Pro Football Focus recently released rankings for every offensive line and secondary in the NFL, and the Tennessee Titans didn’t fare too well in either.
PFF’s Steve Palazzolo ranked Tennessee’s offensive line as the No. 15 unit in the NFL going into 2021. He believes the group upfront has to get better in pass protection if it’s going to improve its ranking.
The Titans’ offensive line should excel in the run game once again in 2021, but the unit must get better in the pass game if it’s to get back into the top 10.
Tennessee’s stellar offensive line continues to be badly underrated ahead of the 2021 campaign.
PFF’s numbers weren’t kind to the Titans’ offensive line in pass protection, as the unit garnered a pass-blocking grade of 59.4 in 2020 despite allowing just 25 sacks, 31 fewer than it did the year prior. That was also tied for the sixth-fewest sacks allowed in the NFL last season.
On top of keeping quarterback Ryan Tannehill upright, the offensive line paved the way for running back Derrick Henry to run for 2,000 yards, and did so without its star left tackle for the final 11 games.
Looking ahead to this season, left tackle Taylor Lewan will return, and the interior, made up of left guard Rodger Saffold, center Ben Jones, and right guard Nate Davis, all of whom garnered a First-Team All-Pro vote, are returning.
The biggest question mark comes at right tackle, where the Titans will have a competition to replace Dennis Kelly between 2021 second-round pick, Dillon Radunz, and veterans Kendall Lamm and Ty Sambrailo.
Kelly didn’t allow a sack as the team’s starter last year, but his overall performance as a blocker doesn’t leave huge shoes to fill.
PFF’s Ben Linsey handled the secondary rankings, and there he places the Titans’ group at No. 21, which actually isn’t bad considering the question marks Tennessee has.
There is a chance that Tennessee’s secondary is better in 2021 than it was last season. Going from Malcolm Butler to Janoris Jenkins is a somewhat lateral move, and first-round selection Caleb Farley should be an upgrade (if healthy) over what the Titans were forced to turn to at the other outside spot in the aftermath of Adoree’ Jackson’s injury in 2020. Tennessee will be reliant on youth in the secondary, though. Three of the five projected starters (Farley, Kristian Fulton and Amani Hooker) are currently 22 years old and will be taking on full-time starting roles in the NFL for the first time.
The Titans have a lot of promise on paper in cornerbacks Caleb Farley, Kristian Fulton and Elijah Molden, and in safety Amani Hooker.
However, none of those players are proven quite yet. Farley and Molden are rookies, and Fulton was injured for the majority of his first season. Farley also has to prove he can stay healthy after a pair of back surgeries.
Molden will be vying for the slot job, while Fulton and Farley will be trying to earn one of the starting outside spots. Fulton figures to factor into the slot competition as well after playing some there last season.
Hooker does have two seasons under his belt, but he’s entering his first as a starter after the team cut veteran Kenny Vaccaro, so the jury is still out on how he’ll handle that role. Early returns in camp suggest he’ll be just fine.
The most sure things in the secondary are cornerbacks Jackrabbit Jenkins and Breon Borders, and safety Kevin Byard.
Jenkins, who is a locked-in starter at one of the outside spots, provides a veteran presence and solid man coverage skills. Borders was great when pushed into starting duty last season and will be a high-end depth piece.
Byard has been a top-notch safety since his second season in the league. His struggles were well-documented last season, but that wasn’t all his fault, as Byard over-compensated at times for the lackluster defense around him.
Overall, this is a unit that could be very good, but it’s hard to have a ton of confidence in it yet until we see the promise on paper translate to the field.
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