Titans To Acquire Tight End?
The Titans lost tight end Jonnu Smith to the Patriots in free agency, and they have not done much to replace him. The club re-signed both Anthony Firkser and Geoff Swaim, and at present, those two reside at the top of Tennessee’s TE depth chart.
Jim Wyatt of the team’s official website believes that the Titans will make another addition to their tight end group, though he does not speculate as to who that addition might be. He does not believe that a reunion with old friend Delanie Walker, who recently auditioned for the 49ers, is in the cards.
Although Firkser is officially a tight end, he spent most of his time in 2020 lined up as a slot receiver, reeling in 39 catches for 387 yards (both career highs) and a touchdown. Still, the Titans do love to have two TEs on the field at once, so look for him and Swaim to get considerable playing time, with Firkser perhaps being moved around the formation to create favorable matchups.
As such, it makes sense that the club would look to add another TE, since the next man up behind Firkser and Swaim is 2020 UDFA Jared Pinkney, who spent most of his rookie campaign on the Falcons’ taxi squad. Pinkney did have a successful collegiate career at Vanderbilt and might have been a Day 2 draft pick if he had turned pro in 2019, but his return to college hurt his stock, which led to his being undrafted last year. He will likely need some more seasoning before he becomes a reliable player at the professional level.
At this point in the offseason, there are not many quality free agents available. Tyler Eifert and Trey Burton may be the most notable FAs if Tennessee is, in fact, interested in making an addition. Philadelphia’s Zach Ertz could also be on the move, either via trade or release.
Of course, the Titans continue to be connected to a trade for Falcons star wideout Julio Jones.
Titans Add Wrestler Adam Coon For OL Role
The Titans made an unorthodox addition to their offensive line group Friday. They agreed to terms with Adam Coon, a Michigan alum who has not played football since high school.
Coon, however, established himself as one of the country’s top wrestlers. He was a three-time All-American heavyweight while at Michigan and recently participated in qualifying for the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. Coon did not end up qualifying for a spot on the U.S. squad and instead plans to try his hand in football.
While Coon enjoyed a decorated mat career with the Wolverines, going 116-15 at the Big Ten program, that success came a few years ago. The 6-foot-5, 300-pound aspiring blocker is now 26 and nine years removed from his most recent football season. Coon will likely compete for a guard spot, according to TennesseeTitans.com’s Jim Wyatt.
This certainly profiles as one of the more unusual UDFA signings in recent years, though select others have found recent success without their careers involving college football. Eagles tackle Jordan Mailata and Colts tight end Mo Alie-Cox are two current players who carved out roles after playing other sports ahead of their respective NFL entrances. The Dolphins also signed college hoops standout Jibri Blount, son of Mel Blount, despite the younger Blount not playing college football. The NFL is expected to keep the 16-man practice squad setup from last year, opening the door for more developmental opportunities.
Tennessee used a second-round pick on Dillon Radunz and subsequently added two UDFA O-linemen this year. To make room for Coon on the roster, the Titans waived tackle Anthony McKinney with an injury designation.
Titans CB Kevin Johnson To Retire
Despite landing a one-year deal in free agency for a third straight offseason, Kevin Johnson will opt to step away from football. The Titans cornerback is retiring, according to the team.
Tennessee signed Johnson in March, giving him a one-year deal worth $2.25MM. The 28-year-old cornerback will wrap his career after six seasons. Injuries, unfortunately, played a significant part in the former first-round pick’s NFL run.
The Texans selected Johnson 16th overall in 2015 out of Wake Forest. He started 10 games as a rookie but was unable to stay on the field in subsequent years, shortening his time in Houston. Though Johnson bounced back to carve out roles in Buffalo and Cleveland, he will finish his career with one interception.
A broken foot began Johnson’s rough luck in 2016, limiting him to six games in his second season. In 2017, a sprained MCL cost him time. While Johnson played 12 games that season, he suited up for just one in 2018 after a severe concussion sidelined him that September. The Titans cut him in 2019, backtracking on a fifth-year option commitment it made the previous spring.
Johnson played out one-year deals with the Bills and Browns the past two seasons. Working as a depth piece for the two rising teams, the 6-foot defender helped both to the playoffs. However, Johnson was part of a Browns COVID-19 outbreak late last season. As a result, Cleveland’s primary slot corner was not on the field for the franchise’s first playoff win in 26 years.
Since signing Johnson, the Titans used first- and third-round picks on corners — Caleb Farley and Elijah Molden. Tennessee invested a second-round pick in Kristian Fulton last year and also signed Janoris Jenkins this March. The Titans’ new-look cornerback contingent will not include Johnson, but the team has been active in adding cover men over the past two offseasons.
