Management Moves On, Signs 14 for 2021
NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Titans quickly moved past the disappointment of their playoff loss to Baltimore and looked to the future.
Monday, one day after the 20-13 defeat that ended their season, signed 14 players to future contracts for the 2021 season.
All but one finished the 2020 campaign on the practice squad or the practice squad-injured list. The exception was linebacker Jan Johnson (pictured), an undrafted free agent out of Penn State who signed with the Houston Texans following the draft. The Texans released him in August and he failed to catch on with another team during the regular season.
"I was just really happy and excited that I get another opportunity," Johnson told the Reading Eagle. "I had one in Houston and didn’t really get a chance to be picked up by anybody. I’m excited that I at least can get my foot in the door here."
Three of the signees appeared in at least one game for Tennessee during the regular season. The rundown:
- Cody Hollister, WR: Played in the opener at Denver and the first post-COVID outbreak game against Buffalo. Caught one pass for 12 yards.
- Daniel Munyer, OL: Played as a reserve/special teams performer in the first three games and was a practice squad addition to the active roster for the playoff game.
- Tuzar Skipper, OLB: Made his NFL debut on Nov. 22 and played four consecutive games. He made five tackles before he went to injured reserve for the remainder of the regular season.
- Paul Adams, tackle: Signed to the practice squad on Oct. 27. Did not appear in a game.
- Rashard Davis, WR: One of the most talked-about players during the offseason, he was on and off the practice squad during the regular season and did not appear in a game.
- Parker Hesse, TE: A defensive end in college at Iowa, he has spent all of 2019 and the final 13 weeks of 2020 on the practice squad.
- Tommy Hudson, TE: An undrafted rookie, he was suspended from the practice squad during the season for violation of the league’s performance-enhancing substance policy.
- Jan Johnson, LB: Originally a wrestler in college who walked on to the Penn State football team and eventually became a captain.
- Brandon Kemp, T: An undrafted rookie out of Valdosta State, the 6-foot-6, 317-pounder spent all season on the practice squad.
- DeShone Kizer, QB: Signed as the third quarterback on Nov. 24 after the Saints plucked Trevor Siemian from the practice squad, he is a 2017 first-round pick who has not played a regular-season game since 2018.
- Tucker McCann, K: An undrafted rookie out of Missouri, he was on the practice squad through Week 8 before he ended up on the practice squad-injured list.
- Nate Orchard, OLB: A sixth-year veteran who played three games for Washington early in the season. Tennessee signed him to the practice squad in mid-December.
- Matt Orzech, LS: Signed off Miami’s practice squad halfway through the season, he was on the active roster for three games and the practice squad for five but did not get in a game.
- Chester Rogers, WR: A veteran of 52 games with Indianapolis over the previous four seasons, he was on the practice squad from Sept. 21 through the end of the season.
Futures contracts do not go into effect until the start of the new league year in March.
