Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans Tyjae Spears, Tony Pollard BEST RB DUO, Bubble Veterans & Rookie Longshots

Episode Date: July 8, 2024

The Tennessee Titans made a big change at running back this season. Letting Derrick Henry walk was tough, but now the Titans may have the best running back duo in the entire NFL. How will Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears be used though?? Next, Hassan Haskins missed all of 2023, but his special teams ability gives him a chance to make the 2024 roster, even if he is on the bubble. Finally, two undrafted rookies have a chance to be this team's RB3, but can Dillon Johnson or Jabari Small do enough on special teams to grab it?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/videosSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!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.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 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 the best running back duo in the NFL. I'll break it down on today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. 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. Make every moment more as the playoffs are done now.

The sports kind of stopped 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. Make sure you visit FanDuel.com to get started. We are continuing our training camp positional preview series on today's show. We talked quarterback yesterday and tight end. Today, we are going to dive into the running back group. I'm going to give you my locks, my bubble options, and my long shots. And of course, the locks are obvious because the Titans have the best running back duo in the NFL.

And I'll go over my thought process with that opinion. Before I get into it though, do want to thank you for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen each and every day, 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. Speaking of every day, shout out to my everydayers out there tuning in Monday through Friday. Couldn't do it without you guys. I got

great content planned for you the rest of the week. We're going to break down the wide receiver group tomorrow. We're going to do offensive line. We're going to get into the defense. Remember Titans training camp is two weeks away. So make sure that you don't miss a positional preview episode as we lead up to the kickoff for 2024 Titans training camp.

You can smell the football in the air. But with that being said, again, looking through the list of NFL running backs and looking at some of the NFL running back groups, in my opinion, the Titans have the best duo in the NFL. Now, there are some other solid duos, of course, that you can mention. The Miami Dolphins with Raheem Moster and Devon Achain.

You have the Steelers with Najee Harris and Jalen Warren. The Lions, who I would probably say is second best with Jameer Gibbs and then David Montgomery. You have the Seahawks, who have a good group as well, with Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet. Heck, you could even throw the Ravens in there with Derrick Henry and Lamar Jack. Just kidding. Just kidding, Ravens fans.

But seriously, though, looking at all of these running back duos, I like Tony Pollard and Tajay Spears more than A-Chan and Raheem Mostert. Like, I think that Tajay Spears and Tony Pollard are better players than Raheem Mostert. So, like, A-Chan may be good, but how can you overcome that? Similarly, with the Steelers, look, the Steelers have a good group, but I think that Najee Harris is a tad overrated here. And Jalen Warren is a good change of pace back, but I would rather have Tony Pollard and Tajay Spears

over both those guys, in my opinion. Najee Harris is a good running back, but just not the style that I'm looking for in today's NFL. The Lions, very good group, but I would take Tajay Spears and Tony Pollard over David Montgomery, Jameer Gibbs. That's a tough one. He's a very good group, but I would take Tajay Spears and Tony Pollard over David Montgomery, Jameer Gibbs. That's a tough one. He's a very good player, obviously, but David Montgomery doesn't do much for me.

I would have him as the fourth-ranked running back if we put those two groups together. The Seahawks, very good. I like Kenny Walker, Zach Charbonnet, good change-of-pace guy, but again, I would rather have Tony Spears. Probably going to do that a lot this year. Tony Pollard and Tajay Spears than that group, though. Think about it as a duo. Last year, there were 13 teams in the NFL that ran for 2,000 yards as a team.

So I absolutely think the Titans could have 2,000-yard running backs on their team. Now, I think that their roles will be slightly different, though. Remember, the whole entire reason why Tajay Spears and Tony Pollard was such a desirable pairing is because of how much overlap there is in their skill set. Gone are the days where we have Derrick Henry on the field and we have to do totally different things than when we have Tajay Spears on the field.

The Titans don't have to do that anymore. Their running backs are interchangeable now. You can throw Spears out there. You can throw Pollard out there. Very similar players with very diverse skill sets. They can pretty much do anything on the field. So with that, I think that there's going to be a lot of early down stuff. They're probably just going to split it.

You're going to see some Tajay Spears. You're going to see some Tony Pollard. I think when we get into situational football, that's when the difference in the players is, I don't say difference in terms of skill set, but difference in terms of role, that's when it's going to pop up as situational football. I think third downs, we're going to see a lot more Tajay Spears.

I think Spears is much more of the third down back. I think Spears is a better guy to catch the ball out of the backfield, make somebody miss and get upfield. I think Spears is going to be the third down running back most of the time. Now, remember, I don't mean every single third down. It's going to be Spears out there. Like I just mentioned, the good part about this is Pollard and Spears can both do similar things.

