Tennessee Titans are a lock to draft a Senior Bowl player on Day 3
By Will Lomas
If you have listened to Mike Vrabel or Ran Carthon talk at any point this offseason, you know that the Tennessee Titans are going all in on the idea of a roster constructed through collaboration.
This team will be built the way Mike Vrabel wants it to be built, but nothing is going to get done unless everyone in the room agrees to it. That means that any draft pick, free agent, contract extension, restructure, etc. will need to be approved by both the GM and the HC otherwise it won’t happen…theoretically.
That is going to be the standard operating procedure for most of the moves that the Tennessee Titans make, with one notable exception.
Carthon has talked a lot about how he is going to try to imitate the San Francisco 49ers’ way of doing things during the draft process. Everyone wants to talk about analytics and whether that will be more of an emphasis on athletic testing, but the most interesting thing is that Carthon has essentially said that Day 3 of the draft is going to be handed off to position coaches and area scouts.
The way this will work is that Day 3 picks will be distributed to position coaches. Those coaches will then watch players and find guys that they think fit the scheme best, and then they will work with area scouts to make sure that everything checks out in terms of where they should be drafted and what they might be missing from a scouting perspective.
That way of drafting has led to hits on players like Brock Purdy last year who was identified by the 49ers’ Offensive Passing Game Coordinator Bobby Slowick.
In related news, the Tennessee Titans just hired Charles London to be the new Offensive Passing Game Coordinator and QB Coach.
All of that information brings us to why it just became much more important to familiarize yourself with prospects from the Senior Bowl.
Tennessee Titans Senior Bowl watchlist
If you didn’t know, Charles London was the OC for the American Team in the Senior Bowl last week. That meant he has first-hand experience with every player on the offensive side of the ball for that team.
You can check out their entire roster here, but here are some names that stood out that might be available on Day 3 of the NFL Draft (Remember, Day 3 is when London would get to take control of a draft pick):
Steve Avila IOL, TCU
Like most of these players, Avila is an early Day 3 guy who might slip into Day 2. His size and his positional versatility (predominantly played center and right guard) will make him a potential plug-and-play interior lineman at the next level.
Tank Dell WR, Houston
Dell is going to be fascinating to watch because no one could cover him at the Senior Bowl, but he is tiny. At just 5’8, 163 lb. he would need a position coach standing on the table for him, but after back-to-back 1,300-yard receiving seasons, he is going to find a home quickly on Day 3.
Eric Gray RB, Oklahoma
A practice player of the week, Gray is a Tennessee native who started his career as a standout with the Vols. After showing flashes for three years, he finally took over a starting role and dominated as a senior.
Cameron Latu TE, Alabama
Latu is one of the sleepers in this tight-end class. He won the award for the best practice player at tight end on the American roster, and he was a nice redzone weapon for the Crimson Tide over the last two seasons. This is a deep tight end class and finding someone who compliments Chig Okonkwo would be a smart idea on Day 3.
Don’tayvion Wicks WR, Virginia
Finally, Wicks was another practice player of the week winner which was something he desperately needed. After blowing up in 2021, he had a down year in 2022 and really didn’t stand out the way that people expected. Charles London will have a very good idea on whether the struggles for Wicks last season should be placed on the prospect’s shoulders or on first-time HC Tony Elliott.