When Tennessee Titans inside linebacker Jayon Brown returns to Nashville in 2021, he’s going to see plenty of new faces on the team’s defense after what has been a busy offseason on that side of the ball thus far.
Brown wasn’t expected to return after hitting the open market, but the Titans were able to retain him at a reasonable price, as the UCLA product signed a one-year, $5.3 million deal (there are two voidable years on the contract).
Brown recently spoke with Jim Wyatt of Titans Online and gave his thoughts on outside linebacker Bud Dupree, defensive lineman Denico Autry and cornerback Janoris Jenkins:
“We’ve got playmakers,” Brown said. “With Bud, watching him at the Steelers, he’s nothing but a playmaker, getting strip-sacks and all that good stuff. With (Autry), he makes plays, stopping screens, getting home to the quarterback. (He’s) a really good pass rusher, is big and strong.
“And with the Jackrabbit, he’s been making plays his whole career. We’re glad to have a savvy cornerback like that to make plays and create some turnovers for this defense. We’ve added some new pieces. We’re going to have a lot of new faces, and some old faces as well. Whenever we get back to it, we just have to feel each other out, learn this defense together under (DC) Shane (Bowen) and Coach (Mike) Vrabel, and try and go out there and be the best defense that we can be in the league.”
Brown was also complimentary of defensive coordinator Shane Bowen, who was promoted to the position after serving in the role without the title in 2020:
“(Coach Bowen) is a really good guy, a really smart coach, and he knows what it takes to win, and so does coach Vrabel and the rest of the guys on our staff,” Brown said. “It is an exciting time, and I am looking forward to the play-calling and just getting after it with the guys. And I am very happy for Shane. He is a very smart coach, and it is well deserved.
“(When we come back) we just have to go back in there and start from the basics, getting our techniques and fundamentals down. And, eventually getting that chemistry on the practice field (so) we can communicate and learn how each one of us plays, and just play off of our strengths in getting to the quarterback and getting the ball in our hands. I am looking forward to what this defense is going to do this year, and I am excited for it.”
Bowen, along with Brown and the rest of the Titans’ new-look defense, will be tasked with fixing communication issues that were prevalent last season and helped lead to a dreadful showing by the unit overall.
Brown, who wears the green dot on his helmet, said he took questions about those communication issues personally during his first presser since re-signing, and is intent on fixing them.
Jayon Brown said he took the questions about communication on the #Titans defense personally. “That will definitely get fixed and won’t be a problem this year. I look forward to going back out there again with the green dot helmet.”
— TURRON DAVENPORT (@TDavenport_NFL) March 19, 2021
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