The Tennessee Titans have a lot of holes to fill this offseason, and it is likely too many to successfully complete in one offseason. Despite having the projected most cap space and still being in contention to secure the number one overall pick in the NFL Draft for a second consecutive season, the team will have to be patient with their rebuild.
Cam Ward appears to at least give the team a building block at quarterback, which is the hardest to obtain. Now, the team must provide the necessary weapons and blocking to ensure their franchise quarterback can succeed in future seasons.
While all the talk about the Titans' most important positions to improve has been about the offensive line, edge rusher, cornerback, and wide receiver (rightfully so), the running back position appears to be a bigger need than most are considering.
The Titans' most successful seasons have always included a star RB
The running back position has always been a staple of the Titans organization, even dating back to their years as the Houston Oilers. They made their only Super Bowl appearance in 2000, with their franchise rushing yards leader, Eddie George, leading the charge.
Their five best seasons (record-wise) in the franchise's history happened with one of their top four leaders in yards per game. Derrick Henry just led one of their best eras from 2016-2021, and Chris Johnson had a 2000-yard season during their 13-3 season in 2008. Going back to their years in Houston as the Oilers, Earl Campbell led back-to-back 11-5 seasons in 1979 and 1980.
This season has been one of the worst for the Titans in the running game, as they have combined to only rush for 1,104 yards in 13 games. Want to know how bad that is? Henry rushed for 937 yards for the Titans in eight games (!!!) in 2021.
Tony Pollard led the team in rushing with 1,079 yards and five touchdowns last season, but he only has 743 yards and four touchdowns this season on a 4.2 yards per carry average. The fanbase was hopeful that 2023 third-round pick Tyjae Spears would provide a boost, but injuries and opportunities have limited him to 177 yards on 47 carries this season.
And Pollard's numbers were significantly improved by his career-best showing against the Browns in Sunday's unlikely Week 14 victory. Pollard rushed for a career-high 161 yards and two lengthy touchdowns. It's no coincidence the Titans scored 30-plus points for the first time this season.
If anything, Pollard's performance proves how important an effective rushing attack is for Ward and the Titans offense. The lack of a running game from their backs had previously been so bad this season that Ward led the team in rushing in recent back-to-back weeks against the Texans and Seahawks on just nine total scrambles.
A good running game is a young quarterback's best friend. Unless Pollard can sustain the form he found against the Browns, improving the running back position must be at the top of the priority list for the Titans this offseason.