Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Mock Draft Monday - The Draft Network's Mock, Mock Draft Round-Up & My Mock Draft

Episode Date: March 30, 2020

Follow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the Locked on Titans podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Rowland. Titans fans, the NFL draft nears, and of course, that makes today a mock draft Monday. So we are going to go over the latest edition of mock draft Monday. This one comes from Jordan Reed over at the Draft Network, getting you guys ready for today's release of the latest Mock Draft Monday. So after we go over everything today, make sure that you fly over to the Draft Network

and check out all of their content. They will have a fresh new Mock Draft Monday edition up as well that, of course, we will break down next week. But we have a lot to get into today with it being Mock Draft Monday. Of course, like I said in our first segment, we are going to go over the Draft Network's Mock Draft Monday release, but we also have our Mock Draft Roundup where we go around the football community, check out some other draft pundits and what they have to say about how the Titans could go with selecting players in the draft here in just about less than a month.

And then with our third segment, I am going to do my own personal mock draft again on the Draft Network's mock draft system. Go ahead and check that out. They have a great mock draft simulator where you can choose the Titans. You can choose any team you like and take a look at how the draft could play out for you with you in the driver's seat. So I did a mock draft for you guys. I went three rounds this time instead of doing multiple first round mock drafts. I went three rounds deep to take a look how the Titans could fill some of the holes on the roster that still exist about two weeks into free agency.

So we have a lot to talk about because the philosophy for how the Titans could decide how to make their picks is the most interesting thing coming down the pipeline for the Titans. So we are going to jump into all of that today with a mock draft Monday. Let's get it. It is Mock Draft Monday presented by The Draft Network. And today's Mock Draft comes from Jordan Reed. And Reed went three rounds deep in this mock draft and gave us three different selections for the Titans, and I think all of them generally make sense, but we will talk about what other, the Titans' first selection, which, if I'm being honest, I would love to see the Titans trade down there, find a way to replenish either their fourth round selection or pick up an additional third round selection, as this team does have depth questions right now as we sit,

with possible moves still coming in free agency, of course, but all we can do is evaluate the roster as it sits right now and that's what Reed has done here and he has them going with Austin Jackson offensive tackle out of USC and I do like Jackson as a player he needs work with his fundamentals so it would be a good situation where he could slide in behind Ty Sambrillo, behind Dennis Kelly as the starter, and work on some of those fundamentals, but he would fit nicely in the Titans' own heavy scheme as he does have good athleticism, and he does have good spatial mobility, so he would be able to work very well with the way that the Titans like to play offense, but he does, again, need some

work on the fundamentals and need some coaching at the NFL level to get better with his footwork and to get better with his punch so that would be a good fit for the Titans but again with bringing back Dennis Kelly and my expectation being that he will get an increased role as the starter and then Ty Sambrillo coming in as a swing tackle and as a heavy package secondary tackle heavy package tight end I just don't see the need for the Titans being high enough to go after an offensive tackle in the first round of the draft there were cornerbacks on the board like Trevon Diggs and AJ Terrell there were interior defensive linemen on the board like Marlon Davidson and Ross Blacklock. And I think the interior defensive line with the trade of Jarrell Casey and currently the

Titans, even if Logan Ryan is re-signed, the Titans still need another cornerback in the pipeline and need to spend a pretty high pick on one. So I could have saw the Titans going with either of those two cornerbacks or either of those two interior defensive linemen and it being just as good of a fit if not a better value for the Titans. With the second pick for the Titans that is 61 overall in the second round, Reed has the Titans going with press specialist cornerback Damon Arnett out of Ohio State and I really like Arnett as a pick here. He was considered a first round talent. He was one of the more highly touted guys coming out of Ohio State. And I really like Arnett as a pick here. He was considered a first-round talent. He was one of the more highly touted guys coming out of high school,

going into Ohio State. Now, you have had stories come out about him maybe not necessarily getting along with his coaches. Remember, we had the Titans take Kerry Coombs, defensive back from Ohio State, who Arnett reportedly got along with great. But when Ohio State brought in their next defensive back coach, apparently things weren't

