The Tennessee Titans need to upgrade their pass rush this offseason. Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson was dealing with a talent deficiency at the EDGE position. The Titans recorded just 32.0 sacks as a result, the third-fewest amount in the entire league. Not a single defender reached 10-plus sacks throughout a disappointing 2024 campaign.
The situation is so concerning that Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons recently went public with his wish for new general manager Mike Borgonzi to select Penn State EDGE Abdul Carter with the No. 1 overall selection in the 2025 NFL Draft.
If the Titans decide against drafting a top-ranked edge rusher, NFL Free Agency represents an alternative opportunity for Borgonzi to provide Wilson with more pass-rushing talent. ESPN recently released a list pairing its top 50 free agents with ideal team fits. They've identified Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Malcolm Koonce as a potential fit in Nashville.
"Titans defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson needs an impact edge rusher to complement his two interior defenders --Jeffery Simmons and T'Vondre Sweat," Matt Bowen wrote. A knee injury in early September erased Koonce's 2024 season before it started, but he posted eight sacks and 29 pressures in 2023. If the knee checks out, Koonce would have upside in Wilson's system as a three-down defender with pass-rush chops."
Koonce was drafted by the Raiders in the third round (No. 79 overall) of the 2021 NFL Draft. After back-to-back quiet seasons as a rookie and sophomore, the former Buffalo Bulls standout broke out of his shell as a third-year pro in 2023. Koonce recorded 8.0 sacks and 52 pressures, particularly impressing under then-interim head coach Antonio Pierce late in the season.
Unfortunately, Koonce was prevented from having an opportunity to build on that stellar campaign in 2024. He suffered a season-ending knee injury in an early September practice. He was sidelined for the entire year, missing the final year of his rookie contract.
Interestingly enough, Tennessee's new-look front office possesses direct ties to the pending free-agent pass rusher. Titans assistant general manager Dave Ziegler spent nearly two completed seasons with Koonce in Vegas (2022-23), though he was fired midway through 2023, when Koonce really broke out.
A new regime in Vegas led by general manager John Spytek may not be interested in re-signing Koonce coming off an injury. The Titans could see him as a bounce-back candidate. The Titans could buy low on Koonce and pair him with Harold Landry III and Arden Key in a revamped edge-rushing room.