Tony Pollard is very good in pass protection, like Tajay Spears is, which as a rookie, rookies typically struggle significantly in pass protection. Not Tajay Spears, one of the best pass-protecting running backs in the league early on. Tony Pollard has always been a good guy in pass protection. Not Tajay Spears, one of the best pass-protecting running backs in the league early on. Tony Pollard has always been a good guy in pass protection. So they're both going to get their fair share of third-down opportunities, but I think when we look back at it at the end of the season,

Spears is going to be more of the running back that was used on third downs. But likewise, I think that Tony Pollard is going to be more of the red zone running back. And I think that's Pollard is going to be more of the red zone running back. And I think that's a size situation. Tony Pollard and Tajay Spears have very similar skill sets, but Tony Pollard is just bigger. He's just a bigger running back. Now, he's not a big running back per se,

but he's a bigger running back than Tajay Spears. So I think that Pollard, because of that size difference, is going to be more of the option, more of the guy in the red zone. So if you have Spears getting most of the third down work, a majority, we'll call it, of the third down work, and then Pollard getting the majority of the red zone snaps, and they basically split everything else down the middle, I think both these guys are going to go over a thousand total yards. I just think the Titans have done a great thing here with the lack of predictability in the backfield.

You won't know what kind of play or what type of play or what they want to do based on the running back that's in the backfield, and that'll be a big change for the Titans the first time since, I mean, DeMarco Murray. DeMarco Murray was a do-it-all running back when Derrick Henry was his backup. And I think it's probably been since 2017 that the Titans have been able to put a running back back there consistently

and the defense not know exactly what's coming or not at least have a good idea of the possibilities of what's about to happen. Now, that'll mean less players down in the box. Throughout Derrick Henry's tenure, we talked about eight men in the box, eight men in the box. Titans would play action and take advantage of that.

It's going to be a new situation here. We're going to see a lot more two-eyed, and the Titans are going to have to pick people apart underneath. So a little bit difference in philosophy, of course, with Brian Callahan's offense, and we're seeing that reflected with the running back duo. But again, I think this is the best running back duo in the league. And I think we get to the end of the year.

I think people will be noticing that pretty easily. But with that being said, Tony Pollard, Tajay Spears are the locks. I don't think I'm breaking any news with that. But some veteran bubble guys who have been around for a few years, this might be their last chance to consistently be on the team and set themselves up to be with the team for the next few years.

So I'll tell you who those guys are and what I expect next. Before I do though, I do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Look guys, I love sports. I love them so much that I wish they would never stop.

But here's the reality. The NBA is over. The NHL is over. Obviously, NFL free agent or NFL training camp hasn't kicked off. The sports just aren't sporting like we want them to, okay? But FanDuel lets me keep the sports going whenever I want. All I have to do is open the app, and I can dream up bets anytime I'm in the mood. But FanDuel lets me keep the sports going whenever I want. All I have to do is open the app,

and I can dream up bets anytime I'm in the mood. And this summer, FanDuel is hooking up all customers with a boost or a bonus daily. That's right. There is something for everyone, every day, all summer long. So head over to FanDuel.com and start making the most out of your summer. And as I always remind you, Titans plus four and a half against Chicago

week one. What? That'll go down before we get to the season. So check that out. But FanDuel is official sports betting partner of Major League Baseball. Titans fans, let's continue our positional preview series. We're doing running backs on today's show. We just talked about my two locks and Tony Pollard and Tajay Spears. Pretty obvious, but I think that is the best running back duo in the NFL. Now I want to transition the conversation to talk about some of the guys on the bubble, and at the end of the show, I'll talk about the long shots to make the roster. But looking at some of these veteran guys on the bubble,

you have Hassan Haskins, and you have Julius Chestnut. And I'll be honest with you, I'm not really a big fan of either of them. That's my honest answer. But before I explain why, I do want to thank you again for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen each and every day, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content all year round, always for free. Make sure you get subscribed, stay subscribed

to the number one Tennessee Titans podcast in the world. But with that being said, first we have Ahsan Haskins, who was drafted in 2022, played the whole year, did okay, missed all of 2023, had a preseason injury, had a preseason legal situation as well that has worked itself out in some way. I don't want to, it was kind of gruesome, quite honestly. Not really something I feel comfortable talking a ton about at the end of the day. But Haskins sat out the entire year.

Felt like that made a lot of sense considering the situation. But now Hassan Haskins is back. Okay, and here is what I have been saying about Hassan Haskins is back. Okay, and here is what I have been saying about Hassan Haskins, and I said it on a mailbag episode a couple of weeks ago. I've been saying it on Twitter, at Tic Tac Titans, for as long as I can possibly remember now.