totally kosher in the meeting rooms. And that kind of held Arnett back along with an injury that he sustained to his wrist. But Arnett excels in press coverage. He's fluid with his hips when he has to flip back and forth in man. He understands zone coverage. He's fluid with his hips when he has to flip back and forth in man. He understands zone coverage. He has high IQ from playing at Ohio State and being surrounded by good coaching. Arnett really doesn't have any bad traits. He's pretty good at everything. The only knock on Arnett really is it took him a while to blossom into the player that he is. You don't really see

seniors play at Ohio State very often with the talented pipeline that they have in recruiting, but Arnett would be a very solid pick for the Titans at 61 in the second round. And then Reed capped off the Titans three rounds with a running back out of Utah, Zach Moss. And I like Moss if the Titans don't expect to bring back Henry long-term. He's not great as a pass catcher. He is better than Henry.

He's serviceable as a pass catcher. He's very serviceable as a pass blocker. He's decisive with a one-cut zone scheme, so he would be a good fit for the Titans. But he doesn't necessarily have the speed that complements Henry perfectly, and he's not as good of a pass catcher as I would like as a compliment for Derrick Henry in the Titans backfield, but if they don't expect to bring back Henry long term, then Moss is a great fit as the next lead back for the Titans. But that is getting pretty far ahead of ourselves, but that is how general manager John Robinson and the Titans

scouting staff have to plan things out. They have to be a few years ahead of things so that they don't get caught with their pants down, quite frankly, and get put in a situation where they have no one to take certain spots and fill certain roles. So that's what it's all about. We look at the roster right now. What are the big holes? But the way that the Titans organization and the scouting staff is looking at things they're trying to get multiple years ahead of the holes and fill problems before they happen which is why I think the Titans may go wide receiver pretty early I wouldn't be completely shocked if the Titans went wide receiver in round one round two because they're trying to get ahead of the issue that lies in the near future with Corey Davis and Adam Humphreys. So that is a conversation for another day, though. We are going to continue this Mock Draft Monday and head into our Mock Draft Roundup section

of the show. We will go around the draft community and just see what some other pundits have projected for the Titans in the first couple of rounds. But of course, if you guys have not done this already, please try out using your smart device and telling them to play the Locked on Titans podcast. If you have Siri, if you have Alexa, you have the Google Play system,

whatever they call that, all the different names for all the different smart devices. All you have to do is tell them, for example, Siri, play the Locked On Titans podcast, and it'll pop right up for you. So check that out next time. If you've been a listener of this podcast,

I'm sure you've heard all the great advertisers working with Locked On to reach sports fans. But you may not know that Locked On is a great way for your local business to reach passionate fans just like you. Unlike any other podcast, Locked On gives your local company the unique ability to reach local podcast listeners. And not just any podcast listener, a Locked On podcast listener. If your company wants a way to connect with Titans fans and a predominantly male audience that is well-educated with disposable income, then let's put your company right here on this Locked On Podcast.

Local fans love to support local businesses. Text the word ADVERTISING to 33777 or visit LockedOnPodcast.com slash advertising and let us know who you are. We'll get a team to help your team achieve Locked On advertising success. Once again, text the word advertising to 33777 or visit lockedonpodcast.com. We look forward to hearing from you. let's continue our mock draft monday with a mock draft roundup and we will go back to a familiar face to kick things off and i've really appreciated this person for consistently having mock drafts out and since we've used him so much throughout the mock draft Monday season,

I want to keep going back to him for pretty solid content here. And that is Luke Easterling from the DraftWire. That's USA Today. He has the Titans going with Yotur Gros Matos with their first pick in the first round. And the last edition of a mock draft that Easterling put up, he had the same thing. So clearly he sees a really good fit there, as do I. Yoturgros Matos could play a little on the outside if needed. He also can rush from the interior.

He can play a five technique and put on some extra pounds for the Titans in their base defense. Like I said, in sub package, he can rush from the interior. He can rush on the outside as well. and put on some extra pounds for the Titans in their base defense. Like I said, in sub package, he can rush from the interior. He can rush on the outside as well. Has good versatility. Comes from a storied program with good coaching. So he should have a high IQ and be able to play in the multiple different fronts and the different complex twists and stunts that the Titans like to do up front. So I really like a person like Yotur Grosmatos for the Titans.

