Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans TRADE Malik Willis to Packers, Roster Cuts Begins & No Trade for Ernest Jones

Episode Date: August 26, 2024

The Tennessee Titans traded quarterback Malik Willis on Monday to the Green Bay Packers in a smart deal. Another Ran Carthon masterclass. Next, the roster cuts have begun and it is all names that should have got the axe. Finally, the Titans sustained some injuries at linebacker including Chance Campbell and a name that is on the market makes some sense, but trading for Ernest Jones isn't smart if you look closer.Subscribe to the TicTacTitans Film Channel:https://www.youtube.com/@TicTacTitansTicTacTitans Merchandise: https://dixons-dream.square.site/shop/tictactitans-gear/C3AAPNWXSXA6SBYG3USV2I7R?page=1&limit=30&sort_by=category_order&sort_order=ascFollow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitansFollow the show on Facebook @LockedOnTitansPodSubscribe to the Locked On Titans YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/c/LockedOnTitans/videosFor your next listen, check out the Locked On Fantasy Football podcast. Get daily insight to the best Fantasy draft strategies so you can win your league this season. Click HERE to listen now. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your Team. Every Day.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Terms and conditions apply.eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit at eBayMotors.com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply.BetterHelpThis episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Make your brain your friend, with BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com/LOCKEDON today to get 10% off your first month.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms Apply.FanDuelFanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook. As playoffs wind down, the sports stop sporting like we want them to. But this summer, FanDuel is hooking up ALL CUSTOMERS with a boost or a bonus, DAILY! That’s right, there’s something for everyone, every day, all summer long! Visit FANDUEL.COM/LOCKEDON and add a big win to your summer bucket list!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)

The Tennessee Titans have traded Malik Willis to the Packers. Another master class of a move by Rancar Thon. We'll break it all down 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.

Today's edition of the Locked On Titans podcast is brought to you by FanDuel. Now through September 22nd, all FanDuel customers can bet $5 and get a three-week free trial of NFL Sunday ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV. Visit FanDuel.com slash locked on to get started. Malik Willis has been traded to the Green Bay Packers for a seventh round pick. This is a fantastic move for everyone involved. I'll explain why. Also, we got our first wave of Titans roster cuts. I'll tell you who was cut and why all of the cuts that happened

were the right moves to make. Also, should the Titans trade for Ernest Jones from the Rams. We're going to talk about that and a lot more before I get into it. I do want to thank you for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen each and every day. Remember, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content all year round, always for free. You're not going to beat that anywhere else.

Make sure that you get subscribed. Stay subscribed. It's your team every day. Here on the Locked on Titans podcast. And speaking of every day, shout out to my everydayers out there. Tune in Monday through Friday. Couldn't do it without you guys. Remember, tomorrow is roster cut down day. I'm going to be

going live talking about all the cuts that happen, where the Titans roster is at. Then, of course, we got to get into some predictions. Going to do my season wins prediction here soon. Going to talk superlatives, like who the MVP will be, who the defensive player of the year will be, all that different stuff. So a lot of great content coming your way. And then next week is game week, folks.

So make sure that you get subscribed. Stay subscribed. But this trade, just an excellent move by Rancarton. I keep calling it a Rancarton masterclass. No lie, that's a little tongue-in-cheek. I don't think it's some groundbreaking trade or anything like that, but just an absolutely perfect outcome here. Look, here is the reality that we have to accept.

And if you're a Malik Willis lover who was standing in my comments for the last few weeks, close your ears because you aren't going to want to hear this. The Titans were not keeping Malik Willis. That's why they traded him. Because they were not keeping him on the roster. So rather than cut him and let him go to

waivers where you get absolutely nothing in return, now you get a seventh round pick back instead of nothing for a guy that you weren't even going to keep on your roster. Malik Willis was not going to be on the 53-man roster. So to get something back for Malik Willis, that in itself is an incredible move by Ray and Carl Thon. Yes, third round pick a couple years ago,

you're not getting a third round pick back. But a lot of you guys in my comments, and if you're a Malik Willis hater and someone who hated on Malik Willis all the time in my comments, then close your ears. All right? But a lot of those people said that Malik Willis couldn't be traded for a ham sandwich.

