Ranking the 5 injured Titans by whose return will help the most

Tennessee Titans cornerback Adoree' Jackson (25) warms up before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn.Gw43195
Tennessee Titans cornerback Adoree' Jackson (25) warms up before the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Nissan Stadium Sunday, Nov. 24, 2019 in Nashville, Tenn.Gw43195 /
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Oct 25, 2020; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner (30) is tackled by Tennessee Titans outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney (99) during the second half at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 25, 2020; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers running back James Conner (30) is tackled by Tennessee Titans outside linebacker Jadeveon Clowney (99) during the second half at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports /

4. Jadeveon Clowney, EDGE

This may seem low, but honestly why are we sure the Titans miss him at all? Look, I get it because he makes a lot of money and sometimes flashes on tape, but look at two things.

1. Production

-As a pass rusher, Clowney gets a lot of credit for being “close” but both he and Jack Crawford are tied at third on the team in QB hits with 6. Harold Landry has more than twice that number and Jeffery Simmons has double digits.

As a run defender, he is tied for fourth on the team with four TFLs, but he isn’t doing anything spectacular.

2. How the other 10 players have to play.

-When you have Clowney on your roster, he is given permission to do whatever he wants to do and the other 10 players have to pick up the slack if/when it doesn’t work. If he decides to go rogue at the last minute and go into the B-gap instead of the C-gap, he better make the play or the defense is going to give up a huge run to the outside.

What he calls versatility, I call limiting for the rest of the defense. There is a reason that the Titans have looked better on defense since he has been out.