With a potential need at safety, Baltimore Ravens pending free agent and safety Geno Stone has been a name thrown around by Tennessee Titans fans and media as a free-agent option, especially after the Titans hired his former position coach, Dennard Wilson, as their defensive coordinator.
But Stone has another strong connection to the Titans’ coaching staff in special teams assistant Anthony Levine, who played for the Ravens for 10 seasons, two of which overlapped with Stone’s tenure.
Levine, who was a special teams ace during his career, was hired in 2023 and survived the firing of former head coach Mike Vrabel.
In an interview with NFL Network’s Patrick Claybon on “NFL Total Access” on Tuesday (H/T Nick Shook, NFL.com), Stone credited Levine with being the veteran who had the biggest impact on him early on in his career.
“I just had great vets around me really,” Stone said. “I had a guy, Anthony Levine, that was next to me every day and preaching what to do. I just kind of followed what he did. His lead. He was in the league for 12 years, so I had a guy like that to lean on. And guys like Chuck Clark, the other guys I could name, but I’ll say Anthony Levine was probably the main one. The guy that had been through the kind of same process I was going through and kind of just staying by his side and picking his brain each day. He told me one day, he said, ‘You’re gonna make it one day. Just make sure you’re going through the process and stay humble.'”
Stone is coming off a career year in 2023. Not only did he tally a career-high seven interceptions, the second-most in the NFL, but he posted solid numbers in coverage, giving up completions on 63.6 percent of the passes thrown his way, a passer rating of just 63.8, and he posted an elite PFF coverage grade (84.9).
While Stone has made it clear he’d like to return to Baltimore, he certainly isn’t ruling out the possibility that he ends up elsewhere.
“At the end of the day, Baltimore is always home, but business is business,” he said. “You know that being in this league this long. I’ve been through it all, especially my rookie year. I just want to be somewhere I’m appreciated, you know, who wants me and for me to be a starter, whatever it may be. I just want my value to be there.”
Depending on how the new coaching staff feels about Elijah Molden, the Titans may or may not have an in-house solution to start alongside Amani Hooker at safety.
However, if the team does want to upgrade the position with a better option than Molden, Stone, who is projected by Spotrac to make a very reasonable $7.2 million per year in a three-year deal, is certainly a realistic possibility for Tennessee.
And, chances are Stone will have his eye on the Titans, as not only can they afford him thanks to a ton of cap space, they can offer him a starting role.
It also doesn’t hurt to have a pair of familiar faces on the coaching staff.
