The Tennessee Titans made a huge splash on the first day of free agency on Monday, signing former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Dan Moore to a four-year contract worth $82 million. Adding Moore to the offensive line helps solidify Tennessee's group up front. Sophomore blocker JC Latham will be moving from left to right tackle as a result.
Moore and Latham are under contract in Tennessee at least through 2027. The Titans have their bookend tackles for the foreseeable future. And with that, the Titans should now be willing to release Nicholas Petit-Frere from his contract.
Titans should move on from Nicholas Petit-Frere following the addition of Dan Moore
Petit-Frere entered last season as Brian Callahan's starting right tackle. The Titans hoped legendary offensive line coach Bill Callahan could help the former third-round pick out of Ohio State reach his potential. That came nowhere close to happening.
Petit-Frere was credited with allowing 10 sacks, ranking 139th out of 141 qualifying tackles, according to Pro Football Focus despite playing a modest 614 snaps at right tackle. Petit-Frere was benched on multiple occasions as the Titans searched high and low for a solution at right tackle. The former Buckeyes standout was also whistled for 10 penalties, finishing 122nd of 141.
PFF assigned Petit-Frere a lackluster pass-blocking grade of 42.8. His overall grade was 46.5. Petit-Frere allowed 41 total pressures, as both quarterbacks Will Levis and Mason Rudolph were on high alert when he was in the game.
The Titans need a swing reserve tackle to play behind Moore and Latham, but they should aim higher than Petit-Frere. Drafting a developmental tackle should be high on Mike Borgonzi's Day Three wish list entering the 2025 NFL Draft. Releasing Petit-Frere would be a no brainer decision at this point.
The Titans don't necessarily need the extra cap space after a modest approach to the first wave of free agency. The only moves besides the Moore signing was inking veteran linebacker Cody Barton to a modest three-year contract worth $21 million. Regardless, releasing Petit-Frere would create $3.4 million in additional financial flexibility, according to Over The Cap.
Cutting Petit-Frere would leave behind just $239,000 in dead money. Petit-Frere was drafted by Tennessee two general managers ago, and he has completely failed to meet his pre-draft expectations. With Moore and Latham playing tackle, the Titans should release their former third-round bust who struggled throughout 2024.