The NFL has become an offensive-minded league where we are seeing more offensive coaches be in charge of teams. It certainly has its pros, but having a solid defensive-minded head coach still provides a ton of value, especially when that coach creates a top defensive unit. That’s exactly what Robert Saleh is planning to do with the Tennessee Titans.
Even though Saleh’s tenure with the New York Jets was a failure, the Jets proved last season that he was not the problem. Despite the issues at quarterback, Saleh always got the best out of his defense. Ever since his first stint as the defensive coordinator with the San Francisco 49ers, Saleh has become arguably the best defensive mind in football.
After he chose to coach the Titans, Saleh saw Mike Borgonzi build up his defense in free agency both in the trenches and the secondary. The Titans also traded up to draft Texas linebacker Anthony Hill Jr., who should become that Fred Warner-type linebacker for Saleh. However, what if the Titans already have their rising star linebacker on their roster?
Titans may already have their star LB on the roster (and no one is talking about it)
Gary Davenport from Bleacher Report listed the biggest bargain player at every position and Titans’ linebacker Cedric Gray was listed, showing Titans fans the emerging star that they may already have on the roster, and his average annual salary is listed at just $1.2 million.
"With the Titans potentially starting a rookie at linebacker this year in Anthony Hill Jr., the North Carolina product could be called upon to play more of a leadership role for the Titans defensively in Year 3. And if he tops 150 tackles again, Gray is going to be due for a whopper of a raise in 2027." said Davenport.
Being drafted in the 4th round in 2024, there weren’t high expectations for Gray. However, Gray showed the whole NFL who he is for the better and now he has the chance to grow even more as a player. He had 164 total tackles to go with a sack, forced fumble, and even four pass deflections last season. That is beyond impressive despite the team having a bad season overall.
Going into his third year with the Titans, Gray has the chance to show the front office that he is worth a long-term investment and having Robert Saleh as a head coach increases his chances greatly.
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