Every team in the NFL is allowed to designate up to eight players to return from injured reserve during the course of the season, a limit the Tennessee Titans are unsurprisingly approaching.
On Thursday, the Titans designated defensive back Lonnie Johnson to return from injured reserve, the second player to receive that designation this week after linebacker Zach Cunningham.
That brings the Titans up to seven, which means only one more player currently on injured reserve can return.
As far as players who are on injured reserve and were thought to have a chance to return, the biggest names are cornerback Elijah Molden, wide receiver Kyle Philips and linebacker David Long.
However, we found out via defensive coordinator Shane Bowen that Molden is done for 2022.
Shane Bowen has indicated Elijah Molden is done for the season. Activating Lonnie Johnson’s IR return window, with Zach Cunningham’s also open, puts them in line to return. So 7 of 8 returns.
Unless one doesn’t, either Kyle Philips or David Long is done for the year. #Titans
— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) December 15, 2022
Assuming both players are eventually healthy enough to be designated to return, the choice has to be Long, who is eligible to return in Week 18.
Granted, the Titans can use all the help they can get at wide receiver, but Long’s impact on defense will be far greater than Philips’ on offense.
As the Titans approach the limit, it’s hard not to point out how the Titans used a return on former outside linebacker, Ola Adeniyi, who was activated on Dec. 3 before being cut nine days later.