And it's funny how much that has changed with that trade of Jarrell Casey. Originally, I wanted nothing to do with the tweener guys who could rush on the inside, outside, five technique, edge rusher, in between. But now with the loss of Casey, there's just a massive hole on the interior in the Titans rush package. So I would really like a player like Yotur Grosmatos or an AJ Espinosa. And that would be a pretty good fit for the Titans. With the second pick for the Titans and Easterlings three round mock draft.

And we're starting to get a lot more three round mock drafts rather than first round mock drafts. So I'll make sure to include those picks. But he has the Titans going with an interior offensive lineman Lloyd Cushenberry from LSU and while I really like Cushenberry I think he's going to be a pretty solid NFL player I just don't see the value for the Titans going interior offensive line this early in the draft when there are so many other needs that are regardless of what happens in free agency there's going to be a need at corner there is a need at running back there is a slight need at wide receiver there's definitely a need like I said at cornerback already there is a need at interior defensive line and I just think there

are so many needs that trump interior offensive line that taking a player in the second round who's supposed to be a starter your first three rounds are expected to be starters. I just don't see the value for the Titans there, even though I think Cushenberry is a pretty good player. And then with the third pick for the Titans, he has them going with Cam Akers running back out of Florida State. I love that pick. Florida State had a terrible team last year. Their offensive line was really bad, and Akers continued to make plays.

He was one of the more highly touted recruits coming out of high school, and Florida State as a program completely fell off when they lost Jimbo Fisher as a coach, and I don't really hold that against Akers. I think he would be a fantastic complement to Derrick Henry, but that wraps up Easterling's mock draft. We are going to move into the next mock draft, and that is Chad Reuter from NFL.com. Reuter's first pick for the Titans, I think it's a good one. Going back to the conversation I just had about Yoturgros Matos, basically the Titans have a huge hole on the

interior defensive line, and Reuter has them going with Ross Blacklock from TCU with that first pick and I love Blacklock there he's a natural five technique can rush on the interior have some good explosion but also can be a big body down there to help against the run I think that would be a fantastic pick I could see Blacklock going more mid second round late second round and maybe the Titans could scoop him up there but I doubt he would fall all the way to 61 so this would be another and maybe the Titans could scoop him up there but I doubt he would fall all the way to 61 so this would be another candidate if the Titans were able to trade back from 29 into the beginning of the second round middle of the second round Blacklock may still be on the board and here we go folks we have finally made it it is officially mock draft season for the Titans. When you see a tight end, and Reuter has the Titans going with Adam Troutman,

tight end out of Dayton with their second pick. And no, just no. The Titans re-sign Pruitt. The Titans brought back Ferkser. The Titans have John U. Smith. They are not drafting a tight end in this draft. I would put a decent amount of money on it, but I know for certain that they won't draft a tight end this high, especially someone like

Troutman. I would only see the Titans going after a tight end in the draft if you could find a stud, and unfortunately, I just don't see a high-level pro bowler or all all pro in this draft at tight end especially I got really upset when I read this one because Jeff Gladney was still on the board Gladney cornerback out of TCU who is just the ideal fit for the Titans I don't see Gladney being there for the Titans at pick 29 so he's definitely not going to be there at 61 and if he was the Titans would need to pounce all over that I don't understand how Reuter has Gladney fallen this far but I guess crazier things have happened and with the third pick in Reuter's mock draft actually went four rounds but the Titans don't have a fourth round selection due to the trade with Ryan Tannehill

so this would be the last pick in Reuter's mock draft for the Titans. It's pick 93 in the third round and he had him going with Damon Arnett, cornerback out of Ohio State. And Arnett went to the Titans in the second round in Jordan Reed's mock draft Monday from the Draft Network. And I don't see Arnett with his talent in press man coverage. That is just such on demand in the NFL right now. That is an on-demand trait for NFL defenses is that press man coverage ability and Arnett does that so well that I don't see him lasting until the third round. So the Titans would have to swoop him in the second round most likely if they were to get Arnett on the team. And then I wanted to bring back a guy who we had in the rotation for quite some time and

