Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans MASSIVE COACHING UPGRADE is the BIGGEST IMPROVEMENT of an Impressive Offseason

Episode Date: May 6, 2026

The Tennessee Titans made numerous upgrades this offseason, but no more valuable than the improvement in the coaching staff. Robert Saleh, Brian Daboll and the group they have put together to coach the players is such a massive upgrade from the previous regime that it can account for a few extra wins alone. Not to be ignored, the Titans enhancements at the skill positions on offense is noticeable as well. Adding Carnell Tate, Wan'Dale Robinson, Daniel Bellinger and Nick Singleton should give the Titans a major boost. Finally, the Titans defensive line was good last year, but adding John Franklin-Meyers, Keldric Faulk and Jermaine Johnson should give them a chance to wreck games in the trenches.   LOCKED ON TITANS EVERYDAY CLUB: https://lockedontitans.supercast.com/   Subscribe to the TicTacTitans Film Channel:  https://www.youtube.com/@TicTacTitans   TicTacTitans Merchandise: https://dixons-dream.square.site/shop...   Follow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitans   Follow the show on Facebook @LockedOnTitansPod   Subscribe to the Locked On Titans YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@LockedOnTitans   Everydayer ClubIf you never miss an episode, it’s time to make it official. Join the Locked On Everydayer Club and get ad-free audio, access to our members-only Discord, and more — all built for our most loyal fans. Click here to learn more and join your team’s community: https://lockedonpodcasts.com/everydayerclub Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Square If you’re starting a business, or running one that deserves better tools, Square helps you sell, manage, and grow without slowing down. Right now, you can get up to $200 off Square hardware at https://square.com/go/LockedOnNFL.  FanDuel Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Right now new customers can bet just five dollars and get one-hundred and fifty dollars in bonus bets if your first bet wins. Visit https://FANDUEL.COM to get started — Play Your Game. Indeed Listeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/podcast. Rugiet Get 15% off your treatment → https://rugiet.com/lockedonnhl Rugiet. Performance medicine for men.   Gametime Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONfor $20 off your first purchase.   FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The Tennessee Titans made a lot of improvements this all season, but none of them are going to help more than the new coaching staff. We'll talk about where the Titans upgraded the most on today's edition of Locked-on Titans. You are Locked-on Titans, your daily Tennessee Titans podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. Welcome to the Locked on Titans podcast. I am your host, Tyler Rowland Titans fans. On today's show, we're going to talk about where the Tennessee Titans upgraded the most over the all season.

We'll talk about how the new defensive line can absolutely dominate. We'll talk about the weaponry that the Titans have added to help Cam Ward, but we got to start with the most important upgrades of them all, and that is the coaching staff. Robert Sala, Brian Daible, Gus Bradley, Carmen Bracillo, some of the other position coaches, Aaron Whitecotton on the defensive line, keeping bones fossil like the improvement that the Tennessee Titans have made with the coaching staff, I think is by far the most important upgrade that they've made.

Now, of course, you could talk about different players, you could talk about the roster, the draft, re-agency, and those are massive additions that we will get to. But the coaching staff is really what's going to help the Titans the most. If you look at the amount of wins that the Titans are going to get, because here's a reality. And I know that not everybody is going to agree with me. And I understand that.

And that is par for the course, right? I'm used to that. But this roster is still not great. It's not a great roster. I would say, you know, maybe it's somewhere between 20 and 27, 20 and 28, wherever you want to put it.

But I can't go much higher than 20 for the Titans roster. Like, there's still a lot of questions out there. We'll talk about some of the places where the Titans did not improve and maybe even got worse, but like the edge spot is still a question

and the secondary is still a question and linebackers, a lot of young guys who we expect to play well, and the offensive line and, you know, the Titans have upgraded certain spots like the weapons that we'll talk about. But they were dirt poor.

You know, it's like going from absolute poverty to, you know, average to below average salary. You know, like, yeah, you improved, but you're not rich. You know, it's not like you were in poverty and then you hit a, you know, the power ball lotto or something like that. That's not quite what's happened here. I don't think the Titans have flipped their, you know, bottom of the barrel, bottom five roster in the NFL into one of the better rosters in the NFL in one all season.

that that's happening. Now, I believe that the roster has gotten better enough. It's good progression for the Titans. They're building forward. But if we're looking at how this team can go from back-to-back seasons of three wins, and, you know, we talked about the ceiling, the floor, where I think they'll actually be. if the Titans are to hit where I think they could go, which is six, seven wins, something like that, maybe the Titans have a better season that. Eight, nine, God forbid, 10 wins.

