Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans 53-Man Roster Projections, Practice Squad Options & Titans COVID Update

Episode Date: August 26, 2021

The Tennessee Titans must cut down their roster to 53 players in less than a week and Tyler gives you his current projections for who will make the team. Go through offense, defense & special teams as every bubble player, practice squad option and roster lock is discussed. Also, the Titans got more bad news on the COVID front on Wednesday and Tyler keeps you up to date.Follow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitansFollow the show on Facebook @LockedOnTitansPodSubscribe to the Locked On Titans Youtube page:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP3332GMOh4y5PX3q9NFybwSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnline AGThere is only 1 place that has you covered and 1 place we trust. Betonline.ag! Sign up today for a free account at betonline.ag and use that promocode: LOCKEDON for your 50% welcome bonus.Rock AutoAmazing selection. Reliably low prices. All the parts your car will ever need. Visit RockAuto.com and tell them Locked On sent you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the Locked on Titans podcast. I am your host, Tyler Rowland. Titans fans, this Thursday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast is presented by rockauto.com. Amazing selection, reliably low prices, all the parts your car will ever need. Visit rockauto.com today and tell them Locked on sent you. I have a unique episode of the Locked On Titans podcast for you guys today, and I will explain. So, first, we got to take a look at the Titans schedule. Throughout the preseason, we have been doing preseason game recaps, preseason game previews,

Tennessee Titans training camp practice recaps. But the Titans didn't practice on Wednesday, so that opened up a little bit of the schedule. We don't have to preview the last preseason game of the year until tomorrow's Friday episode. So that gave me a great chance on this Thursday to do my most recent 53-man roster projection with less than a week until we see that final 53. And what makes this episode of the Locked on Titans podcast unique is I'm going to be using a visual aid.

I put together a little bit of a project to show you guys, not just with my voice, but with that visual aid, what the Titans 53-man roster could look like, who are some candidates for the practice squad if they don't make the 53, who were the bubble decisions that I had to make, all of that. And I'm very excited to show you guys exactly what I have put together. So there's a great opportunity to tell you that if you're listening to the podcast, make sure that you also go to the Locked on Titans YouTube page, subscribe, hit the notification bell,

check out the visual aid there. Also, if you're new to the Locked on Titans YouTube page, make sure that you subscribe and hit that notification bell as well. I'm going to be putting out Monday through Friday, daily Tennessee Titans podcast all year long. You don't want to miss out on any episode of the number one Titans podcast in the world. If you're listening as a podcast, make sure to subscribe on whatever platform you do stream.

And remember, the Locked on Titans podcast is on every platform and it's always free. So we are going to jump into the Tennessee Titans depth chart and just some other Tennessee Titans news on this Thursday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. Let's get it. You are Locked On Titans, your daily Tennessee Titans podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Titans fans, we are going to get right into my 53-man roster projection and what the depth chart could look like.

I'm going to take you guys behind the curtain here and get everything set up for you. I'm going to go ahead and share my screen, let you guys in on the project that I have been working on. So here you will see in just a moment, here we go, it's up now, the, I guess the example that I would like to show you of what I think the Titans depth chart and roster could look like. Now we are going to start on the offensive side of the ball. So number one, let's go ahead and check out the quarterback position. And I know that it's a debate, but for me, obviously you have Ryan Tannehill, the starter, but I'm going to go with Matt Barkley. The NFL veteran just has tangible NFL experience as a backup. I thought he's been more impressive

overall in the preseason as well. Now you will see the decision essentially comes down to Matt Barkley or Logan Woodside, who I have here under the potential practice squad candidates. Whoever doesn't make the roster, I think the Titans are going to try to get them on their practice squad. Now it may be more difficult to get Matt Barkley on the practice squad because he has that NFL experience and he has looked good in the preseason. So quarterback needy team could go ahead and swoop him up. But the real thing that I think is if you have Tannehill go down for any length of time, I feel more comfortable with Matt Barkley being able to land the plane and bring the Titans home to a victory, whether that be, you know, a couple of weeks of Tannehill is out, or if he just goes out with an injury during a game and comes back the next week.

I trust Matt Barkley to get the job done. There is no real reason at this time to trust Logan Woodside to get that job done. So I'm going to go with Matt Barkley there. At running back, though, obviously we have Derrick Henry. Darrington Evans is making this roster. Even if you're somebody who is frustrated with his injuries, he's a second-year player picked in the third round. You don't give up on third-round picks this early unless it's dire and drastic.

It's not. The Titans don't have so much running back talent that they need to cut him. Evans will be on this roster, and the Titans need him healthy. This was tough, and I have the yellow accent here for guys who, I could see it going either way. I'm not 100% certain. If they're in white right now, and Matt Barkley should, admittedly, Matt Barkley should be in yellow as well.

