Countdown to Kickoff: 82 Days

William Hayes took a big step toward stardom in his second NFL season but eventually had to walk away from the Titans to get consistent playing time.

The countdown to kickoff continues.

The Tennessee Titans will open the 2020 regular season Sept. 14 at Denver. That is 82 days away. So, today we look at one way the number 82 figures into the team’s history.

William Hayes looked like a gamble that would pay off.

In his second season in the NFL (2009), the defensive end at Winston-Salem State started 11 games and finished sixth in tackles for the Tennessee Titans with 82. He also notched four sacks (tied for third), five tackles for loss and two forced fumbles.

By comparison, the Titans’ other starting defensive end that year, Kyle Vanden Bosch, finished with 86 tackles and three sacks – and he made the Pro Bowl for the third time in his career.

It seemed the best was to come, but that was as good as it got for Hayes – in Tennessee, at least. In 2010, the Titans signed free agent Jason Babin and drafted Derrick Morgan in the first round and Hayes was relegated to a role player for his final two years with the franchise.

At 6-foot-3, 272 pounds, Hayes had unique athleticism for his size but faced questions about his ability to compete against NFL players. When Tennessee chose him in the fourth round of the 2008 NFL Draft, he became the first player in eight years taken from Winston-Salem State (there has not been one since).

The 2009 season seemed to put those concerns to rest and positioned him to follow Vanden Bosch and Jevon Kearse, one of his football idols, as Pro Bowl defense ends for Tennessee. Instead, Babin was a Pro Bowler in 2010 (his one season in Tennessee) and Hayes never made it.

Hayes could – and did – play. He ultimately spent 11 years in the NFL, started 46 games and ranks in the top 100 for career tackles for loss (the stat has been kept since 1999). Just four of those seasons and 12 of those starts were with the Titans.