Former Titans first-round bust receives opportunity to revive NFL career
By Ryan Heckman
Aside from yet another loss in what's been, quite literally, a lost season, Tennessee Titans fans were able to relish in some good news on Monday morning.
Titans fans remember the difficult decision this club had to make a few months back when it came to 2021 first-round pick, cornerback Caleb Farley. The 22nd overall selection, three years ago, had endured a rough start to his career.
After going through so much in life, already, it was a tough break to watch the Titans ultimately part ways with him back in August. Whether it be his injuries during his young career, or losing both his mother and father, it is not difficult to have sympathy for the former Virginia Tech standout.
But, in early October, his journey continued as the Carolina Panthers signed Farley to their practice squad.
And, over the past three games, Carolina has called Farley up from the practice squad and he's seen some game action.
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On Monday, Farley's career trajectory took another positive turn. The Panthers opted to sign Farley to their 53-man roster after reaching the maximum number of practice squad call-ups.
Caleb Farley is tracking to legitimately turn his career around in Carolina
During his Titans tenure, Farley only appeared in 12 games with two starts over three years. He appeared in a career-high nine games for the Titans back in 2022 and, at this rate, is looking to surpass that number in Carolina this year.
Farley has already played in three games with the Panthers after being called up from the practice squad in each of those weeks. With seven games remaining on the season slate for Carolina, Farley very well could wind up playing a career-high 10 games during the 2024 campaign.
Now, whether or not he proves to be an effective piece on the defense remains to be seen. In three games with Carolina, Farley has played 29 total snaps. And, in just those 29 snaps, Farley has been targeted six times, giving up a reception on each one and for a total of 66 yards.
With an opportunity to stick on the roster for the rest of the season, though, there's only one way to go from here for Farley, and that is up. Hopefully, for his sake, he's able to earn consistent snaps in the coming weeks and prove his worth as a depth corner, at the very least.
Though he came into the NFL with high hopes of becoming a prolific corner, Farley's expectations might have shifted at this stage. Still, the opportunity, alone, is enough to get Titans fans to continue rooting for his success.