So let me go ahead and take care of that for you guys. I'm sure this is fantastic on the podcast. Just absolutely beautiful audio content. But either way, Matt Barkley is a bubble guy. But Makai Sargent, he's been a darling in the preseason. And a lot of the time you see these preseason darlings and it just simply doesn't end up working out where they make the roster. These guys are getting more reps because they're at the low end of the depth chart, which makes it less likely that they'll

make the roster anyway. But really it comes down to, I've seen nothing from Brian Hill. I have seen nothing from Jeremy McNichols to make me believe that they're better than Makai Sargent. So I'm going to go with Makai Sargent. At least you get some explosion if Derrick Henry goes down. Somebody who will run hard. Obviously, Kari Blossom game at fullback is going to make this team. I know Torrey Carter is a nice name, is a guy who really works hard, but there's just no way he's making this team over Kari Blossom game. Moving forward to the big position that we have to discuss, and that is wide receiver. So for me,

I think the Titans keep seven at wide receiver, and that's a little bit of a controversial take. So far in the John Robinson era, the Titans have never kept more than six wide receiver. And that's a little bit of a controversial take. So far in the John Robinson era, the Titans have never kept more than six wide receivers. So it would be unlikely, but they have so much talent at wide receiver this year. I just don't see how they could possibly give up on all of these guys. All these guys are not going to make it to the practice squad.

But there's a couple of things that we have to break down, some technical aspects to roster changes and roster moves that are very important and relevant right now. So number one, NFL players who have four years of service or more than four years of service are not subject to waivers. So what happens when you cut a guy is they go on waivers and all of the NFL teams, all 32 teams are on a list.

Some of you guys who play fantasy football know about a waiver order and a waiver list. But either way, there's a list of teams, one to 32. And when you use a waiver claim, you go down to the bottom of the list. So if the Titans were to cut

Dez Fitzpatrick or Mason Kinsey or Racey McMahon, or let's even say Nick Westbrook-Akina, if the Titans cut one of those guys, well then they have to clear waivers, which means all 32 teams in the NFL have a chance to pick that guy up. If they go all the way through waivers and none of the 32 teams use their waiver claim, well, then the Titans can sign them back to the practice squad. But with what this Titans wide receiver group has displayed so far, it's hard to believe that these guys will make it through waivers

and not get claimed by teams that don't have this kind of talent at wide receiver. will make it through waivers and not get claimed by teams that don't have this kind of talent at wide receiver. So, what is a way to keep a good amount of these players at wide receiver and not lose some of them to waiver claims? Well, I do have to give a shout out to my guy Nick Lombardi on Twitter who also creates content for the Titans and he I guess utilized a roster loophole that can get the Titans to have seven guys seven wide receivers on the roster and not lose one of them that would be important like in my example Des Fitzpatrick or Nick Westbrook Aquino so what the Titans can is, because Marcus Johnson is in his fifth year of service, he's

not subject to waiver claims. So if the Titans cut down to 53 and cut Marcus Johnson, then once the 53 is established, place Josh Reynolds on IR, because Josh Reynolds has been dealing with the Achilles injury, just left practice this week after I've been dealing with it throughout the preseason and offseason. They put Josh Reynolds on IR. Here is the difference between IR right now and IR after you establish the 53. If you place a player on injured reserve right now during the preseason and offseason and training camp, they're on IR for the whole season and they can't come back.

If you place a guy on IR while during the season or on the 53-man roster, then they can use that short-term IR and come back after about three weeks, which means Josh Reynolds can rehab his Achilles injury, not have to worry about practicing, not have to worry about being on the field, and can get back to health and come back on the roster. Marcus Johnson, like I said, in his fifth season of duty, so he's not subject to that waiver list. Once he gets cut, he can sign with whoever he wants. The Titans cut Marcus Johnson and then instantly sign him back after they place Reynolds on IR.

