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Tennessee Titans offseason prep: Free agent OL

By Will Lomas

ARLINGTON, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 05: Ben Jones #60 of the Tennessee Titans at AT&T Stadium on November 05, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - NOVEMBER 05: Ben Jones #60 of the Tennessee Titans at AT&T Stadium on November 05, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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SANTA CLARA, CA – FEBRUARY 07: Ryan Kalil #67 of the Carolina Panthers warms up prior to playing the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50 at Levi’s Stadium on February 7, 2016 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
SANTA CLARA, CA – FEBRUARY 07: Ryan Kalil #67 of the Carolina Panthers warms up prior to playing the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50 at Levi’s Stadium on February 7, 2016 in Santa Clara, California. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

Cheaper interior OL help

So now that we have talked about potential OT/utility player help, let’s look at the position that will get the most attention: guard.

It isn’t a secret that the Titans may want to move on from Josh Kline after two bad years in two different schemes and with Quinton Spain already scheduled to be a free agent that would remove two starters from the OL.

While a top-100 draft pick or a big free agent could be added, I think Jon Robinson really likes finding value. I think that is what he got when he added guys like Kenny Vaccaro, Ben Jones, DeMarco Murray, Rishard Matthews and Dennis Kelly. Very few of those guys were getting any kind of buzz and they all have been contributors during their time with the Titans.

If that’s true, then you can expect that Robinson is scouring free agent guards to try to find a player that is better than the contracts he is expected to get.

Someone who comes to mind is Jonathan Cooper, whose career started out terribly but who has looked competent more frequently than people want to talk about.

During his stint with the Cowboys when he was between two talented OL, he showed that he could be an asset and a cheap one at that. If the Titans do go out and add a center from this draft class, Cooper could be in a similar situation and I think he fits what the Titans want to do.

Just as a cherry on top of that, Cooper has never allowed more than two sacks in a season and he has only allowed 7 sacks in over 2,000 snaps.

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If you are talking about cheaper interior players, another one that may interest the Titans is Eric Kush.

I’m guessing if you know him it is probably from Hard Knocks and I can’t imagine an offensive that would fit the “For the Boys” mentality more than Kush. He has a temper about him and he is actually outstanding in pass protection, it is just his run blocking that needs a little bit of clean up.

Tennessee could get a guy who has played all three interior line spots and who fits the culture they are trying to build for a really reasonable deal.

The veteran player who is the perfect combination of a big name and a guy who probably won’t get the money people think is center Ryan Kalil. The former Carolina Panther has been an All Pro center three times and made the Pro Bowl five times.

However, over the last three years his play has trailed off along with the rest of the offensive line play in Carolina. Could a change of scenery get him back into his 2007-2016 form? It would be worth a shot especially on a one year deal.

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