Tag: Tennessee Titans (Page 15 of 40)

      2010 NFL Mock Draft Version 1.0

      March 18, 2010 /

      The full mock is finally completed!

      I waited a lot longer than I normally do to compile my first mock draft of the year. Normally I whip up my first batch of mock draft right after the scouting combine, but this year I wanted to see what happened at the start of free agency before I even remotely considered whom teams would select in April.

      I get as excited as any true draftnik about mock drafts, but how could anyone venture a guess at what player a team will select without knowing what big free agents signed where? It’s like taking a long road trip to a place you’ve never been before without your GPS. (Wow, have the times changed. A couple of years ago, I would have ended that sentence with “without your map” but that damn technology continues to track us down like a bear preying on an injured deer.)

      Below is my first crack at predicting the first round of the 2010 NFL Draft. As usual, feel free to argue my picks as much as you like but please, debate with some dignity. Don’t be the doucher that ruins the fun of mock drafts by spewing venom in the comments section of a sports blog. There may not be anything more pathetic.

      1. St. Louis Rams: Sam Bradford, QB, Oklahoma
      I have Nebraska’s Ndamukong Suh rated as the unquestioned best player in this year’s draft. (Well, I don’t have an official ranking per se, but in my head he’s No. 1.) But that doesn’t mean I think the Rams will take him. Teams usually get funny about the No. 1 overall pick. They feel as though they have to match the contract with the position in order to justify the player they’re taking, which is completely backwards when you think about it. A team should be most concerned with taking the right player that matches their scheme. But I digress. Bradford is the top rated quarterback and the Rams have a major need at the position with Marc Bulger proving over the past two years that he’s better suited to run the scout team offense in practice and then the first unit on Sundays. The Rams feel as though they need to breathe some excitement into their dull franchise and taking Bradford should do the trick. Is he the right player? That’s debatable.

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      College Football, NFL, NFL Draft

      Tennessee Titans 2010 Team Needs

      February 10, 2010 /

      As part of our 2010 NFL Draft coverage, I will be breaking down positional needs for all 32 teams, starting in reverse alphabetical order. Next up are the Tennessee Titans. Check out other team needs by clicking here.

      1. Defensive End
      It’s unlikely that the Titans will bring back Kyle Vanden Bosch (who is injury prone and in decline) and Jevon Kearse (also in decline) next season, making the defensive end spot opposite William Hayes a top priority. There’s a very slim chance that the team will be able to woo free agent Julius Peppers to Tennessee, so the Titans might use the No. 16 spot in the first round to take a DE prospect like South Florida’s Jason Pierre-Paul.

      2. Cornerback
      Nick Harper will be 36 in September, is coming off shoulder surgery and struggled mightily in coverage in 2009. He’s also a free agent and there’s little to no chance that the Titans will re-sign him for next season. That means the cornerback spot opposite Cortland Finnegan is a major hole, although the Titans are in a tough spot at No. 16 in the first round because Florida’s Joe Haden will likely be off the board and Florida State’s Patrick Robinson would be a reach there. They could sign on a free agent like Leigh Bodden (Patriots), although that all depends on how much Bud Adams is willing to spend this offeason.

      3. Linebacker
      The Titans appear ready to move on from veteran linebackers Keith Bulluck and David Thornton and now have to determine whether or not Gerald McRath and Colin Allred are starters. If the team does view the pair as solid replacements for Bulluck and Thornton, then the Titans can concentrate on other positions, such as the defensive line, cornerback and backup running back. If not, then outside linebacker becomes one of the biggest needs of the offseason, especially from a depth perspective.

      If the Titans don’t re-sign Kevin Mawae this offseason, then center also becomes a need for next season.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

      Chris Johnson wants to be highest paid back

      February 2, 2010 /

      Titans’ star Chris Johnson doesn’t become a free agent until 2013, but that hasn’t stopped him from boasting that he wants to be the highest paid running back in the league.

      From the Nashville Tennessean:

      “Hopefully they’ll want to give me a new deal. I think I deserve to be the highest paid running back in the league, or even the highest paid offensive player besides the quarterback,’’ said Johnson, who scored the game-winning touchdown in Sunday night’s Pro Bowl.

      “But it’s not like I am not going out in the media saying, ‘Pay me, I want a new deal now.’ I am just saying, if they were to pay me, I want that. Hopefully they want that, too.’’

      Johnson has already outperformed his contract in his first two seasons, but isn’t this a little early for contract talk, even if it’s in jest? He still has three more years on his contract and the Titans probably won’t even consider a new contract for him until after the 2010 season. And that’s at the earliest.

