Don’t look now, but the Tennessee Titans are finally ready to make a move when it comes to getting back to the postseason. The last time was 2008, when the franchise owned the best record in the NFL at 13-3. There was a quick playoff exit and the team hasn’t sniffed the postseason since. Now suddenly armed with a promising quarterback in Marcus Mariota (who’s on track for training camp after breaking his leg in late December), a formidable offensive line and running back DeMarco Murray, the Tennessee offense made great strides this past season.
But now the defense has been addressed as well, primarily through Free Agency. It’s going to be a very interesting year in Nashville. This was a team that finished 9-7 in 2016 after winning a combined five times the previous two seasons.
Bolstering the receiving corps
During the 2016 offseason, the Tennessee Titans gave Mariota some help via free agency in the form of wide receiver Rishard Matthews. He proved to be a tremendous pickup, tying for the team lead with 65 catches while leading the club in receiving yards (945) and touchdown grabs (9). With the fifth pick in April’s draft, general manager Jon Robinson grabbed talented receiver Corey Davis. He figures to make an immediate impact with the Titans.
But the franchise wasn’t done as earlier this week, the team picked up discarded New York Jets wideout Eric Decker. So why the Titans?
“It was kind of a perfect storm,” said the veteran wide receiver courtesy of Jim Wyatt of TitansOnLine.com. “You only get so many years to play this game, and I wanted to find the right fit.
I wanted to come to a place where I can help out, and this is home.”
Defense not overlooked
The arrival of Decker is certainly welcome news for a team that ranked 25th in the NFL in passing yards per game this past season. But the Tennessee Titans also did a lot of work this offseason on their defense, a unit that allowed the third-most aerial yardage in the NFL in 2016.
The free-agent included strong safeties Johnathan Cyprien (Jacksonville Jaguars) and Brynden Trawick (Oakland Raiders), cornerbacks Logan Ryan (New England Patriots) and Demontre Hurst (Chicago Bears) and nose tackle Sylvester Williams (Denver Broncos). And with the second of their two first-round picks in this year’s draft, the team selected young cornerback Adoree’ Jackson from USC. With all this additional talent, it’s hard to believe that this franchise won’t be making its first playoff appearance since 2008.
