The Tennessee Titans made several notable roster moves during the NFL Combine last week. Most notably, the team released center Lloyd Cushenberry and traded T'Vondre Sweat to the New York Jets for Jermaine Johnson II. Somewhat lost in the shuffle was the decision to also release Xavier Woods.
The veteran Woods was signed to a two-year contract by general manager Mike Borgonzi just last offseason. He played 526 snaps on defense last season, according to Pro Football Reference. That made Woods the primary No. 2 safety opposite Amani Hooker.
Cutting Woods creates a need at safety for the Titans. Borgonzi should enter free agency looking to upgrade in the defensive backfield. That could lead to a willingness to reunite with franchise legend Kevin Byard, who is seeing his contract with the Chicago Bears expire.
Titans should pursue reunion with Kevin Byard after cutting Xavier Woods
Woods' departure leaves the Titans with two starting-caliber safeties on the roster. Hooker and Kevin Winston Jr. are penciled in as starters. It's worth noting both have been injury prone players.
Hooker is also coming off of a disappointing season. Winston suffered a partially torn ACL in 2024 at Penn State and didn't make his Titans debut as a rookie until October. Winston performed admirably, but his rookie year concluded on season-ending IR, so there's a fair bit of injury concern heading into his sophomore season.
Furthermore, Mike Macdonald and the Super Bowl winning Seattle Seahawks are making three-safety looks popular again. The Titans don't have three-starting caliber safeties, nor do they have enough depth behind their two injury-prone starters. Byard would address that hole in a major way.
The ageless Byard is coming off a fantastic season with the Bears. The former Middle Tennessee State standout notched a league-leading seven interceptions in 2025. Byard was truly fantastic, adding 93 tackles and eight pass breakups to his defensive totals.
Byard played the first eight seasons of his career (2016-22) with the Titans. He accumulated 674 tackles, 63 pass breakups, 27 interceptions, and made two Pro Bowls. Byard proved he possesses plenty of juice left and the Titans should approach him in free agency about a potential reunion.