Maybe a wild card spot. I think that's the ceiling for this team. I don't think that's what's going to happen, but I would say that it's possible. If they are to hit 7, 8, 9, 10 wins, it's not like adding who they've added in the draft with Tate and Falk and Hill and Carmona and Coogan and Singleton and then Free Agency with Wondale and JFM

and Alante Taylor or Cordell Flot you know like it's not like the Titans roster has gone from absolutely terrible to oh that's a playoff roster like that from what they've done Like, that's not, that's not real, in my opinion. But if it is going to happen, if the Titans are going to land in above average to incredible territory this season

for their range, in my opinion, it's going to be because the coaching staff. It's going to be because the coaching is so much better for this group that it is responsible for, additional wins. Again, if you think about it like, you know, what is it, war, wins above replacement. That is, or wins shares is a big one that people like to use in the analytics community to say how many wins per season a player is actually worth. Now, pretty much everybody who isn't a quarterback isn't worth crap. You know what I mean? Like the quarterbacks have such a big impact that they're the only

ones with like a substantial win rate or, you know, whatever the analytic may be that calculates that war or win shares, whatever you want to call. I think the Titans coaching staff will be responsible for three or four wins. Like somewhere between two and a half to four extra wins. Just the coaching being better. Not even the roster. I think the players, the players that they're Titans have added could be worth, you know, maybe two to three wins. I think if things hit great for the Titans, it's because the coaching added another four wins. I think that the Titans' new players could be worth about two to three wins.

I think the Titans' new coaches could be worth about one and a half to four wins. So I could see the Titans winning three or four additional games this year, seven, six wins, something like that. And that makes sense. But if this coaching staff is who we think they are, that is how the players add about three with their talent and the coaching adds about four. That's how impactful and important this coaching upgrade could be.

Because again, it's not just the Titans hire Robert Salah, Brian Dable, keep bones, add white cotton, Bracillo, Bradley. It's not just that. It's who they're replacing. The Titans are going from, now, Bones Fawson was still there. I think Dernard Wilson is a good defensive coordinator. I don't think Dernard Wilson is a bad defensive coordinator

by any stretch of the imagination. I think he knows what he's doing. He's one of the better defensive coordinators in the league, in my opinion. And he's going to keep getting jobs, got hired immediately after being let go by the Titans, by the Giants. Dernard Wilson is a good football coach. Okay? And when you hear Jeffrey Simmons talk in that interview that he did with Taylor LeWan

and bust him with the boy, he literally gave credit to Dernard Wilson for holding people accountable. Like, Dernard Wilson's a good coach. But he ain't Robert Sala as a defensive mind. And Gus Bradley has been one of the better defensive coordinators in the NFL over the last 15 years. Yeah, as of late,

some of his stuff has gotten a little antiquated. He didn't evolve properly. This and that, he's probably better off as a teacher now than a creative mind to scheme up and do things. He's going to be involved in that process, obviously, as the defensive coordinator, but you don't want him being the lead defensive mind for your football team anymore, I don't think.

It's like, you know, when you're an adult man and you get a little older and your dad drove everywhere and your parents paid for dinner when you went out and stuff like that. Well, when you get to a certain age, yeah, dad, I'm going to drive. I'm going to drive us. It's all right, pops. I'll pay for dinner.

You know, like it changes. I think that Gus Bradley has kind of moved into, you know, his grandpa stage. But nonetheless, having white cotton on the D-line, Gus Bradley, Robert Salam, all in the room together,

I think that is a big upgrade over just Dernard Wilson. And then do we even have to talk about offense? I mean, we know that Brian Callahan wasn't even good enough to get an offensive coordinator position. He interviewed for three or four teams. had to take a quarterback coach position.

So not only, like when Robert Sala got fired as a head coach, he immediately got rehired as a defensive coordinator. Brian Callahan gets fired. He literally has to go lower than what his position. He didn't go get a coordinator job. Had to go lower. Think about how nuts that is and how terrible of a hire that was for Rancarthon, just on that logic.