Anytime I brought up, maybe Malik Willis could improve his trade value. Maybe Malik Willis could get the traded for a ham sandwich. Anytime I brought up, maybe Malik Willis could improve his trade value. Maybe Malik Willis could get the Titans a late round pick back. People in my comments said, oh, I wouldn't trade him for a washing machine. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Well, it's a bad day for you too. Because Malik Willis has more value in the NFL than you gave him credit for, even if it's just a seventh round pick.

So either way, this is a great outcome. Again, a great outcome for the Titans. And honestly, a great outcome for Malik Willis as well. Again, Malik Willis was not going to make this roster. So instead of going to waivers and being subject to waiver claims and not knowing where you're going to go, now Malik Willis goes to Green Bay, where Green Bay's backup quarterback situation was terrible.

They had Michael Pratt from Tulane. They had Sean Clifford, the guy who held off Will Levis, Penn State, as a matter of fact. But neither of those quarterbacks were doing very well in Green Bay. The backup quarterback position was something that the Green Bay Packers were definitely worried about. And they go out and get Malik Willis. Now, I don't know that they really helped their backup quarterback situation much, but we know that the Green Bay Packers do have a very good player development system. They always get the most out of their offensive linemen.

They're obviously getting the most out of their young wide receivers. They develop Jordan Love throughout time to get him ready to go. So I think it's a good spot for Malik Willis. And good for Malik. You know, go ahead. Like, good for Malik. I don't wish anything bad upon Malik Willis. He seems like a good person, of course. But he wasn't for the Titans. And I mentioned this throughout the preseason, that the Titans can go out and find a third quarterback

who is just as good as Malik or better than Malik who fits their system better. The Titans don't fit Malik Willis as an offensive system. It's a quick timing, sort of west coasty, get the ball out fast, read the keys, and throw the ball. That is just not where Malik Willis is going to be at his best. Okay? That is not the right spot for him. So Malik goes to a better spot. The Titans get a seventh round pick back.

Absolutely fantastic stuff. Absolutely great trade by Rankar Thon. And now the Titans have an extra seventh round pick, which maybe they can flip for a different player. Maybe they can flip for a linebacker like Ernest Jones, who a lot of Titans fans seem to be interested in. We're going to talk about Ernest Jones at the end of the show and why I actually don't think that he's as clean of a trade for the Titans as a lot of people do.

But before we get into that, roster cuts have begun. The Titans hit their first wave of cuts. I'm going to tell you who was cut, why it was the right move. Man, I'm just so excited about this trade though. why it was the right move. Man, I'm just so excited about this trade though. Like this is absolutely great for the Titans to get a seventh round pick back for a guy who was not going to make the roster.

For the Titans to be a team. You see this every year when roster cuts start to happen. Every year when roster cuts start to happen. You see players who other teams are interested in get flipped for late round picks. I so desperately wanted the Titans to be one of these teams that not only would engage in those type of trades to collect draft capital,

but would have players available that other teams wanted to give them a chance to do that. So, just a great trade by Rancar Thon, a seventh round pick in 2025 for Malik Willis, who was not going to make this roster. Good for Malik. Great for the Titans. Great job by Rancar Thon.

Let's talk about the first wave of roster cuts, and I'll tell you why the Titans shouldn't trade for Ernest Jones at the end of the show. We'll get into that before we do, though. at the end of the show. We'll get into that before we do that. Do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel Sportsbook. You've heard us talk a lot about FanDuel,

America's number one sportsbook. Got to throw that in as well. Well, they have something a little different for you now. Now through September 22nd, all FanDuel customers can bet $5 and get a three-week free trial of NFL Sunday Ticket from YouTube and YouTube TV. Then with a YouTube TV base plan,

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I am just saying. So make sure that you visit fanduel.com slash locked on to download America's number one sportsbook. Titans fans, let's continue today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. Malik Willis was traded to the Green Bay Packers. A great move all around. Great for the Titans.

Good for Malik Willis. Really like that move. I'm giving the move an A. Like, let me know your grades down below. What grade would you give the Malik Willis trade? I'm giving it an A. To get any pick back for Malik Willis with what he's shown the first two years of his career, to get any pick back for a guy that you weren't going to keep on your roster anyway,

that is a great move. A great move by Rancar Thon. But this wasn't the only move that ran Carthon made on Monday. The Titans roster cuts have officially begun, okay? We got roster cuts that happened on Monday, and none of the names, if we're honest, none of the names are very surprising at the end of the day. Tackle Brian Dooley. Dooley was the last guy on the depth chart on the offensive line. He would come in at the very end of the preseason games,

like mid-fourth quarter. He was clearly the lowest man on the totem pole. Now, I'll say this. Getting to participate in an NFL training camp and play in NFL preseason games, that's awesome. But Brian Dooley might have trouble getting on a practice squad or, you know, continuing his career. You know, it's going to be tough.

