George Walker IV-USA TODAY Sports
Titans Working To Build Depth At Safety Behind Starting Duo
NASHVILLE - The starting safety duo of Kevin Byard and Amani Hooker are rock solid for the Tennessee Titans, but there is a big question mark when it comes to the depth behind those starters.
Much was made of Byard's absence from the team's organized team activities last week, in which Elijah Molden stepped into his spot for some work during that time. He spent time in that role again on Wednesday during the team's minicamp practice.
Behind those three, the Titans have second-year pro-Mike Brown, along with rookies Matthew Jackson and Tyreque Jones currently on their roster. That's not a lot of NFL experience, to say the least.
Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen was asked about this issue prior to the Wednesday practice and had this to say about that position as it stands at the moment.
"There's a lot of competition, really, behind those two guys ( Byard and Hooker) who have played a lot of football for us, and obviously Ho (Hooker), we've had some injury things here and there, and he's played some different spot for us," said Bowen. "His versatility has come into play for us, especially last year, so I think that third or fourth safety spot is up for grabs for us right now."
"We're working to get some different guys there, Molden's getting some work back there as well, trying to utilize his versatility and see what value he can bring to us defensively," continued Bowen."But it's going to be interesting how this thing plays out through the next week and training camp how this thing goes."
Prior to the beginning of OTAs, Jones was one of the players who garnered some attention. The undrafted rookie from Boise State joined the Titans after failing to be selected in the draft, though he had a draftable grade entering the process.
He, along with Brown and Jackson, will continue to compete for a place on this roster throughout the remainder of this minicamp and into training camp.
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- VRABEL'S THOUGHTS ON WHERE HIS TEAM IS AT THIS POINT IN MINICAMP: Mike Vrabel shared some thoughts on where his team is on Tuesday during his post-practice press conference. CLICK HERE
- THREE PLAYERS I'M LOOKING TO SEE IMPROVE DURING MINICAMP: Here are three players who I'm looking to see improvement in during this week's Titans mandatory minicamp. CLICK HERE