An offensive coordinator who has never called, place. Can't even get an offensive coordinator job after he's fired as a head coach. Has to go lower than that. That's like, you know, getting fired as the general manager from McDonald's and you can only get a job as a fry cook. You know, like it's crazy to think about. But again, the coaching staff upgrade, I think is the most significant upgrade that the Titans got this all season. Let me know what you think is the most significant. Now, I would tell you And number two on that list for me is the offensive weaponry. Do want to let you know that today's episode is sponsored by better help.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. And it's important to remind yourself that whatever you're carrying right now, you don't have to go through it alone. Life can feel overwhelming sometimes, whether it's stress, uncertainty, anxiety, or just trying to manage everything on your plate. It's easy to feel like you need to figure out everything by yourself. But therapy, it can be a great place to get support, gain perspective,

and talk things through with someone who's there to listen and help. Better help connects people with licensed therapists and makes it easier to get matched with someone who fits your needs and goals. That's my favorite thing about better help. In my experience, they have a survey to figure out exactly what you want to get out of therapy to better help match you with the therapist that's right for you. And I think with things like therapy, it's very important to have a good connection with your therapist. And BetterHelp makes it super easy to find that. And then if your first match isn't the right fit,

you can switch therapists at any time. Having someone with you, someone to listen and support you, can make a real difference. You don't have to be on your journey alone, find support, and someone to help you with therapy. sign up and get 10% off at betterhelp.com slash locked on. That's better help, help.com slash locked on. Fans, let's continue today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast again. We're looking at the places where the Tennessee Titans upgraded the most this all season. It may be a hot take, but I think it's the coaching staff. That's going to make the biggest impact on the Titans this season

and the amount of wins and the upgrading that they do and the improvement that they show, the majority of that is going to come from the coaching staff. But we also have to mention the weapons around Cam Ward. Significantly better than what they had going into last season. Think about where the Titans were at going into last year. You had Calvin Ridley, you had Tyler Lockett, and Van Jefferson.

that was the Titans starting three wide receivers. Van Jefferson, Tyler Lockett, the corpse of Tyler Lockett, and Calvin Ridley. Now, Ridley is a good player. I know he got her, he had some drops early, it soured the fan base on Calvin Ridley. I've been a Calvin Ridley supporter.

It wasn't long through the all season where I was like, you know what? Let's not cut Calvin Ridley. They have enough money. They don't, and the Titans still, to this day, to this day, to this day. The Titans have $60 million in caps face.

They did not need to cut Calvin Ridley. It didn't need to happen. They didn't need his money. They didn't need his $13 million. You're better off having Calvin Ridley on the team. And of course, the Titans restructure set it up so that Calvin Ridley is going to be here. I think he could be traded during the season

if things go certain ways. There could be good ways that things could go for the Titans that would lead to Calvin Ridley be traded. But most of them are probably bad. Like the Titans are doing terrible. the season didn't work out. You trade Calvin Redley at the trade deadline. And restructuring his contract made that more possible.

So that's better for Calvin, better for the Titans. Everybody happy. But that's a terrible group. And you had Gunner Helm and Chicka Conquo. You guys know I'm not as high on Chicka Conquo as a lot of you guys are. I think the Chicka Concoe is a tight end three in the NFL or a 2.5 at minimum. I don't mean like out of 10. I mean like he's tight end one,

tight end two. He's like a tight end two and a half to me. Like he can be like if you had in a perfect world you had a traditional wide tight end and then you have Chigaconquo and another bigger body physical tight end. So now if I need to go two tight ends in a physical sense, I can do that.

If I want to go two tight ends and have a little more versatility, I have Chica Conquo. but he's not somebody who can be your certified, clear number two, tight end because he doesn't block well enough. And he's not somebody who can be your tight end one because he doesn't block well enough. It can't be that traditional in-line wide-tide-end with his hand in the dirt next to the offensive tackle.

You know what I mean? So, like, I was lower on Chig than others. Gunner Helm was a rookie, a fourth-round rookie. And then outside of the starters at wide receiver, you add two day-three rookies as well. and freaking Mason Kinsey and Bryce Oliver. You know what I mean? Think about that group.

