The Tennessee Titans' front office has made it clear that they are going to take their time rebuilding the roster.
The messaging from everyone involved is that the goal isn't to rush a rebuild, and the construction of the roster right now strongly suggests that the goal for 2025 isn't just to win as many games as possible.
This isn't tanking; it's a methodical draft-and-develop approach that Mike Borgonzi and Chad Brinker believe in. The strategy allows them to draft the players they evaluate as eventual starters (or better), using free agency to patch holes with veterans on short-term contracts at positions they can't upgrade via the draft.
The perfect example of this strategy is what the Titans did at wide receiver. They signed Van Jefferson and Tyler Lockett to one-year deals. Both did well enough at OTAs. However, neither are making so much money that they will block rookies Chimere Dike, Elic Ayomanor, and Xavier Restrepo from playing their way into the lineup.
Recently, off-ball linebacker Germaine Pratt was released by the Cincinnati Bengals, and there are some reasons to consider him an option for the Titans. Pratt was with Brian Callahan when they were both with the Bengals. The veteran defender wasn't a slouch this year either statistically; he tied career-highs or set career-highs in tackles, interceptions, forced fumbles, and quarterback hits.
Pratt was a team captain, so it seems like he would also check the box for leadership, which was a huge point of emphasis for Brinker and Borgonzi this offseason.
For what it is worth, Paul Kuharsky said this about the team's interest in Pratt:
I get the sense the #Titans will consider ILB Germaine Pratt who came free today.
— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) June 9, 2025
However, his addition would block James Williams and Cedric Gray from getting a chance to develop. Those two second-year linebackers just scratched the surface of what they could be last season. If the Titans are going to let two of their most promising players develop, they need to get reps on defense and not just on special teams.
Pratt recently turned 29, which means that he would be at least 30 years old by the time the Titans made the shift from "rebuilding" to "playoff contender," which is another big problem when you look at the team's competitive timeline.
Pratt showed signs of decline last season and aging linebackers tend to fade away overnight in the NFL. The worst-case scenario is that the team stunts the growth of two promising young linebackers, and all they get out of it is a few months of middling play from a washed-up player in a season without any real playoff hopes.