My Two Cents: Titans' Top Pick Peter Skoronski Fine With Working at Guard or Tackle

Titans first-round pick Peter Skoronski is getting his first bit of work in this weekend, taking part in the Titans' rookie minicamp. He's even doing double duty, taking reps at both guard and tackle, despite play tackle — and at a very high level, at that — throughout his career at Northwestern.

NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans had all sorts of problems along their offensive line last year, so it was no surprise that they addressed that need in the first round of the NFL Draft last month, taking much-heralded tackle Peter Skoronski with the 11th overall pick. 

Skoronski is getting his first bit of work in this weekend, taking part in the Titans' rookie minicamp. He's even doing double duty, taking reps at both guard and tackle, despite play tackle — and at a very high level, at that — throughout his career at Northwestern. 

He doesn't mind one bit. He's grown up in a football family, and he knows full well that it's all about helping the team win games. He'll play wherever he's needed. 

"I'm working multiple positions, both inside and outside," Skoronski said. "Overall I'm just trying to learn schematically. I think that helps me for just being able to change around positions and help the team wherever I'm playing."

Titans coach Mike Vrabel likes what he sees of the 6-foot-4, 313-pound lineman at first glance. They're going to throw a lot at him, and Vrabel is comfortable that he can handle it.

'He's a good mover, big and sturdy,'' Titans coach Mike Vrabel said of Skoronski. "I think that he can handle the installation at more than one position. If we didn't feel like he could handle that, then we wouldn't do it. I certainly wouldn't have a problem working him at either guard or tackle spot and see where he progresses and see how he looks when everyone else gets here.''

Vrabel said getting the rookies like Skoronski as comfortable as possible quickly is important to the learning process. 

''I think that's the biggest thing, is that they understand how we want to do things and how we want to function from a conditioning level. Being willing to make mistakes and study and communicate with their coaches and their teammates. This is a long process and we believe in making connections to allow us to coach these guys and do what's best

''I think we're off to a good start. We want them to be accountable to where they're supposed to be and be accountable to their teammates that they know what to do. Those are things that we think are important. Thursday night there were some faces that they looked like they were going to take on the world. I said ‘Guys, we need to all take a deep breath and we need to relax. We need to tell some jokes and we need to get to know each other.’"

Skoronski said he's enjoyed getting to meet his new teammates and coaches and ''learning the Titans way about doing things.'' They've been getting a lot of work in, but it's been fun, too. Being on a football field, an NFL field, is a good thing.

He's also enjoyed being around quarterback Will Levis, who was taken behind him in the second round. There are a some family ties there. Levis' grandfather, Dave Kelley, coaced Skoronski's father on the defensive line at Yale, and they stayed with the Skoronskis when visiting Chicago on recruiting trips. Their families reconnected before the NFL draft to compare notes and both players share the same agency.

“They won the draft when Peter went there (at No. 11), and the next day, I was like, 'How funny, how coincidental would it be if I end up on the same team?' and here we are," Levis said Saturday. "So it’s pretty funny how all those things come together. I truly feel like everything happens for a reason.”

Skoronski has seen how hard Levis dives into his craft. "You can tell how he works really hard and is really prepared, so I'm really impressed with him,” Skoronski said.

They're saying the same thing about Skoronski. They expect him to be a key piece of their offensive line for years to come. He's wearing No. 77, and has big shoes to fill since that was Taylor Lewan's number for years.

"He did give me the blessing. Obviously, I wore 77 in college so it's nice to keep it consistent,'' Skoronski said. "Obviously, those are big shoes to fill, with Taylor being such a great player for this franchise for so long. He was really nice about it, and it was an easy yes for him.''

The issues on the offensive line are real, and it shows in the national perspective of Tennessee. According to the Fanduel gambling website, the Titans are heavy underdogs to win the AFC South. They are at plus-360, while the Jacksonville Jaguars are at minus-160. It's the largest gap of any of the eight divisions.

Skoronski will get to start working with the veterans soon, too. OTA's begin later in the month and there's a mandatory camp in mid-June. The Titans have some moving parts on the offensive line, and where Skoronski ends up is still a guess, but left guard might not be a bad one.

''I'm willing to adjust to new positions, and do things that I haven't done before. I just want to help the team, regardless of position. It's just a matter of getting reps in and learning things conceptually. The techniques and stuff, you just have to drill it and get the reps in.''

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