Terri. Tad J. Spears and Tony Pollard are all right. That was okay. You know what I mean? That was an okay group. That is an okay running back group. I had somebody in my comments the other day and some of you guys don't like when I do this,

but maybe there are people out there who feel this way. But he's like, wait a minute. Now you're saying to trade Tage Spears, but you didn't want to take Jeremiah Love because Tage Spears and Tony Pollard is good enough. Well, now they have Nick Singleton. That is the difference. And I think Nick Singleton can do a lot of the things

that Tadier Spears does. He can catch out of the backfield. He can be an electric spark plug. He has home run speed. He's faster than Tadier Spears and straight-line speed. It may not be laterally as quick, but he's still very quick as well. So it's not like now all of a sudden,

I don't think that Tony Pollard and Tadier-Speer is good enough. It's the opposite of that. I think Nick Singleton is good enough to replace Tajay Spears and then you're still fine. But nonetheless, let that be the place how we get into the new weapons. Now you have Tajay Spears, Tony Pollard, which you had last year, and a guy like Nick Singleton, who I think has potential to be a lead running back in the NFL. Is he going to be a top 10 superstar running back? I don't know. He's got the potential, but I'm not as confident on that.

but I think he could be a lead back as part of a committee. So you're clearly better at running back just from that. And they have Michael Carter as RB4 now. Instead of Julius Chestnut, that's an upgrade there as well. And then you have Carnell Tate, a top five pick in the NFL draft. You add Wondale Robinson and you put that with Calvin Ridley. So now you have Tate, Ridley, and Robinson. as your top three as opposed to Van Jefferson,

Calvin Ridley, and Tyler Lockett. Think about the upgrade that that represents. Massive, massive upgrade. And I'm not even as high on Cornell Tate as a lot of you guys are. And I can still recognize that is an absolute overhaul for Cam Ward's wide receiver group. So you're better at running back, you're significantly better at wide receiver.

Are they done? Do the Titans up one of the best wide receiver groups in the NFL? No. But it is significantly improved over what they were going into last year with. And then you add in now, Elycayo Manor, Chim Dike in year or two, who showed some things.

Titans are in a much better place at wide receiver. And even tight end, I like Daniel Bellinger better than Chigaconkwo. Point blank, period. I like him better. Now, is Tide N massively improved? Well, think about it like this.

Chigokwa was the Tide N1 last year, right? Had to be, Gunner Helm was a rookie coming in. Day 3 rookie. Can't say that he was tied in one, even though I thought he should have been from day one. And eventually, he took that roll over. But Gunner Helm in year two is better than Chigacacquo, in my opinion.

I think Gunner Helm in year two. And remember, Chigaconkwo was a fifth round pick. It's not that crazy to think that year two, Gunner Helm is a better play. It's not that crazy. It's not like Chiggenquah was Kyle Pitts or something like that. So I think year two Gunner Helm is better than Chigua last year. And Daniel Bellinger is better than year one Gunner Helm.

So that's an upgrade. Again, not as massive as wide receiver. I would say that it would go wide receiver, tight end, running back. But we're not here to rank each of those spots. We're here to look at them in totality. And the totality of what the Tennessee Titans have done for Cam Ward's weaponry is impressive.

It is the best they could have done. I mean, and the Titans, in theory, I don't think they're going to do this, I've said. They could go get Stefan Diggs who, hey, credit to Stefan Diggs, he was found not guilty. And I live in a world where not guilty, I'm not going to hold that against that man. Like, it looked like, it looked like

that private chef was doing what happens to these professional athletes sometimes. It was predatory. It was trying to take advantage, get a paycheck. should have taken that 100K that he offered originally. Try to go for more and look what happened. And now it's going to turn into a public embarrassment. And that is, you know, we're totally off-shoot now.

But like, that is part of the problem when some of these things happen is you're going to be publicly ostracized whether you're a victim or not. But stuff like this makes it worse. So if Stefan Diggs, Joan Jennings, DeAndre Hopkins, Debo Samuel, Tyree Kill, If the Titans want to add one of these guys, the group is even better. Now again, I don't think that they're going to.

You're just taking reps away from D.K. Iow Manor. And you have a Calvin Ridley who's basically in that group. Calvin Ridley is basically in like the Stefan Diggs, Tyree Kill, past their prime, but still a decent player more. So, again, the totality of the improvements that the Titans have made with the weapons around Cam Ward isn't one of the best weapons?

group in the NFL, no. But I think that it's top 24. Top 20, maybe? We would have to sit down and look, but again, certainly a massive upgrade over last year where they were

last, bottom three, bottom five, if you're as optimistic as possible, that is a tremendous upgrade around Cam Ward. Now, the last thing is, and it's the least exciting. upgrade and it was good last year for the Titans,

but the Titans defensive line absolutely better today than it was last year. Do want to let you know that today's episode is brought to you by Ruggiat. The NHL playoffs are here where every shift matters, every moment is intense and the pressure is at its highest. And just like performance matters on the ice, it matters off the ice too. And that's where Ruggiat comes in.

