There is plenty of hype and excitement for training camp as the Tennessee Titans gear up to start practices this week. However, two big names are set to start the preseason on the PUP list, and that is a brutal reality check.
According to Easton Freeze, starting cornerback L'Jarius Sneed and starting center Lloyd Cushenberry are both on track to be placed on the PUP list.
Now, before everyone freaks out, the PUP list isn't a death sentence for a player's season, and it doesn't have to be a major concern. Being placed on the PUP list at this point only means that a player isn't currently healthy enough to practice at full speed.
Titans to place L'Jarius Sneed and Lloyd Cushenberry on PUP
Freeze reports Sneed and Cushenberry are both set to start on the PUP list, but the outlook for one is better than the other.
Sneed seems to be much closer to being ready to play than Cushenberry is after suffering a peculiar season-ending quad injury five games into last season. Previous GM Ran Carthon traded for Sneed knowing that there were some long-term health concerns about his knee, which is why he had a special practice regimen built around limiting how much he did in the preseason.
Not only did that method fail to prevent an injury, but Sneed looked exactly like a player who was a month of practice behind the other starters when the Titans opened up the season.
Fans hoped that taking off the entire season would lead Sneed to getting himself in a position to practice and play in the preseason, but for the time being, Sneed has let Titans fans down again.
Cushenberry isn't in the same boat as Sneed because he had no health concerns when the Titans signed him to a big contract last offseason. Outside of a groin injury in 2022, Cushenberry had a clean bill of health in the NFL, and an Achilles injury isn't something you can predict.
While Sneed should be ready to go to start the season, there is legitimate concern that the Titans will be without their starting center for some time. That would be unfortunate because there has been real positivity surrounding the Titans offensive line for the first time in years, but an injury to Cushenberry would hurt that group.
Training camp isn't about where you start; it is about where you end up, but both Sneed and Cushenberry need to heal up quickly if they are going to prove that this isn't something Titans fans need to worry about.