It's going to be tough. Also, cornerback Tay Gowan. Gowan was another guy who, he's a veteran player, not like he's got a ton of experience, but he's been in the league. You know, he's not a rookie. That's my point. He's a veteran player, but he was behind Gabe Judy Lawley, and he would come out with the last set of cornerbacks,

him and Robert Javier. We knew that Tay Gowan wasn't going to make this roster all along, and the fact that he was getting played below players that are younger than him, not a great sign for the former draft pick. That's all I got to say about that. Also, linebacker Mikel Jones, the Titans just got him last week when they had injuries to Cedric Gray. So, Mikel Jones was only with the Titans for a cup of coffee.

No surprise that he was cut there. Now, the biggest name that was cut that people might recognize is outside linebacker Thomas Rush. Rush was an undrafted free agent the same time as Caleb Murphy. Last year, they came in together. He was from Minnesota. A guy who had good versatility.

I thought at one point in time during the summer that Thomas Rush might have a better chance to make this team than Caleb Murphy. Well, that was obviously not the case, okay? Rush has more versatility than Caleb Murphy. Like, he's better at dropping back into coverage. Probably better against the run, I would say, too. But he's just nowhere near being the pass rusher

that you have to be to be an outside linebacker in the NFL. He doesn't have near the athleticism that Caleb Murphy does. And Caleb Murphy has done pretty well. He's given himself a chance to make this roster once again. So Thomas Rush is probably the biggest name that stands out to me here. Also, wide receiver Sam Schnee. All right, first off, I was in favor of cutting Sam Schnee once I found out that his name was Sam Schnee.

I'm sorry, but tell me S-C-H-N-E-E. S-C-H-N-E-E. That's Schnee. That is Sam Schnee. Who in his family messed that up? Calling himself Schnee. There's no Y. There's no A. Two E's making an A sound. What? What are we doing? So, you know, no offense to Sam Schnee and his bloodline, but you got to fix that name, okay? It's not Sam Schnee. What are you guys doing out there? It doesn't really even make sense. Anyways, anyways.

Another cut here, Sam Schnee was, you know, the fifth slot receiver on the team behind Boyd and Phillips and Kinsey and Jaquan Jackson. So, no surprise there. And then tight end Steven Stolanos, which again, none of these cuts are big surprises. These are the cuts that the Titans need to make. These are the guys who the Titans don't want on the practice squad. Punter Ty Zentner also got cut. There's no reason to have two punters on the practice squad. Punter Ty Zentner also got cut. There's no reason to have

two punters on the roster or one on the practice squad now that Ryan Stonehouse is back healthy in the flow of it. Hit multiple punts yesterday. Makes sense they can let Zentner go, but Zentner is a guy who the Titans always can have in their back pocket. If anything happens,

they always have Ty Zentner. They can bring him back. He knows the system, knows the team. Great. The Titans also waived with injury linebacker JoJo Doman, which I liked JoJo Doman out of Nebraska. I thought he could be a good special teamer and a coverage linebacker. I guess I always had hope there that he could be an end ofof-the-roster guy. The last cut is wide receiver Treshawn Harrison.

Harrison had some good moments in previous training camps, but was a little banged up this year. The Titans brought in a lot more talent at wide receiver, and it was like he's been replaced completely by Bryce Oliver. Like it's not even close. So that's what happens in the NFL. If you don't take advantage of your opportunities and you don't prove something quickly,

they are going to take younger players and replace you. That was the argument that I was making with Malik Willis all the time. He was like, oh, he just needs to develop. He needs to develop more. How much development do you get in the NFL before you get replaced by a younger player? That's the way this works. You don't get to get developed for six or seven years. That's not how it works. They would just go with a different player. Go with a younger player. So, anyways.

Also, I see you crying. It's a joke. God, you guys are sensitive crybabies in there. You know, I just don't understand. Yeah, it's Sam Schnee. I think he'll be fine. Jesus Lord. Anyways.

