Titans reportedly showing interest in UFL's Defensive Player of the Year

Tennessee Titans general manager Ran Carthon is reportedly showing interest in UFL Defensive Player of the Year Breeland Speaks. The report was published on Tuesday evening by AtoZ Sports. Speaks led the league in sacks with 9.5 quarterback takedowns, and is currently available to sign with an NFL franchise ahead of training camp.

The Birmingham Stallions won the UFL Championship earlier this week. Just days after its inaugural season reached its conclusion, league officials announced that eight players had already signed NFL contracts, per ProFootballTalk. The spring league USFL-XFL merger has already been a resounding success.

Speaks would be no stranger to an NFL opportunity. He initially entered the league as a second-round pick of the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2018 NFL Draft. Speaks quickly washed out of the league however, recording just 24 tackles and 1.5 sacks before being released from his contract. Speaks then became an NFL journeyman, signing with several franchises before joining developmental leagues.

Speaks first joined the USFL's Michigan Panthers in 2022. The former Ole Miss standout produced three sacks in his debut, and led the entire league in quarterback takedowns with 9.0. Speaks repeated those efforts this past season following the merger.

Depending on who you ask, the Titans still possess a sizable need at outside linebacker. The Titans lost last year's sack-leader at the position after Denico Autry signed with their AFC South division rival Houston Texans during unrestricted free agency. Autry produced a career-high 11.5 sacks. His departure ensures that Harold Landry and Arden Key will serve as the base starting pass rushers in defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson's new scheme.

If signed, Speaks would enter training camp with the intention of competing for a rotational role behind Landry and Key. The Titans currently have Rashad Weaver, Jaylen Harrell, Thomas Rush, and Caleb Murphy in those positions. Weaver is the most proven defender of that bunch, but has rarely been an efficient producer despite the opportunities he's been afforded.

Harrell is a rookie seventh-round selection that was Carthon's final pick in the 2024 draft. Rush and Murphy are second-year undrafted free agents. Rush spent the majority of his rookie season on the practice squad, and Murphy played just four defensive snaps in a deeper pass rush rotation. There's no reason why Speaks couldn't push those unproven talents for a roster spot.

We'll see if the Titans continue kicking the tires of Speaks' availability. AtoZ's report also indicates the Carolina Panthers are interested. It'd be worth bringing Speaks to training camp to see if can revive his NFL career.