Hassan Haskins is a special teams only player. He is not a good enough running back to seriously be used as a running back. Okay? That is the reality here. He is not a good enough running back to seriously be used as a running back. Okay. That is the reality here. He has no wiggle. He doesn't run with enough power for a guy his size with his skillset. He's tall. He's tight. He just seems tight. He runs tight. He's got tight hips. He's not going to juke anybody out. He doesn't really have the power to run over people either. He doesn't have good speed. He just has good, well, for a running

back doing running back stuff. I mean, obviously he's a fast guy in the grand scheme of things. And for special teams purposes, like he has speed, but compared to starting level running backs, running backs who get the ball and are used in their offense. He just doesn't have the wiggle, the agility, the speed, the power. He just isn't a running back. He isn't a good enough player at the running back skills for me to look at him as a running back. Hassan Haskins is a special teams player. Now that could work. That could work for teams player. Now that could work.

That could work for the Titans. That could be okay. And I'll explain how that would work. But let me just drive home my point here. He had 25 carries in 2022. 93 yards. Had 11 catches. 57 yards.

Not very efficient when he got the ball. But you look at special teams, Hassan Haskins had 14 special teams tackles his rookie year, which I think was second or first on the team in 2022. That is dynamic

special teams ability on coverage. And you add in, he did kick return a big majority of that year, and he averaged 21.8 yards per kick return. So while I wouldn't want Hassan Haskins to be the starting kick returner, having the ability to do that and the experience of doing that is valuable. And it does give you the ability to help your chance to make the roster. Also, the coverage ability with the tackles on return units,

like, that's important. And I think the Titans aren't going to have a ton of great special teams options in the secondary. The linebackers could be okay, of course. But I think the Titans could be looking for special teams ability at certain positions like running back. I think running back is a big spot where the Titans, I expect to keep three, but if they were to keep four,

I would be fine with keeping a fourth running back that is a special teams only player. You have Spears, you have Pollard, you have a third running back who can actually do running back things, and then you keep a fourth running back in Haskins who is a designated special teams player. I think that would be fine, and I think Hassan Haskins' special teams ability could lead him to making this roster. But at the end of the day, he's just not a good enough running back to be considered RB3.

It would have to be his RB4. They would have to keep somebody else or get somebody else who they think could realistically take some running back responsibilities if Tajay Spears were to get hurt, if Tony Pollard were to get hurt. You know, any of those situations, they would need a secondary running back, and it can't be Hassan Haskins. So if they keep Haskins, which I could see them doing, it needs to be as the fourth running back on the depth chart. Now, a guy who could realistically be that third running back that I'm talking about is Julius Chestnut, but I'm just going to be open and honest with you. I'm not a fan of Chestnut. I just don't think he's a very good player. I don't think he has the vision. I don't

think he has the athleticism to be a guy who makes an NFL roster. I think he's a practice squad level player. Now, he's a hard worker, good in the locker room, good character, all that stuff. Absolutely. And that's why the previous Titans regime kept him around and gave him opportunities. But let's call it what it is. He only played in six games in 2022, had nine carries for 12 yards. He did have three catches for 41 yards. So got to give him that.

He had 10 kickoff returns for 215 yards. He's not a guy who's going to play coverage teams. That's something that he absolutely has to figure out this year in training camp. If he has any hope of making this roster, he has to be on coverage. Like, he has to do what Hassan Haskins is doing. He has to do what Hassan Haskins has done.

He isn't good enough as a running back to not be as good at special teams as Hassan Haskins has done. He isn't good enough as a running back to not be as good at special teams as Hassan Haskins is. And he's only played 86 special team snaps in his career, only played in three games last year. So, look, I don't think either of these guys are great options on the roster. You know, I would hope for better

for the Titans. But if you had to keep one of these bubble guys, to me, I would hope for better for the Titans. But if you had to keep one of these bubble guys, to me, it's Haskins. Because he's just a much better player on special teams. And again, I don't think either of these guys are special in any way or NFL-level running backs in any way. But at minimum, the special teams value that Hasan Haskins brings to the table could give him an opportunity to make the team. Now, I had these guys on the bubble because they are veteran players,

and that gives them a little bit of a leg up. But when I get to my long shots, I would actually rather have one of the long shots on the roster than either of these bubble guys. So I'll explain who they are, who I would pick now. Titans fans, let's cap off today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast, breaking down the running back group as part of our positional preview series as we get closer and closer to Tennessee Titans training camp. Before I give you guys my long shots,

I do want to let you know that today's episode of Locked on Titans is brought to you by Locked on Sports Today. Look, Locked on has launched the first ever national sports 24-7 streaming channel. It's on YouTube, and now it's also on Amazon Fire TV. It's called Locked on Sports Today. Locked on Sports Today is here for you 24-7, covering the top sports stories of the day with local experts from Locked on. Get coverage of every league from our national shows.

