Why the Titans Go O-Line in the First Round
NASHVILLE – When Tennessee Titans general manager Jon Robinson and coach Mike Vrabel spoke about helping quarterback Ryan Tannehill by improving personnel around him, it was easy to envision speedy receivers running deep patterns or sticky-fingered tight ends running seam routes.
The image of lumbering linemen isn’t nearly as sexy.
But if you don’t have enough good ones, it really doesn’t matter how good your skill players are.
Think about it: Your quarterback isn’t going to be as effective if he’s constantly pressured. Your receivers aren’t going to be as productive when the quarterback doesn’t have time to wait for them to run their routes. And your running game – even with a back as good as Derrick Henry – isn’t going to force defenses to keep that extra man in the box if the offensive linemen can’t win their battles.
It all starts with the big men up front.
That’s why the Titans would be wise to use their first-round pick on a tackle or guard if there’s still one of quality remaining at No. 26.
Can one make the arguments for other positions to be addressed instead in the first round? Absolutely.
• If the Titans find a quarterback they believe is a long-term starter, they should grab him. It’s entirely possible this is Tannehill’s last season with the Titans, and it would be great to have his successor in place, even if it’s just to learn during his rookie season. On the other hand, most draft analysts feel this quarterback crop is not an especially impressive one. So just because they’re the best in their prospect group this season doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll stack up well in the NFL overall. Also worth keeping in mind: the Titans don’t have a second-round pick this year. So, if you choose a quarterback in the first round – one who wouldn’t be expected to play right away – you’re getting little to no immediate impact from any rookie chosen before the third round.
• Another wide receiver, preferably one who’s shown an ability as a deep threat, would also be a worthy selection. But let’s remember the Titans already addressed that position in a big way when they traded for Robert Woods. Assuming Woods can return to full health and play up to his pre-injury level, he and A.J. Brown – not to mention new tight end Austin Hooper – are going to account for a lot of Tannehill targets in 2022. So, if the Titans can find a complementary speed and/or slot guy in the third round, I think they’ll be fine at wide receiver.
That brings us back to the offensive line, which struggled in 2021 by just about any measure.
The Titans ranked 24th last season with a pass-block win rate of 56 percent, per ESPN, and 24th with a run-block win rate of 69 percent. Pro Football Focus ranked the Titans 27th in pass-blocking with a 54.3 grade, but was more generous than ESPN with a run-block grade of grade of 75.5 (12th overall).
Not a single Titans offensive lineman ranked among the NFL’s top 10 in either pass-block or run-block win rate in 2021.
We also know that unit gave up 47 sacks last season, nearly doubling the 25 the team allowed in 2020. While it’s true we can’t blame the offensive line for all sacks, PFF attributed just three to Tannehill last season, tied for fourth fewest in the league. So, the offensive line was guilty far more often than not.
In light of those numbers, it might be considered good news the Titans parted ways with two starters from last season. Left guard Rodger Saffold struggled with injuries and pass protection last year, while right tackle David Quessenberry surrendered a league-high 11 sacks.
The problem is there’s no guarantee the replacement for either position is on the roster.
Free-agent signee Jamarco Jones will get a shot at left guard, per Vrabel, but he’s only started seven games in three seasons. Second-round pick Dillon Radunz appears likely to get a crack at right tackle, but the last snapshot we have of Radunz is that of a healthy inactive – behind Aaron Brewer, Corey Levin and Kendall Lamm – during the playoff loss to Cincinnati.
How much difference might a quality first-round offensive lineman make for the Titans – someone like Central Michigan tackle Bernhard Raimann, Northern Iowa tackle Trevor Penning, Boston College guard Zion Johnson or Texas A&M guard Kenyon Green?
Consider that, as disappointing a season as Tannehill had in 2021, he was still pretty good in the comparatively rare instances he had a clean pocket. PFF gave him a grade of 89.7 in those situations, 11th-best in the NFL.
It’s probably no coincidence either that Tannehill’s tremendous 2019 numbers – quarterback rating, yards per attempt and yards per completion – came when the Titans had the league’s 11th-best pass-blocking grade at 76.0. The Titans plummeted to 28th in pass-blocking in 2020 (58.0 grade) and 27th in 2021 (54.3 grade).
Give Tannehill a consistently clean pocket more often in 2022 and you give him more of a chance to return to the level we saw in 2019 and 2020.
It’s not only the passing game, though, that cries out for more help from the offensive line.
Until we see otherwise, the offense still runs through Henry, and his average gain in eight games last season – 4.3 yards – was not only a big drop from 2020 (5.4), but his lowest average since 2017 (4.2).
Sure, Henry gains plenty of ground on his own, but how much would he appreciate another quality road-grader opening bigger holes for him in 2022?
One argument occasionally made against drafting an offensive lineman in the first round is that the Titans have already used two high picks – a first-rounder in 2020 (tackle Isaiah Wilson) and the second-rounder in 2021 (Radunz) – on offensive linemen in each of the last two years.
A simple response: So what?
The Titans would have loved for one of those selections to have worked out as planned. But the fact that neither has so far doesn’t mean you turn your back on the offensive line in the 2022 draft. If anything, the fact that Wilson was a bust and Radunz remains a question mark means the Titans are even more needy up front than they were over the last two years.
So, hold off on that speedy receiver until the third round, Titans, when one should still be available in a deep draft.
Bring on another big ugly with that first-round pick. But this time get it right.
