Tennessee Titans: Biggest takeaways from unofficial depth chart

Brent Urban is a starter

In the first version of the Tennessee Titans’ unofficial depth chart, there is a big change from last season: DaQuan Jones has been moved to the middle at nose tackle, while a new face, defensive end Brent Urban, has been given the nod as a starter.

That means nose tackle Austin Johnson is now on the bench, which isn’t too surprising. Johnson had a rough go of it in 2018, and he struggled at supplying pressure up the middle and stopping the run.

Combined, Johnson and Jones totaled an abysmal one sack, which is not good enough if the Titans are going to improve their pass-rush overall. Not to mention, the Titans had even more pressing issues up the middle, including owning the No. 18 run defense.

Urban presents a potential upgrade in the pass-rush department. The former Baltimore Raven only totaled 0.5 sacks, but he did supply 10 more QB hurries than Jones and Johnson combined with 22.

Where Jones has the edge over Johnson is against the run. Johnson had just 13 stops (tackles for loss or near the line of scrimmage), as compared to Jones’ 21. Jones’ edge over Johnson against the run might be the difference for his starting up the middle in 2018.

Regardless, Urban, who is a better pass-rusher than both, should get his chance after what was a quiet signing at first during the offseason.