So, those are the nine cuts that the Titans made on Monday. And, again, these are all cuts that needed to happen. They were players at the very end of the roster. I don't expect these players to even be options on practice squad as well. This was the back end of things. Now, of course, you're going to see more cuts. I think that Caleb Farley gets cut. I think that Robert Javier obviously gets cut.

I think Anthony Kendall gets cut you're going to see like Shai Carter and Keaton Ellis but anybody who's still available obviously there are more names all over the roster but anybody who hasn't been cut already in this first wave

I think there's a great chance that they end up on the practice squad or the roster. Like, that's the type of players that are left. Remember, 69 people are going to make this roster. Whether it be on the 53 or in the practice squad. So, we're getting down to it.

Tomorrow, we'll get the full cuts list. Cannot wait. Cannot wait for that. But, whew, man. 10 players gone already out of the 91. Remember, there's an extra one because Thomas Odukoye is the International Pathway Program player. So, down to 81.

That means 12 more cuts to go to get down to the practice squad level. And then, of course, obviously, there will be cuts before people go to practice squad. So, man, we're here. Football season, cuts, roster moves. It was a great day. It was a great day.

But there's another roster move that some people hope the Titans make. And that's a trade for linebacker Ernest Jones from the Rams. I'm going to tell you why I don't think it's as clean of an idea as maybe some people think. And also, we got some unfortunate injury news at the linebacker position that we'll go over as well. Titans fans, let's cap off today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. Talked about the Malik Willis trade. Talked about the cuts that the Titans made on Monday.

Now I got to get into another potential trade that I know a lot of people are hoping the Tennessee Titans make, and that's for linebacker Ernest Jones from the Los Angeles Rams. I'm going to talk about what it would take, but also tell you why I don't think it's as clean of a trade as maybe people think. So before I get into that, I do want to thank you again for making Locked on Titans

your first listen each and every day. Now go listen to Locked on Fantasy Football. It's that time of year, folks. You need to get the best daily insights, the best fantasy draft strategies, so you can win your league this season. Find Locked On Fantasy Football down below in the description as well,

so you don't even need to search. But of course, it's on YouTube, all your podcast platforms. It's Locked On Fantasy Football, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. So, Ernest Jones. Ernest Jones, linebacker from the Los Angeles Rams,

saw a report over the weekend that he officially requested a trade. I also did see Ernest Jones himself tweet that he never actually requested a trade. So, but you know how that works, guys. The player didn't request the trade. It was his agent. So the player can go on social media and say, I never requested a trade. Well, yeah, you didn't personally,

but your agent did. Like, to me, it's, it's, it's, I mean, you're lying. You're telling the truth, but you're lying about the reality of the situation. But anyway, Ernest Jones is a good player. He's in the last year of his contract as well.

So, last year, Ernest Jones had 145 tackles, five sacks, five sacks as a middle linebacker. And he had a forced fumble.

Again, going in the last year of his contract, $3.1 million. Alright. So let's go over the pros here. The pros, it's another linebacker. The Titans need some linebackers. Why?

Because Chance Campbell is out for the year with a torn ACL. Unfortunate news for Chance Campbell. He'd been playing lights out in the preseason, but he will be out for the season with a torn ACL. Not only that, but Cedric Gray has nerve issues. Brian Callahan said on Monday that Cedric Gray's injury, his shoulder injury, is

nerve related. Ooh. Ooh. Never want to hear nerve issues. That is not good. So if Cedric Gray hurt and who knows the timetable, Brian Callahan didn't give one. And with Chance Campbell out for the year with an ACL tear,

to me that leaves a fifth open spot at linebacker. So from a roster standpoint, getting a guy like Ernest Jones makes sense. Alright, that makes sense. Also, from a monetary standpoint, you could say, hey, it's a one-year contract, $3.1 million, that's affordable. The Titans don't have to take on a bunch of money.

That makes sense too. But I would also look at it this way to go with some of the cons here. It's only a one-year contract. So the odds are that you trade a pick for Ernest Jones and then he leaves as a free agent next year. Now, maybe you get a compensatory pick back, which replaces the pick that you lost when trading for him. It would be in 2026, but maybe I get that argument. But at the same time, you may be trading a pick for a player that you only rent for a year. And I don't know if that's a smart move for where the Titans are at

as a team. Okay. Also, this is my primary concern. Ernest Jones is a blitzing linebacker. Now I know what you're saying. The Titans need blitzing linebackers. Look at Kenneth Murray. Look at Otis Reese. Look at James Williams. Correct. I agree. But the two inside linebacker positions are different. Okay?

