Well, with the Tennessee Titans season nearly over let’s move forward.
Don’t make any mistake I hate that this is what the Tennessee Titans season has come to.
However, the Tennessee Titans now need to be more concerned with finishing the season healthy than a futile attempt to try to catch up to the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans at the top of the division.
There are a few spots to be proud of on this team, but at the end of the day it just isn’t going to be enough.
Thankfully the Titans have given us plenty of things to pick at and trying to upgrade so doing a mock draft was pretty easy.
So let’s figure out where the Titans can improve in a deep draft class and then we can talk about potential free agent targets. Time to dive into this 2019 NFL Mock Draft:
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Round 1, pick 18: N’Keal Harry WR, Arizona State
I really struggled with this, not because I don’t like Harry but because I really want the Titans to invest heavily on a potentially great WR class in 2020. However, Tennessee has to help Mariota and it is way to early for an IOL or a RB.
Harry is a great prospect, at 6’4 he has a great elite size and he uses it well. He shields himself from defenders on short and intermediate routes. On deep routes he tracks the ball well and while he doesn’t classically high point it he does a great job securing catches in traffic.
Over the past two years he has 155 receptions for 2,230 yards (14.4 yards per catch) and 17 TDs.
Having he and Corey Davis on the same team would be a mismatch for any defense. Obviously because the size mismatch is there, but also because the Titans current receivers have to rely on perfect route running to get themselves open because they just don’t have the speed or size to win any other way.
This gives Mariota another “panic button” on the offense to throw to when he is under pressure.
Round 2, pick 50: Brian Burns EDGE, FSU
Burns is one of my favorite players in this draft, partially because he reminds me so much of Harold Landry.
Currently the Titans are getting nothing off the edge from soon to be FAs Brian Orakpo and Derrick Morgan. This is killing Tennessee because in this defense if you don’t have any pressure from your front four then nothing works. You can’t run the blitzes because there is no perceived threat from the pass rushers and if you can’t get pressure or manufacture it then QBs have plenty of time to find open receivers.
Burns has 14.5 sacks in the last two years including 10 this year and he has averaged 13 TFLs per season over his career which is 1.67 per game. That is a huge number and it is going to intrigue Jon Robinson who loves a career of constant production.
With speed on both EDGEs and the potential to develop into top-tier pass rusher maybe Jurrell Casey can win inside more frequently and maybe the Titans can find a way to get pressure with just four.
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Round 3, pick 81: Jace Sternberger TE, TAMU
Sternberger was a hard one to pick. I really like him as a prospect and every time I watch TAMU I think he looks great, specifically the South Carolina game and the Alabama game.
The Titans need a true heir apparent to Delanie Walker and despite Jonnu Smith’s big TD last night I just don’t think he is going to be the guy. Even if he is, teams like the Colts and Eagles have shown that having multiple TEs that can catch is a good idea.
If I am Jon Robinson I am going back to the 2017 NFL Draft mindset trying to find ways to make Marcus Mariota more comfortable. With no IOL on the board that I liked I decided to pull the trigger on someone who can help block and also catch TDs.
Round 4, pick 120: Myles Gaskin RB, Washington
Gaskin is one of my favorite RBs in this draft class, at least right now. He is versatile and he is a modern running back in the sense that you can move him around and use him as anything you need.
He can catch a wheel route on one play and then the next he can run an inside zone for a huge gain.
I don’t know how much zone running he has done, but I can clearly see on film where the designed play isn’t going to work and he immediately realizes it and cuts back to get whatever yards he can.
He doesn’t strike me as a Dion Lewis type who is going to dance around and get nothing, but rather someone whose feet don’t stop moving and someone who can carry the load.
Having said that, I imagine the Titans would ease him in and he would split carries with either Henry or more likely Lewis until they realized he should be starting.
Free agent targets
So working backwards the Titans have addressed WR, EDGE, TE, and RB. The two biggest needs on the board are probably IOL and DL. Some names the Titans could bring in to solve those are:
IOL: Roger Saffold, Ramon Foster, Matt Paradis, Mark Glowinski
DL: Ndamukong Suh, Johnathan Hankins, Sheldon Richardson, Mo Wilkerson
If I had a preference I would probably spend the money and get Suh and Saffold. Bring in two Rams from a team that will probably try to extend their younger guys and let some older guys go.
Saffold plays left guard so this would mean that either Kline stays or that the Titans cut Kline and use his money to bring back Spain. I think trying Spain at RG is a better idea than just letting Kline keep getting beaten there.
Also, maybe bring in Paradis as a center and then make a decision on who to keep based off of how he heals from his leg injury.
Suh has always made sense because he has the athleticism to get to the QB but is also stout vs the run. Maybe he can be the final piece to make this front four work on defense even if you have to over pay to get him.