The Tennessee Titans entered Tuesday's NFL trade deadline day as self-admitted sellers. General manager Ran Carthon traded wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to the Kansas City Chiefs, and linebacker Ernest Jones IV to the Seattle Seahawks well in advance of the November 5 deadline. Naturally, competing teams are calling the Titans with just hours remaining.
Defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day and outside linebacker Arden Key are receiving interest from various teams, according to a Tuesday morning report by ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.
#Titans have received inquiries on defensive line players, including Arden Key and Sebastian Joseph-Day, per sources. Nothing had materialized as of this morning, but could be one to watch if a team steps up with a strong offer.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) November 5, 2024
Arden Key
Key was promoted from rotational rusher to full-time starter heading into this season following the offseason departure of Denico Autry. Key began the new campaign in disappointing fashion, but he's come on strongly in recent weeks. After recording just seven pressures and zero sacks in Tennessee's opening five contests, he's accumulated 12 pressures and four sacks in the previous three games, according to Pro Football Focus.
Key signed a three-year contract worth $21 million with the Titans last offseason. Carthon was familiar with his abilities through their shared days with the San Francisco 49ers. If the Titans trade Key, he'll be the first player they've dealt that's not performing on an expiring contract.
Key remains under contract through 2025, but the Titans (or any inquiring organization) could cut him during the upcoming offseason without incurring too large of a financial penalty. Designating Key as a post-June release would create $7 million in cap savings with just $2.3 million in dead money, per OverTheCap. That wiggle room could attract Super Bowl contenders searching for postseason rentals.
Sebastian Joseph-Day
The Titans signed Joseph-Day to a one-year contract worth a total value of $4 million in the offseason to little fanfare. Just $1.375 million of Joseph-Day's salary was guaranteed, and his charge is $3.975 million, according to OverTheCap. The Titans have received an excellent return on their small investment.
Joseph-Day has tallied 21 total tackles and 2.5 sacks while playing a rotational role on a defensive line that features household names like Jeffery Simmons and T'Vondre Sweat. Joseph-Day is arguably playing the best football of his seven-year pro career. The former sixth-round selection out of Rutgers has also totaled 15 stops and 13 total pressures, per Pro Football Focus.
The Titans are currently without a third-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft. Carthon already owns two fourth-round selections, and the fifth-rounder Kansas City sent to Tennessee in exchange for Hopkins will become a fourth-round pick if the Chiefs advance to a Super Bowl. The Titans should attempt to move Key and Joseph-Day on Tuesday, because they require draft capital to accelerate this offseason's rebuild.