Former Titans DB Michael Griffin To Retire
Longtime Titans safety Michael Griffin will sign a one-day contract to retire with Tennessee, the club announced today.
Griffin, 33, spent nine seasons with the Titans from 2007-15. During that time, the former first-round pick was a mainstay in the club’s secondary, making 141 appearances and 133 starts. While never a star, Griffin did earn two Pro Bowl nods with Tennessee, and was also named second-team All-Pro in 2010. In his run with the Titans, Griffin ranked as a top-10 safety in interceptions, forced fumble, and approximate value, Pro Football Reference’s value over replacement metric.
Griffin bounced around at the end of his career, as he agreed to a one-year contract with the Vikings in 2016 but failed to make the team’s roster out of training camp. He subsequently landed with the Panthers and played in 13 games, but didn’t find a deal for the 2017 campaign.
PFR extends it best wishes to Griffin as he enters retirement.
Minor NFL Transactions: 5/1/18
Todays minor moves:
Arizona Cardinals
- Waived: LS Drew Williams, CB Jarell Carter, CB C.J. Goodwin, RB Darius Victor
- Waived/injured: LB Gabe Martin
Baltimore Ravens
- Claimed off waivers: DB Kai Nacua (from Browns)
Carolina Panthers
- Signed: OT Korren Kirven
- Waived: TE Kent Taylor
Houston Texans
- Waived : OL Jake Rodgers
Kansas City Chiefs
- Waived: TE Anthony Firkser, CB Sheldon Price, DT Mike Purcell
Oakland Raiders
- Suspended for four games: OL Vadal Alexander (PEDs)
Tennessee Titans
- Claimed off waivers: OLB Gimel President (from Texans)
Minor NFL Transactions: 4/30/18
Here are Monday’s minor moves.
Cincinnati Bengals
- Waived: LB Carl Bradford
- Waived: Connor Harris
Dallas Cowboys
- Signed: G Dustin Stanton
Houston Texans
- Waived: TE Zach Conque
- Waived: CB Bryce Jones
- Waived: TE Ryan Malleck
- Waived: OLB Gimel President
Minnesota Vikings
- Suspended for four games (PEDs): WR Cayleb Jones
Philadelphia Eagles
- Waived/Injured: CB Elie Bouka
San Francisco 49ers
- Waived/Injured: LB Jimmie Gilbert
- Waived: LB Boseko Lokombo
- Waived/NFI: DB Dexter McCoil
- Waived/Injured: LB Donavin Newsom
- Waived: CB Channing Stribling
Tennessee Titans
- Waived: DL Johnny Maxey
- Waived: RB Khalfani Muhammad
- Waived: QB Alex Tanney
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- Waived: OL Avery Young
Washington Redskins
- Released: DL Montori Hughes
- Waived: TE Chris Brazil
- Waived: DB James Sample
- Waived: LB Cassanova McKinzy
Ravens Send No. 152 Pick To Titans
The Titans chose to move up a bit in the fifth round, climbing from No. 162 to No. 152. They’ll send the Ravens that No. 162 choice as well as the No. 215 selection (Round 6), per Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Now under the direction of new coach Mike Vrabel, the Titans have made three moves up in this draft — most notably to land high-end defenders Rashaan Evans and Harold Landry with their first- and second-round picks.
This time, Tennessee selected Arizona cornerback Dane Cruikshank. The 6-foot-1 corner intercepted five passes over the past two seasons for the Wildcats. He’s only the third draft choice the Titans have made this year. Because of this deal, Tennessee only owns one more draft choice (No. 199).
Titans Acquire No. 41 Pick From Raiders
After trading up to land Rashaan Evans in Round 1, the Titans have moved up again. The Titans acquired the No. 41 overall pick from the Raiders, Jeff Howe of The Athletic tweets.
The Titans continued to add to their front seven, selecting Boston College pass rusher Harold Landry. Oakland now owns an additional third-round pick, No. 89, and moved into Tennessee’s No. 57 slot in the second round, per Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Landry was projected by most to go off the board on Thursday night, but some teams had concerns about the edge defender’s medical history. Landry missed nearly half of Boston College’s 2017 season with an ankle malady. This and a back issue concerned some teams. However, it looks to be clear the Titans were not one of them.
The Titans have added two players to their second level, with Landry likely slotting in at outside linebacker in Tennessee’s 3-4 set. Landry dominated as a junior, registering 16.5 sacks and 22 tackles for loss.
Patriots Notes: Brown, Evans, Ragnow
Some news on a potential Patriots trade target + more out of New England:
- The Patriots will have to do their medical homework on tackle Trent Brown before pulling off a trade for him with the 49ers. Brown was terribly out of shape at minicamp and San Francisco has reservations about him coming off of shoulder surgery, Tony Pauline of DraftAnalyst.com (on Twitter) hears. The Niners’ concerns over Brown prompted them to select Mike McGlinchey with the No. 9 pick.
- The Patriots had interest in linebacker Rashaan Evans at the No. 23 pick and the Steelers were looking to trade up to get the Alabama product, Cameron Wolfe of ESPN.com tweets. Ultimately, the Titans gave up a fourth-round pick to move up three spots and leapfrog two AFC rivals. Tennessee also received a sixth-round pick in that swap.
