Tennessee Titans target spot in Super Bowl LV
NASHVILLE — Rashaan Evans took a few days off after the Tennessee Titans’ season ended in the AFC championship game this past January.
Then the 24-year-old linebacker, a first-round pick in the 2018 NFL draft, got back to work — along with many of his teammates. Coming up one win short of reaching the Super Bowl is a powerful inspiration.
“Having that opportunity to get to that last game, I think it definitely gave me even an bigger motivation because I know how to get there now,” said Evans, who won two College Football Playoff national championships at Alabama.
The Titans turned around after a 2-4 start with a quarterback switch this past October and then Derrick Henry’s historic run through the playoffs in Mike Vrabel’s second season as head coach. Tennessee re-signed former Marcus Mariota backup Ryan Tannehill to a four-year, $118 million deal in March — the same month they used the franchise tag to keep Henry, the NFL’s 2019 rushing leader, before signing him to a new deal this summer.
The franchise that lost 35-24 to Kansas City in the AFC title game — the Chiefs went on to beat the San Francisco 49ers in the Super Bowl — returns 10 of 11 starters on offense. On defense, though, the Titans lost coordinator Dean Pees to retirement and traded away five-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman Jurrell Casey in March to the Denver Broncos, the team Tennessee will visit on Monday, Sept. 14, to play the final game of the opening week of the NFL season.
Vrabel, his staff and his players will try to build on the continuity they do have. Provided the COVID-19 pandemic doesn’t derail the season, Super Bowl LV is set for Feb. 7, 2021, in Tampa, and the Titans wouldn’t having some postseason games in
Nashville before making a trip to Florida.
“I’m part of a team that’s hungry for the playoffs,” left tackle Taylor Lewan said. “It’s hungry for getting one game farther than we did last year. It’s hungry for making more steps and strides, not just as individuals, but also from a whole team standpoint.”
The Titans know Tannehill is their starter with his new contract. Now they need to find his backup, with Logan Woodside the favorite despite his pro experience being all of eight games in the Alliance of American Football in 2019. He spent last season on the Titans’ practice squad with an injury, helping offensive coordinator Arthur Smith and charting plays on the sideline during games.
Tennessee cut Cole McDonald, a seventh-round pick out of Hawaii, on Aug. 19, then signed an experienced option: Trevor Siemian, who has a combined 25 NFL starts with Denver and the New York Jets.
The Titans picked up the fifthround option on cornerback Adoree’ Jackson but not for wide receiver Corey Davis, the fifth pick overall in 2017. Davis would have cost $15.6 million for 2021 under that option despite ranking second to rookie A.J. Brown with 43 catches for 601 yards last season. Davis has six touchdown catches and 1,867 receiving yards in three seasons.
The new starter on offense is expected to be veteran right tackle Dennis Kelly replacing Jack Conklin, who signed with the Cleveland Browns. The Titans had an open spot on the offensive line last season, too: Nate Davis, the third-round pick out of Charlotte, started 12 games after moving into the starting lineup in October.
The Titans used their first-round draft pick this year on offensive tackle Isaiah Wilson out of Georgia. Kelly replaced Lewan when he was suspended the first four games of last season. The seven-year NFL veteran has started 16 of 58 games with Tennessee, but the 6-foot-6, 350-pound Wilson was the 29th pick overall.
Tennessee’s top draft pick started training camp on the reserve/ COVID-19 list, and then Wilson got a warning from Tennessee State University police at an off-campus apartment on Aug. 15. The police report said Wilson ran to a second-floor
balcony and appeared to consider jumping before sitting back down.
“I’ve talked to him privately and continued to talk to the team and stress the importance of the decisions we make outside the building as it relates to the people we’re around because of COVID,” Vrabel said.
The pandemic also affected the Titans’ hopes of packing Nissan Stadium coming off a deep playoff run. No fans will be at the home opener on Sept. 20, an AFC South matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
“Fans or no fans, you’ve got to go play, so that’s the mindset we have to have,” Henry said. “We’re trying to go win football games. Like I said, adjust to the circumstances.”
The Titans never quite adjusted when it came to field goals last season. They had the NFL’s worst unit, making 44.4% of their attempts. Greg Joseph was the fifth and final kicker of 2019, and his lone field-goal attempt came in the AFC title game. He did make all 18 PATs in his five games.
Undrafted free agent Tucker McCann of Missouri was signed to push Joseph, the kind of competition Tennessee didn’t have last season.