Ruggiat offers treatments designed to help get you ready and keep you ready when it matters. Their top option, Ruggiat ready, combines clinically proven ingredients in a simple mint that dissolves under your tongue. It works fast, often in about 15 minutes, and it can last up to 36 hours. They also offer go long, designed to help with both performance and control. It's all about confidence and feeling like yourself again. head to rougiat.com slash locked on NHL for 15% off your ED treatment. That's ruggiat.com R-U-G-I-T dot com slash locked-on NHL for 15% off. Ruggiat performance medicine for men.

Man's let's cap off today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast again talking about the biggest upgrades. The Tennessee Titans have made. this off season. I had coaching number one, the weapons number two, but number three for me is the defensive line. Now, before we finish things out, do want to thank you for making Locked-on Titans, your first listen each and every day. Remember, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content all year round, always for free. Make sure that you

get subscribed, stay subscribed. It's your team every day. Speaking of every day, shout out to my everydayers out there. Tuning in Monday through Friday. Couldn't do it without you guys. If you aren't an everydayer, you need to be one. Speaking of Every Dayer, or you guys got to join the Locked on Titans Every Dayer Club.

Hit the link down below in the description. You're going to get commercial free versions of the podcast in your podcast app. You're going to get added to the Locked on Titans group chat

with me and a ton of other everydayers. I take mailbag questions. We talk about all the latest news. They get my instant opinions on anything that goes down. So much fun. Again, hit the link down below

in the description. It's about the call. of a cup of coffee each month. It supports me, supports the show. Show you're a true everydayer and join the Locked on Titans Every Dayer Club now. But with that being said,

the defensive line. Look, the Titans D-line was not bad last year. Like, it wasn't terrible. Okay, you had Sebastian Joseph Day, Jeffrey Simmons, obviously, the best interior defensive lineman in the NFL. Tavondre Sweat wasn't bad either.

Tavandre Sweat is a fine player. he's good nose tackle, good run stuffer. So it wasn't bad, all right, and you could even add in the edges here. If you want to add that in, I mean, Dremont Jones, Jehob Ward had a good season, Femioa dejo obviously got injured, you know what I mean? But like with Dremont and Jihad eventually and the interior defensive line, the Titans defensive line wasn't terrible, right? But this year, I mean, the,

Edge group is not super good, but the interior with Jeff and then John Franklin Myers, Solomon Thomas, Jordan Elliott, the depth, and then your two top players. And then you add in Keldrick Falk, who's going to be, I'm not going to call Keldrick Falk an edge anymore. I think that's incorrect. I think that's the wrong way to categorize him. I am going to call him a defensive lineman. Keldrick Folk is a defensive line. Not an edge. He's not going to be wide out there,

like an outside linebacker or something. He would never play a role like that. And I think he's going to do the majority of his damage and the majority of his production is going to come on the inside, especially long term. So if you want to count Keldrick Falk a first-round talent

who's 6'2-200-9, 75 pounds. If you want to count Caldric Falk in with John Franklin Myers, Jeffrey Simmons, Jordan Elliott, Solomon Thomas. And then again, Jermaine Johnson, year two Femiola

Dejio, Jacob Martin is dead, Jalen Harrell going into his final year. That is a massively upgraded defense. Well, maybe massive is a bit hyperbolic. But it is an upgraded

defensive line. Now, I didn't put the secondary cornerback in here because at the beginning of the season last year, the cornerback room, you know, didn't look terrible. Sneed was still healthy. You know what I mean?

You had Roger McCreary, you had Jarvis Brownlee Jr. Like the Titans cornerback room at the beginning of last year was actually pretty strong. Now, if you want to compare to the end of the season, then, yeah, the Titans massively upgraded at court by Adnan Alante Taylor, adding Cordell Flott. No doubt about that. No doubt about that.

But I'm comparing to the beginning of the season last year. So if you're mad, you're saying the cornerback room, the cornerback room, I agree, but that's based on the end of the season, not where the Titans are at at the beginning of the year. So that's why I went with coaching, Cam Ward's weapons, and the defensive line. Let me know your biggest improvements for the Titans down below or hit me up on social media and let me know.

Give me your rank. Let me know if I, you know, obviously, if I missed one, you think one should be in. Those are my top three on tomorrow's show. We're going to look at the places where I think the Titans got worse, which there are certainly some of those. But with that being said, that is going to do it for me today, folks. As always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland, and this was Locked on Titans.