Find Locked On Sports today. Now available on the free Fire TV channels app. But, long shots at the running back position. It's our two undrafted free agents. Number one, Dylan Johnson. Number two, Jabari Small. Look, I really like Dylan Johnson number two Jabari Small look I really like Dylan Johnson I think that his skill set

fits very well with the Titans two top running backs okay Dylan Johnson is a bigger body back six foot 215 so a big body guy runs with power runs with vision runs with physicality

doesn't have the greatest wiggle in the world, okay? But he's a more talented runner than, let's say, a guy like Hassan Haskins, who's another big-bodied guy. Haskins is even bigger. Haskins is like 6'2", okay? But I think Dylan Johnson can give you some of that big-body style that is a good complement to Tajay Spears and Tony Pollard, but give you just more

ability as a runner. Okay. So in his college career, Dylan Johnson, 2,200 or 2,393 yards, 27 touchdowns played at Mississippi state for a few years, ended up in Washington in his last year at Washington 2023, he had 1100 1,200 yards, and 16 touchdowns. Okay? So I think at minimum, at minimum, this is a guy who can help you on the goal line. This is a guy who can help you in short yardage. And just a good compliment to the other two running backs. Now the question will become special teams.

But here's the thing. If you keep a guy like Hassan Haskins at RB4, and then you keep a Dylan Johnson as your RB3, now it's not as bad that Dylan Johnson doesn't help on special teams as much because you have a running back that is basically only a special teams player. So it's like having two guys as your RB3. You get the special teams ability with Hassan Haskins. You get the running ability with Dylan Johnson. Now I'm sure the Titans would hope to have both of those in the same player, but that player isn't on the roster right now. You don't have a guy who can run the ball like Dylan Johnson,

but play special teams like Hassan Haskins. So the best that you can do, and this is why on yesterday's show, I talked about how maybe the Titans shouldn't keep three quarterbacks on the 53-man roster. Because then you could have four running backs. You could have nine offensive linemen. You could have seven wide receivers. You see what I'm saying?

So the math has to match up in some way. And I would rather sacrifice a spot at quarterback and not keep Malik Willis on the 53 and have two running backs at the back end of the roster and Dylan Johnson and Hassan Haskins. I would rather do that personally. But another guy who deserves part of this conversation is Jabari Small out of Tennessee.

A little bit smaller than Dylan Johnson. He's 5'11", 206 pounds. So 10 pounds lighter, an inch shorter, smaller guy, but still not a small guy per se. He's still over 200 pounds. 5'11 is still in a decently

tall range for running backs. Jabari Small, four years at Tennessee, 2,122 yards, 24 touchdowns. Now, I will say he had better years in his middle years. He took a little bit of a step back at Tennessee last year, and I don't have the context for why that is. I'm sure there are plenty of Volves fans watching and listening

who could tell us why Jabari Small had 700 yards in back-to-back seasons and then all of a sudden dropped below 500 in his last year. That, it makes me wonder, are there younger players who are better than him that are playing ahead of him? Does the coaching staff want to minimize him after those two years? What really happened there? Vols fans, feel free to add that context.

But to me, I like Jabari Small. I don't think he's as good out of the backfield as Dylan Johnson. Wasn't a guy who got a ton of throws his way out of the backfield. But if he runs with power and he plays on special teams, maybe he could be that hybrid player that we were talking about where you get the run ability of Dylan Johnson. You get the special teams ability of Hassan Haskins. Now, at a guy who's 5'11", 206, nowhere near as big as Hassan Haskins,

which does matter on special teams. You want size. You want speed. But, hey, it's hard to know how it'll work out. But I think Dylan Johnson is more of my pick out of these two. I know, again, the Vols fans will not like that. I'm sure you're rooting for your local guy, and I don't blame you. But I think Dylan Johnson would be a perfect fit as the third running back. And then you keep Hassan Haskins as kind of, it's like a D.H. in baseball.

He's the designated special teams player. All right, that's what I think makes the most sense for the Titans. But we'll talk more about that when we do my official 53-man roster predictions before training camp actually kicks off on the week of training camp. I'll have two shows out before training camp actually starts where I do my 53-man roster predictions. So I hope you guys do enjoy that when it comes around. But tomorrow, very fun episode.

Are we talking wide receiver? Where there are some tough decisions to make. There are seven or eight wide receivers that I like on the roster. And I would imagine the Titans are only keeping six, maybe seven at most. So those are going to be fun conversations to have. Make sure that you're with me tomorrow here on Locked on Titans. But as always, that is going to do it for me today, folks. I am your host, Tyler Rowland.

And this was Locked on Titans.