Lewan says O line will be fine without him

The Tennessee Titans started to say goodbye to a number of players Friday.

Then there was one for whom the message was “see you later.”

Coach Mike Vrabel and general manager Jon Robinson began the process of winnowing the roster to the regular-season limit of 53 players. But they also had to make arrangements for Pro Bowl left tackle Taylor Lewan, whose four-game suspension for violation of the NFL policy on performance enhancing substances begins Saturday, the day that all NFL rosters must be reduced to the regular-season limit of 53 players.

“(Lewan) will be here today, and then he’ll have to transition himself away from us, so it’s important that we give him a plan that he’s working and he’s ready to go when he comes back,” Vrabel said Friday morning.

Lewan is not allowed at the Titans’ facility or to take part in any team activities until Sept. 30, a day after the Week 4 game at Atlanta.

He said Thursday following the preseason finale at Chicago (he was one of more than three dozen Titans who did not play) that he plans to spend the majority of his time in Nashville following a trip to Arizona for “a quick second” to visit family and friends.

“Right now, (my plan) is to work out as hard as I can, stay sharp on my technique and focus on Week 5, [which is] my Week 1,” Lewan said. “The conditioning … I’ll be in shape. I’ll make sure of that. That’s the easy part. The technique part is something I definitely don’t want to dwindle away.”

Veteran backup Dennis Kelly worked with the starting offensive line at left tackle throughout the preseason and Lewan called him “a great pro.” He also noted the experience of the expected starting five, which includes left guard Rodger Saffold, center Ben Jones, left guard Kevin Pamphile and right tackle Jack Conklin, all of whom have been in the league at least three years and have been starters at some time in their respective careers.

Lewan speculated that his absence will be harder on him than those who have to play the first quarter of the season without him.

“I can say it’s going to be super hard, [but] I haven’t felt those feelings yet,” Lewan said. “I’m sure when they come it will be extremely tough. But I know this O line, they have great leadership [and] a lot of old guys who have been doing it for a long time. … I don’t think I’m going to be missed as much as people might think.”