I heard, I believe it was Coach Mack talking about this one time, that the two inside linebacker jobs are different, and they look for different skill sets for the two linebacker spots. You have your take-on linebacker, which is Kenneth Murray. He's your hammerhead shark. He's the one who blitzes up the middle. He's the one who takes on the lead blocker in the hole and blows him up, which allows the other linebacker to come over and make the tackle.

You have your strong side linebacker, who is your take-on backer, and then you have your strong sideline backer, who is your take-on backer, and then you have your weak sideline backer, who is more of your tackling, sideline, rangy guy. Ernest Jones is a hammerhead shark, just like Kenneth Murray, just like James Williams, just like Otis Reese.

So, you can trade for Ernest Jones, but the problem is that he's not going to be as good in the Jack Gibbons spot. He is what you would want Kenneth Murray to do. He is what you would want Otis Reese to do. He is what you want James Williams to do. So if you trade for Ernest Jones, you're not going to get the most out of him unless he plays Kenneth

Murray's position. So that's why I know that a lot of Titans fans saw that Ernest Jones was available, and he is a good player, and his skill set would fit with one of the Titans linebacker spots. But the problem is his skill set is similar to Kenneth Murray's. And I don't know if he would play as well

and you would get as much value out of him if he played the Jack Gibbons spot. So that's one thing to consider. Look, I'm not totally against the trade. If the Titans wanted to make this trade with the Rams and go get Ernest Jones then I would understand. Like, I wouldn't bemoan them for it. You know what I mean? I wouldn't hate the move.

But I also just think that there are schematic things at play that make Ernest Jones not as great of a fit for the Titans as it maybe seems because they already have players with that type of skill set already set in their roles. Again, I don't think that Ernest Jones would be in the Jack Gibbons role. I think he would need to be in the Kenneth Murray role. And then why did you sign Kenneth Murray? So to me, it doesn't make a lot of sense.

And you guys know, I'll repeat this again. My philosophy on the linebacker position, I treat it like running back on defense. I want to put my money in the secondary. I want to put my money in the pass rush. And if I have a good defensive line and a good secondary, my linebackers will be fine.

Again, I continue to reference the Kansas City Chiefs. The Chiefs don't have a bunch of expensive linebackers. The Chiefs took their linebackers, Leo Chanel and Willie Gay. They're taking these guys in the mid-rounds. So, I don't, like, I didn't want the Titans to pay Aziz Alshayer. Let him go. He's an average starter in the NFL.

He's not special in any way. There's a, not a million, of course, but there's a ton of Aziz Alshires running around the NFL. Like, we all thought David Long was so good, and then they bring in Aziz, and then everybody thinks Aziz is so good, and now Kenneth Murray's going to come in, and everybody's going to think,

Kenneth, when are you guys going to see that they could just cycle through these linebackers because they're all relatively the same? None of them are playmakers. None of them are playmakers. None of them are difference makers. They're just average starting linebackers. And you can get away with that if you have a good pass rush and a good secondary,

and that's where I would spend my money. So I'm not somebody who wants to pay a linebacker a big contract. I'm not somebody who wants to make a trade for a linebacker with any pick of consequence. Okay? So, that's just my philosophy. Yeah, and, you know, I see a lot of reaction in the chat.

It is a live episode. I see Green Bay took Malik for a reason. Remember that? They did. Their backup quarterbacks were terrible. Sean Clifford and Michael Pratt were terrible. Now, the problem is that the Packers still have the worst backup quarterback in the NFL. So, they got better, but how much better?

You know. We'll take the seventh round pick nonetheless. Good luck to Malik. But, with that being said, that's going to do it for me today. We talked the Malik Willis trade. We talked the first wave of roster cuts. We talked about a potential trade for Ernest Jones. Tomorrow is cut down day, folks.

And we are going to get some fireworks. So make sure that you're with me here as I break it all down tomorrow. But that's going to do it for me today, folks. Tighten up in the chat. Thumbs up on the video. As always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland. And this was Locked on Titans.