he worked with Matt LaFleur in Los Angeles this year. While he had some injury trouble, he still managed to rack up nearly 600 yards and 8 TDs.

Live Feed

Titans re-signing Jeffery Simmons leaves a Hulk-sized footprint in AFC South /

FanSided

Bergkamp FIFA 23 Challenges: How to Complete the Trophy Titans Icon ObjectiveDBLTAP

Other teams should get in on Aaron Rodgers sweepstakesWith the First Pick

3 NFL teams that need to swoop in, steal Aaron Rodgers from the JetsNFL Spin Zone

Will the Tennessee Titans trade up for a quarterback?With the First Pick

Titans could select local product for latest quarterback projectFanSided

What is he going to cost?

I don’t think it will cost that much honestly. Watkins has had some injury troubles and teams aren’t going to throw huge money at him after two years (mainly 2016 for the Bills) where he struggled to have consistent production.

So is a $7 million deal out of the equation? That is half of what Alshon Jeffery got, which seems fair. Maybe something closer to $9 makes sense given the market place.

More from Titan Sized

Where does he fit?

If he comes to the Titans I could see him as the WR3/4 with Taywan Taylor. Not because he lacks talent, but because it would allow Tennessee to have quality depth and put less strain on him.

The 3rd/4th WRs in Tennessee are going to get more work than they ever have before.

It also helps from a “buy-in” standpoint. If Watkins was a good locker room player and he believes in this system his insight could help some of the other Titans receivers get it quickly.

At the end of the day, the Titans WR depth chart would look like this:

1. Corey Davis

2. Rishard Matthews

3. Sammy Watkins

4. Taywan Taylor

5. Tajae Sharpe

That is great depth but almost more importantly it is cheap. That is 3 players on their rookie deals at a position group. At that point you can afford to go out and pay a little more for someone like Watkins.

Home/Titans Free Agency