There’s an age-old saying, but in all honesty, as we all age as Tennessee Titans fans, it’s become difficult to remember who made the statement originally. “Opinions are only as valuable as one’s knowledge of the subject”.
Michael Irvin said it once when he was talking about Deion Sanders. Irvin’s point was he had played against all of the great cover guys of his era, so if any discussion was being held about who the best of the bunch was, his opinion should be one of the ones to carry the most weight.
So, in his opinion, again one that should be held in high regard, no one in his era was better than Neon Deion. We’re probably spending too much time talking about Dallas Cowboys royalty here but hang in there. A point is coming.
After serving as an NFL executive for the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers, Gil Brandt served as the Cowboys’ chief talent scout from 1960 until 1988, winning two Super Bowls in the process (VI, XII).
His name is in Dallas’ Ring of Honor, so when it comes to knowing a good thing when he sees it, this young man has proven to know a thing or two (or maybe even three) about the NFL game. Oh, he’s also in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Recently, he had a few nice things to say about one of the newer Titans, offensive lineman Dillon Radunz.
The Titans’ second-round draft choice gets some well-deserved shine.
These days, if you’re looking for some wisdom from Mr. Brandt, he spends his days talking a little about NFL football as an NFL.com Senior Analyst. Recently, he cooked up a story on eight NFL rookies in the best position to succeed in 2021, and guess whose name popped up on the radar?
You guessed it! Radunz gets a Hall-of-Fame nod here folks. Here’s what the legend had to say on the matter.
"Still smarting from the decision not to exercise right tackle Jack Conklin’s fifth-year option for the 2020 season, which precipitated Conklin’s departure for Cleveland as a free agent (and from the implosion of rookie first-rounder Isaiah Wilson), the Titans addressed their deficiency at the position by using a second-round pick on Radunz. Though Radunz played left tackle at North Dakota State, where he excelled at protecting third-overall selection Trey Lance’s blindside. He did pre-draft work at right tackle in preparation for a possible move. I like Radunz a lot, and he’s in a great position to provide an immediate boost to a unit that dropped from eighth in Pro Football Focus’ ranking of offensive lines in 2019 to 15th without Conklin last season."
Hey, if he kept Trey Lance’s jersey relatively clean, that should be a sign that he should have been on a few NFL radars. Radunz is a three-time FCS champion (2017, 2018, 2019). He was a Second-team All-MVFC nod in 2018. He racked up First-team FCS All-American and First-team All-MVFC nods in 2019.
He’s someone to keep an eye on, and the Titans are lucky to have him. With three-time Pro Bowl nod Taylor Lewan holding things down on the left side of the line, Radunz figures to battle Kendall Lamm for the right to settle in at the starting right guard position. There’s no reason to think that he can’t solidify that side of a very talented O-line that already features the likes of Rodger Saffold, Ben Jones, and Nate Davis.