The Tennessee Titans were embarrassed by the Buffalo Bills 34-10 on Sunday, dropping their record to 1-5. With the NFL trade deadline right around the corner (November 5), it's become increasingly clear that the Titans should be sellers. Veteran wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins could garner the most interest, but general manager Ran Carthon has other expiring contracts on his roster that could capture the intrigue of competitors.
Starting safety Quandre Diggs immediately comes to mind.
The Titans signed the 31-year-old Diggs to a one-year contract in August. He immediately stepped into a starting safety role opposite Amani Hooker. Diggs has been outstanding, recording 27 tackles en route to a Pro Football Focus overall defensive grade of 74.2.
The Titans recently released fellow safety Jamal Adams from his contract. Diggs' friend and former teammate in Seattle, Adams helped convince him to come to Tennessee in the first place. Diggs wouldn't fetch the Titans much in a trade, but they need all the draft capital they can get their hands on to begin turning this mess around. We've identified three potential landing spots.
Minnesota Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings have been among the league's most surprising performers, but their pass defense has been a recurring weakness. Following Sunday's defeat to the Detroit Lions, Minnesota's first loss of the campaign, they're now fielding the league's 30th-ranked pass defense, allowing 260.3 air yards per contest. Defensive coordinator Brian Flores has higher expectations.
The Vikings have Camryn Bynum starting opposite the aging Harrison Smith, and little depth behind them. Flores possesses one of the more brilliant defensive minds in the NFL. He'd understand how to deploy Diggs to maximize his skill set.
Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys had a Week 7 bye. They were defeated 47-9 by the Detroit Lions in Week 6. Lions quarterback Jared Goff encountered little resistance from Dallas' swiss-cheese secondary, completing 18 passes for 315 yards and three touchdowns.
Mike Zimmer's defense is struggling, to say the least, and failing to meet expectations. Both starting safeties Malik Hooker and Donovan Wilson have been sore-spots in coverage. Diggs would represent a big-time upgrade for a team that still possesses postseason aspirations.
Seattle Seahawks
Stranger things have happened. It was the Seattle Seahawks that released Diggs from a bloated contract earlier this offseason, but there was a mutual understanding that he would no longer play in Seattle under his scheduled salary figure. Fast forward seven weeks into the campaign and the Seahawks are hurting in the secondary, with starting safety Rayshawn Jenkins on IR.
Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald is a defensive-minded leader that would appreciate having Diggs at his disposal. The Seahawks recently completed a trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars for defensive lineman Roy Robertson-Harris, so they've been buyers at the deadline, and Sunday's win over the Atlanta Falcons could reinforce that strategy. Diggs was outstanding in Seattle, totaling 18 interceptions in five seasons.