- The Patriots also had Frank Ragnow as a top target at No. 23 overall and tried to move up to get him, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press hears. The Bengals also had the Arkansas center as a top target, but the Lions pounced on the opportunity to take him at No. 20 overall.
Titans Acquire No. 22 From Ravens
The Ravens are moving down… again. After trading down to the No. 22 pick earlier tonight, Baltimore is once again dealing their first-rounder. The Ravens are sending that No. 22 pick to the Titans, according to Jeff Zrebiec of the Baltimore Sun (via Twitter). Tennessee will also receive No. 215 (sixth round), while Baltimore will get No. 25 and No. 125 (fourth round), via ESPN’s Field Yates (on Twitter).
The Titans are using the pick on linebacker Rashaan Evans. The Alabama product is one of the top defensive prospects in the draft, as Daniel Jeremiah listed him 20th overall in his top-50 rankings. Evans had a breakout campaign as a senior, compiling 74 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, and six sacks. Derrick Morgan, Wesley Woodyard, Jayon Brown, and Brian Orakpo are currently listed as the team’s starting linebackers, but Evans could work his way into the lineup.
After starting the night with the No. 16 pick, the Ravens sent the selection to Buffalo, acquiring picks No. 22 and No. 65. This recent trade will give the organization 10 picks for the entire weekend
Draft Rumors: Ravens, Seahawks, 49ers, Pats
Let’s dive into some last-minute draft rumors as we anticipate the start of the first round…
- Should the Ravens go on the clock and Mike McGlinchey is off the board, it looks like they will strongly consider UCLA’s Kolton Miller. Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets the Ravens are focused on Miller as a McGlinchey contingency plan at No. 16. These two are viewed by many as the top tackles in this year’s draft. Although Baltimore needs a right tackle after cutting Austin Howard, this serves as one of the possible Lamar Jackson destinations. Assuming the top four QB prospects are gone by this point in the draft, it could open up the trade market for the picks in the latter teens with the 2016 Heisman winner still available.
- Albert Breer of SI.com writes that there are several teams interested in moving down, including the 49ers (No. 9), Seahawks (No. 18), Lions (No. 20), Titans (No. 25), and Eagles (No. 32). Seattle would have particular interest in trading their pick if safety Derwin James or any of the top pass-rushers are off the board. Meanwhile, Breer notes that San Francisco could benefit if a quarterback-needy team wants to trade up.
- Ben Volin of the Boston Globe tweets that he keeps hearing Miami defensive lineman Chad Thomas being connected to the Patriots. Thomas didn’t earn a spot on NFL.com’s Daniel Jeremiah’s top-50 list, and he’s ultimately projected to be a third- or fourth-round pick. The senior was plenty productive in 2017, compiling 41 total tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss, and 4.5 sacks.
Browns, Colts Lead League In Cap Space
The Browns and Colts have the most cap room of any team in the NFL heading into draft, as Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter) notes. Here’s the official rundown of every team’s cap space for 2018 on the eve of draft weekend:
- Browns – $69.5MM
- Colts – $59.8MM
- 49ers – $43.8MM
- Titans – $35.8MM
- Texans -$35.6MM
- Bears – $24.1MM
- Jets – $21.9MM
- Bills – $19.4MM
- Jaguars – $18.6MM
- Cardinals – $18.1MM
- Redskins -$17.1MM
- Bengals – $16.8MM
- Packers – $16.2MM
- Vikings – $15.5MM
- Broncos – $14.6MM
- Patriots – $13.8MM
- Buccaneers – $12.3MM
- Cowboys -$11.9MM
- Chargers – $11.4MM
- Lions – $9.4MM
- Giants -$9.4MM
- Ravens – $8.8MM
- Seahawks – $7.6MM
- Chiefs – $6.7MM
- Saints – $5.7MM
- Panthers – $5.2MM
- Dolphins – $2.9MM
- Eagles – $2.2MM
- Steelers – $2MM
- Raiders – $1.8MM
- Falcons – $1.3MM
- Rams – $264K
Titans Pick Up Marcus Mariota’s Option
No surprise here, but the Titans will exercise Marcus Mariota‘s fifth-year option. Titans GM Jon Robinson confirmed the news in a radio interview on Wednesday (Twitter link via Paul Kuharsky). 
“The plan is over the next couple of days to exercise Marcus Mariota’s fifth-year option,” Robinson said in a press release. “He is an important part of this team, as are a lot of players. We’re excited to have him around here for the next couple of years and hopefully after the next season we can start to figure something out to keep him around him even longer.”
Mariota, the No. 2 overall pick in the 2015 draft, is coming off of another solid season in which he conducted four game-winning drives, the most of any QB in the NFL. Mariota’s numbers weren’t great overall (his 13:15 TD/INT ratio leaves much to be desired), but many of those missteps can be forgiven in light of the injuries he played through last year. Mariota went into the offseason dealing with hamstring, leg, and ankle issues and managed to miss just one start and played through the pain in both of Tennessee’s playoff contests.
In his playoff debut, Mariota led the Titans on a remarkable second half comeback to top the Chiefs in the Wild Card round. In the next round, the Patriots largely kept Mariota in check as he completed less than 60% of his passes and threw for only two touchdowns.
The fifth-year option is guaranteed for injury only, so the Titans can escape the additional 2019 season in the event that his performance suffers for non-health reasons.