The Titans are stop No. 8 on my training camp tour, and I was here on the right day …
1. A lot of the faces may have changed, but stopping by Nashville for a single morning did enough to show me what will not—and that’s the identity of Mike Vrabel’s program. On this sunny Tuesday, the Titans spent a lot of time in what they term “Call It” periods. As a couple of players explained to me, the plan, going into the day, is to not have a plan. The guys get a list of calls the day before, like they would during a game week, and then the players and coaches get to react in a sort of scrimmage setting. So coordinators Tim Kelly and Shane Bowen are essentially calling a game against each other, with changing situations, and the players are having to execute on the fly. In a way, it reminds me of stories from the Patriots, in which Bill Belichick would have periods or practices that seemed to lack organization. A lot of times, the other coaches and players weren’t told why, but they could assume those came with a purpose—reason being that games aren’t played on a script. Vrabel having played for Belichick ties all that together. And the intensity and physicality that result from those periods seemed to play out as Vrabel would’ve drawn it up (had he drawn it up).
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2. Arden Key’s name came up a lot throughout my visit here. In his sixth year, but still just 27 years old, Key’s brought juice and energy to the team’s pass rush. And arriving on a three-year, $21 million deal, he stands to be a nice early bargain signing from new GM Ran Carthon, whose background with Key (the linebacker was a 49er in 2021, when Carthon was director of player personnel) certainly helped. Add in a healthier, energized Jeffery Simmons, and a few camp dark horses (like second-year man Jayden Peevy), and the defensive front figures to be solid.
3. Corner’s a big question, but early on the team has gotten solid, consistent play from Kristian Fulton, who was very up and down over the first three years of his career. Add 2022 second-rounder Roger McCreary and Tampa Bay import Sean Murphy-Bunting to the mix, and the Titans are optimistic they’ll be better than expected at that position, which would be huge for the defense overall.
4. The biggest question mark remains the offensive line. Andre Dillard, the 2019 first-rounder coming over from the Eagles, is at left tackle, and ’23 first-rounder Peter Skoronski is lining up at left guard. Also at issue is who’ll play right tackle with Nicholas Petit-Frere suspended for the first six weeks of the season; Jamarco Jones and Jaelyn Duncan are battling it out there. It at least feels like, for now, the Titans may still be working a few things out in this area.
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5. DeAndre Hopkins has been good so far in a number of ways, one of which being how he’s engaged younger players in the room, like Treylon Burks (who’s come back for Year 2 in much better shape and looks ready to roll). I had someone here say that the other wideouts are like a sponge taking in information when Hopkins speaks up. Ryan Tannehill is excited, too, about what Hopkins will bring in an offense that’s a lot more like the Patriots-centric offense Tannehill starred in as a Texan than the Shanahan-type scheme the Titans have run for the past five years.