Again, credit to Nick Lombardi who created this idea. Credit where it's due. So if the Titans do that, they can keep seven guys. They don't have to lose one of the young guys like Fitzpatrick or Mason Kinsey if you're someone who thinks he's going to make it over the two drafted rookies. And then they can keep Marcus Johnson,

keep Nick Westbrook-Akina, and keep their top three as well as keeping Chester Rodgers. So it's just a great way to keep seven wide receivers on the team, but not have to worry about the waiver claims. So I think that's one way that the Titans can do it, because if you drop Nick Westbrook-Akina, you drop Rodgers, you drop Fitzpatrick,

then you have to worry about waiver claims. So don't do that, and do it this way. That's a great way for the Titans to keep as much of the talent as possible. And then if Batson, Kinsey, McMath make it through waivers, then you bring them back on the practice squad. I do want to say poor Fred Brown. I see Fred Brown being cut outright, not making any of these lists. So that's how I see the backfield and the wide receiver group for the Titans on the depth chart. We are going to move forward and we are going to talk about the trenches on the offensive line,

the trenches on the defensive line as well. We will be right back. Let's continue diving into the depth chart that I have laid out in my 53-man roster projection. We just went through the first three positions, quarterback, running back, wide receiver. I kept Ryan Tannehill, Matt Barkley, Derrick Henry, Darrington Evans, Makai Sargent, Kari Blossomgame, Julio Jones, A.J. Brown, Marcus Johnson, Nick Westbrook-Akina, Chester Rogers, Des Fitzpatrick,

and I placed Josh Reynolds on IR, but short-term IR that he can come back from after a few weeks. We're going to move forward on the offense and talk about the offensive line here. So, obviously, you got the starters. They are entrenched. Taylor LeJuan, Roger Saffold, Ben Jones, Nate Davis, Kendall Lamb. I do think Kendall Lamb is going to be a starter at this time. Behind them is where things get a little dicey. But the Titans have proven, especially from last year,

in a COVID-impacted season, they're going to want to keep as many offensive linemen as possible. Offensive line depth is so, so important. I recorded the AFC South division preview earlier today with the other hosts from the Locked On podcast in the AFC South, and the OG Tony Wiggins had a great point during the show. He said that a good NFL team or a championship NFL team has to have eight offensive linemen that are solid because you're going to go through injuries. You're going to go through depth issues.

What have you. Whatever the case. Eight good offensive linemen. It's almost like basketball. A championship level NBA team has to have at least eight solid players on the team who can actually play when it matters to win the title. It's been proven throughout time. Offensive line, not much different.

And the Titans kept 9-10 offensive linemen at all times last year on the roster. So I think that that trend continues. Again, the five starters, but you look at the backups, of course Dylan Radins, the second-round pick, is going to make the team. I think Aaron Brewer is going to make the team. They're waiting for him to come off NFI. But here's what I'll say. If Brewer doesn't get healthy, then he's not going to make the team. They're waiting for him to come off NFI, but here's what I'll say. If Brewer doesn't get healthy, then he's not going to make the roster, and I would say that Daniel

Murner is the guy who makes the team, or Cole Bonwart. That's the decision that you're going to have to make there. Cole Bonwart, Aaron Brewer if he gets healthy, Daniel Murner if it's Brewer and he's healthy, that's an obvious choice for me. If it's between Murner and Bonwart, they'll probably lean to the veteran and Murner, but I would go with Bonwar personally in that scenario. But I think Aaron Brewer is who makes the team. Ty Sambrillo coming back from injury, I just think he makes it.

He can play a little bit of guard. He's competing. You're not competing for starting position at right tackle and then get cut from the team. I just don't see that as being the case. So I think Ty Sambr cut from the team. I just don't see that as being the case. So I think Ty Sambrillo makes this team. But if one of these tackles that I have doesn't make it, I think it would be Sambrillo because he doesn't cost a lot of money to cut. Now, I did keep David Questenberry

here and he struggled mightily, but he played really good left tackle for the Titans last year. He's obviously started at right tackle throughout the preseason despite the struggles. But my real issue here is if you cut Questenberry, he's not going to make it through to be on your practice squad. Yes, he doesn't have to go through waivers because he has enough time in the NFL where he doesn't have to go through waivers. But some team is going to offer him an opportunity to not be on a practice squad. And he's going to take that. So if you want to keep Questenberry, you're going to have to keep him on the active roster.

And I think the Titans do ultimately end up doing that, especially with the questions that they have at interior offensive line. It is possible with one injury that Dylan Radins does play guard for the Titans this year. And in that case, you're going to need another backup tackle. So I think the Titans keep five tackles this roster turn. Now going to the interior, we talked about Aaron Brewer. And I talked about the decision to make there.

