Radunz's Rookie Season Sheds Little Light on O-Line's Future
NASHVILLE – This offseason promises to be an eventful one for the Tennessee Titans’ offensive line.
Center Ben Jones is a pending unrestricted free agent. Left tackle Taylor Lewan and left guard Rodger Saffold are potential salary-cap casualties. Right tackle David Quessenberry is a restricted free agent who originally was expected to fill a reserve role.
But as franchise officials craft a plan for what changes need to be made for 2022, here’s one question that first has to be answered: What role is Dillon Radunz capable of playing moving forward?
If the Titans believe the 2021 second-round pick can be a starting guard, maybe it makes the potential decision to move on from Saffold easier. Or if they believe Radunz can be a starting right tackle, per the original plan when he was drafted, then maybe the team doesn’t have to – once again – search for an upgrade at that position through the draft or free agency.
It was hard to read a lot into the comments of coach Mike Vrabel at the end of the season regarding Radunz, when he was asked what the former North Dakota State star needed most to improve upon entering his second year.
“Just improve and continue to do what he did this year,” Vrabel said. “Continue to get stronger at this level. Continue to work on the speed off the football, pad level. Everything we would ask anyone else to work on.”
And what should Radunz be regarded as moving forward – a tackle or a guard?
“Offensive lineman,” Vrabel said.
Even if that public evaluation of Radunz wasn’t particularly revealing, the Titans’ actions with Radunz during his rookie season spoke much louder than words.
Based solely on what happened in 2021, it’s hard to be overly optimistic about what lies ahead for Radunz.
A review:
• In the playoff loss to Cincinnati, Radunz was a healthy scratch, deemed of less value to the 53-man roster than three other reserve offensive linemen – Aaron Brewer, Kendall Lamm and Corey Levin.
• Radunz was inactive for five regular-season games and didn’t take an offensive snap in six other contests, meaning he only played on offense in six of 17 regular-season contests. Only three times during the 2021 season was Radunz on the field for more than 15 offensive snaps.
• In an admittedly small sample size (124 offensive snaps), Radunz did not grade out well, per Pro Football Focus. His overall offensive grade was just 49.7 – 57.3 in the running game and 39.5 in the passing game.
Radunz’s most memorable moment occurred in Week 16, when he stepped in to start for an injured Lewan and put forth a solid effort to help the Titans gain an important 20-17 victory over San Francisco. It was the first game Radunz had played left tackle since October of 2020, his final North Dakota State contest, making his achievement even more praiseworthy.
But as impressive as it was that Radunz and his fellow linemen didn’t allow game-wrecker Nick Bosa to record a single sack that night, it was by no means a spotless performance by the rookie. Per PFF, Radunz allowed one sack, three quarterback hits and one pressure – a team-high total of five pressures. His overall offensive grade of 45.6 that night was lowest among Tennessee’s offensive linemen, second-lowest on the team, per PFF.
It seemed telling, too, that Radunz’s first start didn’t lead to further opportunity. He played a combined nine offensive snaps in the last two regular-season contests, and he was not in uniform against the Bengals.
Is it possible Radunz is simply taking longer than most rookies to develop because he was plucked out of the FCS? That’s not out of the question, considering the talent level he competed against, and the fact the Bison’s offense ran far more often than it passed.
And if you’re looking for another reason to believe Radunz might still make an impact on the Titans, it’s worth noting he received praise all season for his work ethic and willingness to learn.
Still, it seems hard to imagine after what Radunz showed as a rookie – and what he didn’t show – that the Titans could confidently pencil him into a promotion.
Which doesn’t do much to help clear up the cloudy forecast for the team’s starting offensive line in 2022.