we like to poke our fun and have our fun but Mr. Christopher Knox from Bleacher Report had the Titans going with off the ball linebacker multiple times in the first few iterations of his mock draft and I am happy to report that Mr. Knox has adjusted and has fixed this flaw in his mock draft. And now he has the Titans going with Ross Blacklock with their first selection in the draft. I guess I've spoken about this so much with that's exactly what Reuter had, Yoturgros Matos for Luke Easterling. I mean, it just makes all the sense in the world

that the Titans would go with an interior defensive lineman who can rush the passer with their first pick to replace Jarrell Casey who as the days go by the trade makes everyone more upset because the Titans aren't really doing anything in free agency with the money that they saved from Jarrell Casey so we will move into the godfather of draft coverage as mock draft and that is Mel Kuyper from ESPN he had the Titans going with Ezra Cleveland offensive tackle out of Boise State and once again like I mentioned with the pick in our first segment Austin Jackson in the first round there with when the Titans went out and got Ty Sambrillo, I knew that they weren't going to pick a tackle this high in the draft. They're not going to carry four offensive tackles, one of them being a first round rookie that isn't going to play. They signed Ty Sambrillo to be that swing

tackle and to be that pass catching heavy tackle in goal line situations if the Titans go with a heavy package with three tackles on the field that's Ty Sambrillo right there so I just don't see the Titans doing doing this anymore that I don't see them going with offensive tackle this high in the draft I think that the Titans know like I know that the top five possibly top six tackles will be off the board in the first round by the time they select, and you're not going to get good value out of someone like Jackson or Ezra Cleveland there in the first round. So the Titans wouldn't do that, and I don't think that John Robinson would. And for Kuyper's mock draft, he did not have a lot of cornerbacks going. He only had C.J. Henderson

and Jeff Okuda going in the first round I think at that pick the Titans would go with Christian Fulton out of LSU or Jeff Gladney out of TCU at cornerback heck AJ Terrell even would be a possibility that I think the Titans would look at there or even Trevon Diggs like we talked about with the first mock draft so I think that the Titans would go cornerback in this situation if the board fell the way that it did in Kuyper's mock draft. And then the last one that I wanted to go over in our mock draft roundup is a real quick three-rounder from Fantasy Pros analyst Kyle Yates.

He had the Titans going with Lucas Niang in the first round. I just think that's not going to happen. And the reason why is because you're looking at people like Cleveland and Niang and Jackson there and I just don't think that's first round value but he does have the Titans going with Ross Blacklock in the second round I don't think Blacklock will fall until 61 anymore at this point so I would flip those two I think it's more likely that Blacklock would be taken in the first round and Niang would be there in the second round but then he has the Titans going with Cole Komet tight end out of Notre Dame with the third round and I just wanted to add this in as another reminder that no matter

what we do no matter how hard we try we cannot escape the Titans being mocked tight ends early in mock drafts so just ludicrous absolutely. The Titans aren't going to pick a tight end in the first three rounds. I've said that for two years straight. I'm going to say it for a third year in a row, and I would bet a decent amount of money that it turns out to be true. But that is going to wrap up our mock draft round up. We are going to go into my mock draft and how things shook out for me in the three round mock that I did on the draft networks mock draft simulator. Let's cap off our mock draft Monday with a little mock draft simulator that I put together from the Draft Network

and what my selections would be for the Titans based on how the board falls in this simulator. So we will talk about my first round selection. And I first just want to let you guys know kind of how the board shook out here. Ross Blacklock went 19. Jeff Gladney went 21. Christian Fulton went 24. All of the top five offensive tackles up to Andrew Thomas are off the board. Yotur Gros Matos went one pick before to the Baltimore Ravens. So the way that I'm looking at it right now, you have basically the top three interior defensive linemen off the board.