Obviously, you have the three starters. So that's how I see the offensive line shaking now. Now, let's go to the tight end position, and I may be doing a hot take here, but Luke Stalker has not been good. I know that Miller-Forestall, crack a Miller, it's Forestall time. I know that Miller-Forestall has looked good, but I think Tommy Hudson has been excellent in the preseason for what he's being asked to do. I think

he's got more pop as a receiver than Luke Stalker has, and a lot more athleticism being he's a young guy, and he's proven to me in the preseason that he's a solid enough blocker that I would put him out there if Jeff Swaim got hurt. If Berkshire gets hurt, the Titans are going to be in a tough spot because nobody can replicate

that receiving ability, but I think Hudson could be a really good replacement for Jeff Swaim. Now I do want to say this. If the Titans, for some reason, don't keep a fifth offensive tackle like David Questenberry, then I think it could be very likely that they keep a fourth tight end. And to me, that would be Luke Stalker at that moment in time. So I could see that absolutely happening where where the Titans don't keep Queston Berry or they cut Sambrillo, and then they keep Luke Stocker on as a fourth tight end. That's absolutely possible, in my opinion. So, with that said, we have the trenches of the offense taken care of.

We're going to move to the trenches of the defensive line. Now, I think that the starters are well-versed here. Let's look at just the interior of the defensive line. Now, I think that the starters are well-versed here. Let's look at just the interior of the defensive line. Jeffrey Simmons as the defensive tackle, Tyreek Tartt as the nose tackle, and then Danico Autry as the defensive end. The Titans are slim on defensive line right now with the injuries that they've dealt with,

with the COVID list. Right now, you're looking at Freedom. I'm not even going to attempt to pronounce the last name. I'm just going to keep it 100 with you guys. Woodrow Hamilton and Naquan Jones. I like Naquan Jones as a guy. I obviously have him on the practice squad side over here, Naquan Jones, as I did with Miller Forrestal, Daniel Murner, Cole Bonmore. I think all those dudes have a great opportunity

to make the Titans practice squad. But I'm going to stick with Autry, Tart, Simmons. You know you're going to get Larell Murchison, but I'm going to take Kyle Pecco because I think that Rashad Weaver at edge can be a backup for Danico Autry. You have a backup for Tyre Tart. I think Pecco's been the best nose tackle out of all the others mentioned. And then Murchison is the direct backup for Jeffrey Simmons. So in theory, you have six deep interior defensive linemen

if you look at Weaver as a potential backup for Autry, which I do. We will transition over to the outside linebackers. And of course, you have the two starters in Harold Landry and Bud Dupree. I think you have the direct backups to those guys, as we have seen in the preseason. John Simon and Derek Roberson. They're obviously going to keep Rashad Weaver, as I just mentioned. The versatility to play on the inside behind Danico Autry allows them to feel comfortable with only having five interior defensive linemen

on the active roster. The sixth outside linebacker I see staying is Ola Adani. He's been really good as an outside linebacker in the preseason. He's a special teams ace. He's been great. There's no reason for Ola Adani to not make this roster. And with the Titans keeping six outside linebackers, I think that goes

a long way to helping them feel comfortable with only having those five interior defensive linemen. Now, I could see the Titans maybe cutting a Simon. Maybe they've had enough of Roberson and his struggles on first and second down. They want to get rid of those guys and keep a Woodrow Hamilton on the interior defensive line. I could see that taking place, but the way that I would do it is I would keep Kyle Pecco. I would use Weaver as that backup for Danico Autry as he's proven he can rush from the inside. And then I would have six outside linebackers total and keep Ola Danny. I think he brings a lot to the table. We are going to talk about the back seven of the defense and the special teams next.

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I'm breaking down my roster predictions for the Titans when they cut down to 53 players less than a week from today. We have talked about the offense. We've talked about the front, up front guys on the D-line and the outside linebackers. Now we have to talk about the inside linebackers and the secondary and the special teams. So we're going to dive in quickly.

We got a lot to talk about. Number one, the inside linebacker group. This top four to me is certified. David Long, Monty Rice is the backups with Jayon Brown and Rashawn being the starters. I think they're going to keep Nick DeZubnar because they're somebody that they counted on last year for special teams play. With those four top linebackers, the Titans aren't going to need somebody to come in and give them depth at inside linebacker. All they really need is a special teams guy.

Now, if they feel differently, Jan Johnson, Justin March, one of those guys I guess could be kept, but I haven't really seen enough from them, especially Jan Johnson, to consider keeping them on the roster. I know what DeZubnar is going to give me, especially on special teams, so I like that there. Let's dive into the secondary for the Titans. Slide this over so you can see everything that we got going on here.

I have it broken down by position for you guys. We have Christian Fulton and Jackrabbit Jenkins as the starters at cornerback. Caleb Farley and Breon Borders as the direct backups. Elijah Molden is the starting slot cornerback. And then Chris Jackson as the backup slot cornerback. Chris Jackson making the roster. That's up and down for me, but I just don't like what the Titans have at cornerback other

than Chris Jackson. Chris Jones is probably a guaranteed cut. Breon Body Calhoun, though, did play pretty well against the Bucs. I think it's a little too late for him coming into Titans camp late, though. So the Titans are going to go with Chris Jackson, a young guy, and continue to develop him. But if Jackson doesn't make it, I think Breon Body Calhoun would probably get that nod.