Ryan Tannehill, Titans Haven’t Discussed Restructure
Depending on who you ask, the Titans could be the frontrunner in the Julio Jones sweepstakes. But, if they want to trade for the Falcons superstar, they’ll have to free up some dollars first. A restructuring of Ryan Tannehill‘s deal would be a major help, but the quarterback says the two sides have yet to broach that topic. 
[RELATED: Latest On Titans, Julio Jones]
“That’s up to [Titans GM Jon Robinson],” Tannehill said (via Ben Arthur of The Tennessean). “He’s going to have to figure that out if that’s something we want to do as an organization. I don’t know. It’s above my pay grade. If he comes to me, then we’ll have that conversation then.”
The Titans have Tannehill signed through 2023, thanks to the four-year, $118MM extension he signed in 2020. As a result, he’ll make $24.5MM in base salary this year with a $29.5MM cap hit. The Titans could kick the can down the road by converting a chunk of those dollars into a signing bonus. Then, they’d have extra room to add veterans this summer (i.e. Jones).
Jones’ contract runs for another three years, including $15.3MM for the coming year. He may also want more in the way of guarantees for 2022 and beyond. But, if the Titans want to make it happen, Tannehill would surely accommodate them with a restructure. From there, it’s just a matter of negotiating with the Falcons. New GM Terry Fontenot wants a first-round pick, but some believe he’d settle for a second rounder.
Titans Sign DT Abry Jones
Abry Jones‘ eight-year Jacksonville stay is over, but he stands to see his former team this season. The veteran defensive tackle agreed to terms with the Titans on Thursday.
Entering last season as the Jaguars’ longest-tenured player, Jones ran into injury trouble and played in just five games. The Titans are shuttling in multiple D-linemen, with Trevon Coley also joining the team. Jones brings a much longer track record as a starter.
Although he was not asked to be a key pass rusher, Jones was part of the Jags’ “Sacksonville” defensive front throughout its brief run. A UDFA out of Georgia in 2013, Jones started 15 games for the AFC South champion Jags team in 2017 and served as a key contributor in Jacksonville from 2014-20. The Jags ranked as a top-five defense in 2017 and ’18 but lost their way in 2019 and fell off a cliff last season. With the franchise changing regimes, Jones will move on as well.
This will be the veteran nose tackle’s age-30 season. Jones and Coley represent competition for Tennessee’s incumbents. An ankle malady sidelined Jones for most of the 2020 season, but he played at least 15 games in each of the previous six years.
To make room on their roster, the Titans cut defensive linemen Jullian Taylor and Daylon Mack. The Titans signed Taylor in February, but the former 49ers defensive tackle missed all of the 2020 season. He suffered a severe knee injury late in the 2019 campaign; the 49ers cut him midway through last season. Mack also did not see any time in 2020 but spent time on multiple practice squads.
Titans To Sign DT Trevon Coley
Former Browns defensive tackle starter Trevon Coley‘s journey around the NFL will continue to a second AFC South team. The Titans agreed to terms with the veteran defender Thursday, according to his agency (via Twitter).
This will be Coley’s seventh NFL team. While the former UDFA has only seen action with three of those squads, he has spent time with the Ravens, Browns, Washington, Colts, Cardinals and Jets in a five-year career.
Coley, 26, likely represents a depth addition at this point of his career. The 6-foot-1 lineman played 68 defensive snaps for the Colts in 2019 and logged 192 for the Cardinals. Arizona, however, deployed Coley as a starter in two games — when the team was battling extensive injury trouble on its defensive front.
In Cleveland, Coley worked alongside Larry Ogunjobi as a D-tackle starter from 2017-18. He registered 2.5 sacks during his Browns stay; one of those was a safety, in 2018. The Browns, who signed Sheldon Richardson in 2019, cut Coley just ahead of the ’19 season.
Tennessee lost longtime starter DaQuan Jones in free agency but added Denico Autry and used a fourth-round pick on Pitt D-lineman Rashad Weaver. Coley will likely attempt to fill in behind the Titans’ first-stringers come training camp.
Rams, Titans Have Discussed Julio Jones Trade; Titans Now The Frontrunner?
10:35am: Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk says that the Titans, not the 49ers, are currently expected to land Jones, and that a second-round pick will be headed to Atlanta in exchange. Florio was clear that he is not reporting the Titans have offered or will offer a second-rounder, or that the Falcons — who are still holding out for a first-round choice — will accept it. He is merely pointing out that the general consensus among league execs is that a Tennessee-Atlanta trade featuring a second-rounder is the most likely outcome.