You have the top four cornerbacks off the board, the top five offensive tackles off the board. And I could go Josh Jones here as an offensive tackle. A lot of people have him going in the first round, so I don't think that would be bad value. You could go with Trevon Diggs AJ Terrell somebody like Noah Igbenogany that's a tough name and getting better getting better with it AJ Terrell is still there I've in the past gone with DeAndre Swift a running back in this position but the Titans had AJ Espinosa on the board available and I just like his versatility with the loss of Jarrell Casey he can fit in right there we can have Jeffrey Simmons as a dominant interior guy

someone like Espinosa who can be on the inside as a five technique be on the inside as an interior rusher and sub package can also get out on the edge if you need we would most likely ask him to bulk up like I mentioned with Yotargros Matos bulk up to about 290 to be more of that five technique than typically than technically an edge rusher but I think Espinosa and having a great coaching background from Iowa would be a perfect fit for the Titans in their versatile front and Mike Vrabel would love having a smart player like that on the team. Going into the second round, now I have more options available for the Titans. There's a lot of different ways that they could go. Austin Jackson and Ezra Cleveland, two offensive tackles and of course Josh Jones went four picks later in the first round to the Bengals to pick 33, first pick of the second round.

And then we saw Jackson and Cleveland go about four picks in front of the Titans to the Texans and the Vikings in the second round. And that left me thinking, you know, do I reach for an offensive tackle here? Somebody like Lucas Niang, somebody like, you know, Sadiq Charles, or do I look at cornerbacks? Cornerbacks started going off the board the second wave of cornerbacks. AJ Terrell went off the board. We saw Jalen Johnson go off the board as well, but there was one cornerback that was still on the board here for the Titans in the second round, and I felt like even if Logan Ryan

is brought back, even if the Titans make a signing in and I felt like even if Logan Ryan is brought back even if the Titans make a signing in free agency at cornerback they still need to bring in another in the draft because Malcolm Butler is a very high cap hit next year if something were to happen to Adoree Jackson where he would lose his value Logan Ryan isn't getting any younger so with LaShawn Sims also out of the door Chris Milton being more of a special teamer the Titans need a cornerback that's the moral of the story so I went with Damon Arnett I think it's a perfect fit for the Titans something someone I've talked about throughout this episode he went in the second round to the Titans in Jordan Reed's mock draft he went third round to the Titans in

Chad Reuter's mock draft and I'm taking him in the second round here. Like I said, I could have went a couple of different routes. I could have went offensive tackle. Could have went Brandon Ayuk as well, wide receiver, the burner. I think that he would be a pretty good fit out of Arizona State as well, but I did decide instead to go with a cornerback for the Titans, so we have interior defensive line and cornerback shirt up here with Espinosa and with Arnett. And then with my third selection in the third round, I thought about running back.

I thought about wide receiver. I didn't really see the value there on those positions. So I thought it is time to get an offensive tackle in here. And I wanted to take somebody who needed a little bit of time to get together but was a perfect scheme fit and that's Sadiq Charles I mentioned him earlier I was thinking about him in the second round but Charles has great athleticism for a tackle needs a little bit of help with his fundamentals he needs uh football IQ I guess he doesn't have a natural feel for the game. So that's something he could work on sitting behind Sam Brillo,

sitting behind Kelly, sitting behind LaJuan. And then in about two years, he'll be ready to go and ready to take over and fill a valuable role for this Titans offense. But I thought this was a good time to swoop him up as he does have perfect athleticism to fit in the Titans zone run offensive scheme. But there were some other options.

I like Chase Claypool as a huge wide receiver that the Titans don't really have right now as a red zone threat. Bradley Anai on the edge. Jabari Zuniga on the edge were also options. And Antonio Gibson at running back, who also can play some wide receiver, I think he would be a great fit as well. And that was the biggest debate I had. Antonio Gibson and Sadiq Charles ultimately went with Charles.

And even right now, I could have went with Antonio Gibson. I'm thinking maybe I should have done that. So that would be a good option for the Titans there. But I wanted to bring you guys my thoughts on what I would do in my mock draft. And, of course, check out that mock draft simulator from the draft network it is a lot of fun to play around with and it's just enjoyable to look at all the different options that the titans might have and quite frankly how things could shake out it'll be a very interesting draft now that you are done with this edition of locked on titans tell your smart device to play

the most recent episode of locked on on NFL, the national show. It is really popping off right now. One of the more downloaded shows in the sports category for podcasts, at least on iTunes. So make sure you guys go check that out. But as always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland, and this was Locked on Titans.