The Tennessee Titans continued with their curveball approach to this 2022 NFL draft after selecting Auburn cornerback Roger McCreary with the No. 35 overall pick (second round).
This selection is a surprise, largely because the Titans already invested premium draft capital on three other young cornerbacks on their roster. Therefore, this move indicates a few things to me personally.
For starters, the team likely had the Auburn cornerback extremely high on their board in comparison to where they were selecting. If so, passing on that type of value in this spot was probably too much for the team.
Another possibility is that they don’t believe that Farley’s health isn’t as good as they are leading on and are already preparing their contingency plan in case that plan falls through.
It also could be some sort of combination of the two. Nonetheless, this is still a surprising pick.
McCreary is an extremely talented and ascending cornerback who produced a coverage grade of 92.7 since 2019, (first among Power Five cornerbacks), according to Pro Football Focus.
He also brings versatility as someone who can play inside and out.
In his final year at Auburn, the Titans’ new cornerback earned Associated Press First-Team All-American and All-SEC honors after leading the conference with 14 pass break-ups.
He also led Auburn with two interceptions and had a career-high 49 tackles (two for loss with one sack) in 12 starts.
All that considered, this is still an unexpected move with the other holes on the team. Depending on what they do the rest of the day, I could increase this grade to a C+, but I can’t go above an average grade for this pick solely based on the other team’s needs.