      I’m sure when the time comes the Titans will do everything in their power to give Johnson what he’s worth.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

      Five players that got shafted by Pro Bowl voting

      January 30, 2010 /

      It’s easy to sit here and play armchair Pro Bowl GM, and while indeed all of us have the ability to influence the player selections, that doesn’t mean as a collective group that we get it right. So as always, there were a few players, even after injury substitutions were announced, who are home this weekend instead of playing in the Pro Bowl in Miami—players who truly deserved a spot on the NFC or AFC roster. Here are a few glaring omissions as we see it:

      Cedric Benson, RB, Cincinnati Bengals—For as good as the Bengals’ defense was in 2009, they won all those games early in the season in part because their running game was downright dominant. And a big reason for that was Benson, whose 96.2 yards per game was second only to Tennessee’s Chris Johnson. Benson, who just turned 27 in December, has been injury prone most of his young career, but this was by far his best season, and he even led the NFL in rushing for a bit before Johnson caught fire. Of course, Benson’s six touchdowns are probably what kept him out of the Pro Bowl (Maurice Jones-Drew had 15 and Johnson 14), but there is no question about how valuable he was to the Bengals, helping them to exceed all expectations.

      Ben Roethlisberger, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers—With all due respect to every other QB in the AFC, how do David Garrard and Vince Young get in ahead of Big Ben? I can sort of understand Young, who took the Titans on his back and may have even warranted MVP consideration. But Garrard? Roethlisberger had 4328 yards, 26 TDs and 12 picks, while Garrard threw for 3597 with 15 TD throws and 10 interceptions. Of course, Ben also dealt with concussions, so I can understand an injury keeping him out, but he’s not listed with the injured players selected, so that means more people than not left him off the roster. Does that make sense to anyone?

      Brent Celek, TE, Philadelphia Eagles—This one was purely a numbers game, because you absolutely can’t argue with Jason Witten and Vernon Davis getting in ahead of Celek. But that’s not his fault. Look, I’m a Giants fan so it’s not easy for me to admit this, but I love this kid as a football player. He’s tough, makes big catches with consistency, and is always open for Donovan McNabb in the end zone. He’ll also take a defender’s head off if they get in his path. Of course, Celek’s numbers were stellar too–he caught 76 passes for just under 1000 yards (971) with 8 scores. They should have allowed an extra NFC tight end just this once.

      Andre Carter, DE, Washington Redskins—I get why Jared Allen and Trent Cole made the Pro Bowl roster, but I don’t get how Andre Carter missed out while Julius Peppers got in. Peppers has the name recognition, but Carter led all defensive ends in solo tackles (48) and had twenty more total tackles than Peppers (62 to 42). He had 11 sacks to Peppers’ 10.5, sure, but when you look at the whole picture, somebody blew an assignment. And the thing is, everyone talks about Albert Haynesworth, but Carter never gets the credit he deserves, not even on his own team.

      James Laurinaitis, LB, St. Louis Rams—I get why Jon Beason is the top dog at ILB for the NFC, and I also get why London Fletcher finally made the roster when Jonathan Vilma’s Saints reached the Super Bowl. I’m just not sure why rookie Laurinaitis didn’t make it in ahead of Vilma. Laurinaitis led all rookies in solo tackles with 107 (Vilma had 87), and in the NFL he trailed only Patrick Willis, Beason and Kirk Morrison in that department. Laurinaitis also had 2 sacks and 2 interceptions. This kid was a beast in the middle on a team that won only 1 game in 2009, and short of having to pay dues, I’m not exactly sure how he was left off the Pro Bowl roster.

      NFL

      Chris Johnson wins Offensive Player of the Year

      January 13, 2010 /

      Titans’ running back Chris Johnson was voted the Offensive Player of the Year for the 2009 season according to the AP.

      Considered the fastest man in pro football, Johnson was uncatchable in setting a league mark for yards from scrimmage (2,509) and becoming the sixth player with a 2,000-yard rushing season.

      “I kind of realize what I did and I feel like I had a dream season,” said Johnson, who scored 16 touchdowns (14 rushing), second to Minnesota’s Adrian Peterson, and tied the NFL mark with six consecutive games rushing for at least 125 yards.

      Johnson, who has run a 4.2 40 and believes he’ll remain the NFL’s fastest player unless a team signs Usain Bolt, has bigger dreams, too: breaking Eric Dickerson’s single-season rushing record of 2,105 yards, and winning the league MVP award.

      “I didn’t even get one vote at all (for MVP),” Johnson said. “Like the season I had, it seemed like, `What more do they want me to do?’ That just felt like rookie of the year; it’s a quarterback thing I guess.”

      Considering Johnson became just the sixth player in NFL history to run for more than 2,000 yards and set the record for most total yards from scrimmage with 2,509, it is a little perplexing why he didn’t get at least one MVP vote.

      But to correct Johnson, it isn’t a “quarterback thing” – it’s a “playoff thing.” Peyton Manning had the Colts on the verge of a perfect season and lifted them to the No. 1 seed in the AFC. For as good as Johnson was this season, the fact that the Titans didn’t make the postseason hurt him when it came down to MVP voting.

      Regardless, Johnson was incredibly deserving of OPOY honors and considering this was only his second season, I shudder to think what the future holds for him.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

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