So six cornerbacks for the Titans. Safeties, Kevin Byard and Imani Hooker, guaranteed. But after that, it was really tough. I mean, I thought coming into the year, Cruikshank and Farley were going to be guaranteed locks, and that's a really nice top four safety group. But Cruikshank's been hurt almost the entire training camp after being hurt almost the entire year last year. Bradley McDougal has played pretty well. Clayton Gaithers has played pretty well. They played in Tampa Bay. They just got in with the Titans. Matthias Farley, like I said, I had high hopes on, but he's been hurt for

forever. So the Titans will probably want to go with people they've seen on the field instead of people they haven't seen on the field. I'm going to go one for one. Dane Crookshank is an injury guy that they'll keep on the roster and take a chance on because he's just one of those drafted rookies. Robinson has seen some good moments for him. And as the GM, you don't want to get rid of guys who you have a little bit of faith in. So they'll give Cruikshank one more chance in the last year of his deal. And then they're going to take one veteran guy.

So out of Clayton Gaithers, Matthias Farley if he gets healthy, Bradley McDougal, they're going to keep one. And I'm going to go with Bradley McDougal. I think he's the guy who fits what the Titans are going to need the most. And he's a veteran, so that's where I'm at. They're going to special teams. Easy. Sam Ficken, Brett Kern, Morgan Cox.

It's just cake. There's no questions here now after Tucker McCann was unfortunately hurt in the Tampa Bay game. Man, he just has to be so upset about that. So that's my 53-man roster. You can see it on the screen right now if you're checking the show out on the Locked on Titans YouTube page. I would encourage you guys to go ahead and do that.

But before we head out for the day, do have some unfortunate Tennessee Titans news to dive into. So as we have discussed, Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel did test positive for COVID earlier in the week, and he has still not produced two negative tests or one negative test within 48 hours to get out of COVID protocol. Well, we talked earlier in the week, yesterday actually, when the roster cuts happened, that Anthony Rush was off the roster because he was placed onto the COVID-19 list.

Anthony Rush, the interior defensive lineman. Well, then we talked about running back Jeremy McNichols and linebacker Nick DeZubnar being placed on the COVID list. So now you're up to three players and one coach. Well, the news kind of gets worse. Mike Vrabel went out and he had special teams coordinator Craig Aukerman step up as the head coach. Well, after one day of being the head coach, Craig Aukerman wasn't on the field on Tuesday. It's not a good sign.

Then, on Wednesday, starting edge rusher Harold Landry went on the COVID-19 list. It's very disappointing. And the Titans are catching some heat again. Not because of the players that I mentioned, but really because of Vrabel. Basically, Bruce Arians, the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, said

it's the Titans' fault, or not necessarily didn't say it was the Titans' fault, but Ryan Suckup is the kicker for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and he played for the Titans for a long time, and apparently Ryan Suckup and some Titans players went out to dinner together after the game. And Bruce Arians in his press conference basically said the Titans are learning a hard lesson just like Ryan Suckup had to

because Suckup tested positive for COVID on Monday. And one could put two and two together and say that Bruce Arians is blaming the Titans for going to dinner with Suckup and giving Suckup COVID. Now, no other Tampa Bay Buccaneers have COVID while the Titans are having somewhat of a mini outbreak here. So I guess if you look at it from a certain view, Arians has some ground to stand on.

But to Ron Davenport, who covers the Titans for ESPN, said that none of the Titans who have tested positive for COVID-19, including head coach Mike Vrabel, were at that dinner with Ryan Suckup. Which, if that's true, that makes Bruce Arians' comments a little unfounded. So, something to monitor. Hopefully we don't get any more COVID designations. Hopefully the Titans start working their way out,

but just an all-too-familiar nightmare. And even if it's just a couple of players and we have ample time before the season starts, anything Titans and COVID related, I mean, anything COVID related is not positive. I get that guys, but you know, of all the COVID stories in the NFL,

it's just been too many, too many for me, for the Titans, regardless of, uh, regardless of whether or not it's some major outbreak or, or major problem or anything like that. So either way,

either way, that's something that we definitely have to discuss, something that we definitely had to talk about. Had more fun talking about the depth chart, though, quite frankly. So hopefully you guys enjoyed that. Make sure that you check out the Locked on Titans podcast on whatever platform you do stream. Make sure to check out the Locked on Titans YouTube page as well.

But that's going to do it for me today, folks. As always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland, and this was Locked on Titans.