Tennessee Titans linebacker David Long is entering a pivotal year for himself, as the 2022 season will be the final year of his rookie contract.
A sixth-round pick of the Titans in 2019, Long has exceeded expectations thus far and secured a starting role in 2021 alongside Zach Cunningham, making Jayon Brown and Rashaan Evans expendable in free agency.
Looking ahead to next season, Long wants to take his game to the next level and believes he can be an All-Pro at his position, per Jim Wyatt of Titans Online.
“I’ve sat back and watched the people in front of me,” Long said. “I’ve grown as a player both on and off the field. The next step for me is to take my game to the next level. I can be an All-Pro or whatever. I’m putting out there that the sky’s the limit for me. The next step is for me to continue to grow as a player.”
One specific area we’d like to see Long get better at is in coverage, and really the same can be said for Cunningham, as neither player has particularly excelled in that area during their careers.
Long did see at least some improvement last season. The West Virginia product posted career-bests in completion rate (70.7%) and QB rating allowed (61.0).
Now that he’s grabbed a starting role, Long feels he can be more vocal, and, in turn, more of a leader in his fourth season, per Terry McCormick of Titan Insider.
“I’ve started last year, I’ve played a lot over the years, so I feel like, as far as vocally, I’ve sat back because there’s been vets in front of me,” Long said. “So now I’m here and I’m in the spot that I’m in so I can be more vocal, make more decisions.”
Long is one of a handful of members of the 2019 draft class that the Titans will have to make a decision before 2023 free agency. We’ll see if he can do enough in 2022 to stick around in Nashville for the long haul.