09:06am: Yesterday, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported that the 49ers are the team that has been most connected to Falcons receiver Julio Jones in league circles. Fowler also indicated that the Rams were in the mix, which was the first time we had heard Los Angeles pop up in Jones rumors.
Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network has taken that one step further, reporting that the Rams have discussed a Jones trade with Atlanta (via Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk). Like the Niners, the Rams would be unable to send a 2022 or even a 2023 first-round pick to the Falcons in exchange for Jones, as their top selections in the next two drafts have been traded away in separate transactions. So if Atlanta really does have an offer in hand that includes a 2022 first-rounder, it would seem that both San Francisco and LA would be out of the running.
However, there has been plenty of skepticism that a club has actually ponied up a first-round pick for Jones, especially given Atlanta’s limited leverage. Garafolo also expressed doubt that the Falcons will end up getting a first.
Their draft pick situation aside, the Rams also seem to be an unlikely fit since they have limited cap space and have already devoted considerable resources to the wide receiver position. The 49ers, on the other hand, have the cap space, the WR need, and an obvious connection to Jones in head coach Kyle Shanahan, Jones’ former OC in Atlanta. That is perhaps why the Niners are viewed as the clubhouse favorites for the seven-time Pro Bowler.
The Titans also have an obvious hole at wide receiver and would presumably love to have Jones on their roster. Garafolo says that Tennessee has indeed talked about a Jones swap with the Falcons. But if the Titans were to swing a deal, GM Jon Robinson would need to do a fair amount of maneuvering to create sufficient cap space, and Atlanta might need to absorb even more of a financial hit than it was planning on.
Right now, no deal is imminent, according to Garafolo. So even though the Falcons could realistically trade Jones this week — a post-June 1 transaction is the only way this ever made sense — it seems it will take a little longer than that to reach a resolution.
Titans Trying RB Darrynton Evans At WR
The Titans are experimenting with using Darrynton Evans as a wide receiver, head coach Mike Vrabel says (via The Tennessean). Evans, a running back by trade, could give the team some much needed depth at the position. 
[RELATED: Lewan On Track For Training Camp]
“Those are ideas we try to have and try to get him some cross-training work,” Vrabel said. “A lot of those players that can handle more than one particular role, then we’ll continue to add those roles to them. And I’d say Darrynton is one of those players.”
The Titans used a third-round pick on Evans last year, but the Appalachian State product was limited to just eight games thanks to injuries and a few healthy scratches. All in all, he ran for 54 yards on 14 carries.
The Titans did take note of his soft hands, however, and he played some WR in college, catching 39 passes for 319 yards and five scores. Of course, it was his RB work that put him on the pro radar — he rushed for 1,480 yards and 18 touchdowns in his final year on campus. But, with a fairly crowded room behind starter Derrick Henry, WR may be his best path to the field in 2021.
Outside of A.J. Brown, the Titans’ WR group is fairly thin. Corey Davis is out, Josh Reynolds is in, and the rest of the bunch won’t do much to take attention away from Brown. Evans will have a chance to get himself into the mix, but don’t be surprised if the Titans explore cap casualty veterans over this summer.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/26/21
Here are Wednesday’s minor moves:
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: WR Lance Lenoir
- Waived: WR Tre Walker
Carolina Panthers
- Re-signed: DE Frank Herron
- Waived: DE Kendall Donnerson
Cincinnati Bengals
- Claimed (from Eagles): LB Joe Bachie
Green Bay Packers
- Signed: WR DeAndre Thompkins
Los Angeles Rams
- Signed: DB Kareem Orr
Seattle Seahawks
- Waived/injured: DE Marcus Webb
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: OL Christian DiLauro
Taylor Lewan On Tack For Training Camp
The Titans were dealt a big blow when star left tackle Taylor Lewan tore his ACL last October. Lewan will turn 30 this summer and is coming off the serious knee injury, but fortunately it sounds like everything is going well.
Lewan is believed to be on schedule in his recovery and should be ready to go at the start of training camp, Jim Wyatt of the team’s official site writes. The Michigan product made the Pro Bowl three straight seasons from 2016-18, and is the anchor of the team’s offensive line. With the team relying so heavily on Derrick Henry, obviously the trenches are of the utmost importance.
Lewan was the 11th overall pick back in 2014. He started at least 15 games every year from 2015-18, but was hit with a four-game PED suspension in 2019. Then he made it only five games last year before going down with the ACL tear.
He’s signed through the 2023 season after inking a five-year, $80MM extension in July of 2018.