Tennessee Titans make franchise history with massive trade and contract for L'Jarius Sneed late Friday night
The Tennessee Titans defensive back room was a major problem in 2023, allowing the ninth most net yards per pass attempt and picking off an NFL-worst six interceptions on the year. Titans general manager Ran Carthon had obviously seen enough as he made franchise history late Friday night with a massive trade and new contract […]
The Tennessee Titans defensive back room was a major problem in 2023, allowing the ninth most net yards per pass attempt and picking off an NFL-worst six interceptions on the year. Titans general manager Ran Carthon had obviously seen enough as he made franchise history late Friday night with a massive trade and new contract for former Kansas City Chiefs cornerback, L'Jarius Sneed.
The Titans reportedly agreed to send a 2025 third-round pick and make a swap of 2024 seventh-round picks with the Chiefs in exchange for elite cornerback L'Jarius Sneed. According to Jordan Schultz of Bleacher Report the Titans are signing Sneed to a four-year deal worth up to $76 million dollars ($19 million average per year), which sets a new franchise record in terms of cornerback investment.
Sneed and Awuzie Highest Paid Titans CB Duo Ever
Now that Sneed and Chidobe Awuzie will be making $19 million and $12 million on average per year (APY) this marks the first time in Titans' franchise history that the team's top two cornerbacks will both have top 15 APY salaries in the salary cap era. That may sound like a bad thing in terms of team construction, but when the Titans have heavily invested in the cornerback position the results have been incredible.
The only other Titans duos to come close to top 15 in APY this century were Samari Rolle and Andre Dyson in the early 2000s and Malcolm Butler and Logan Ryan from 2018-2019. The Rolle and Dyson years included 11-5 and 12-4 seasons with a couple playoff victories. Butler and Ryan helped the Titans reach the AFC Championship game following the 2019 season.
On average, the Titans finished with top ten defenses in both yards and points allowed when investing that heavily into the cornerback position. But of course, it's not just about the monetary investment. It has to be money well spent on the right players.
Are L'Jarius Sneed and Chidobe Awuzie the right cornerbacks to take the defense to the next level? Mike Herndon, who covers the Titans with Paul Kuharsky certainly believes so.
L'Jarius Sneed's Elite Coverage Stats
When you combine the physicality and toughness of L'Jarius Sneed and Chidobe Awuzie with the scrappy slot coverage of Roger McCreary the Titans truly should have a top tier cornerback group. But let's a take a look at the numbers that matter most, just to feel even better about Sneed (and Awuzie).
| Cornerback | Passer Rating Allowed | Completion Rate Allowed | Yards Per Target Allowed |
|---|---|---|---|
L’Jarius Sneed | 78.8 | 62.1% | 6.01 |
Chidobe Awuzie | 85.5 | 56.5% | 7.14 |
Between the two cornerbacks they have collectively allowed a passer rating around 80 (out of 158.3), a completion rate below 60%, and about 6.5 yards per target over the last two seasons. All three elite marks on par with typical shutdown cornerbacks.
And while both are great, Sneed's 2023 was absolutely absurd. Per PFF, this is how Sneed faired against some of the NFL's top lead receivers in coverage last season:
- Calvin Ridley – 2 receptions, 32 yards
- DJ Moore – 1 reception, 4 yards
- Garrett Wilson – 3 receptions, 24 yards
- Justin Jefferson – 2 receptions, 14 yards
- Courtland Sutton – 1 reception, 23 yards
- AJ Brown – 1 reception, 4 yards
- Davante Adams – 6 receptions, 66 yards
- Stefon Diggs – 1 reception, 3 yards
- Ja'Marr Chase – 2 receptions, 27 yards
In summary, Sneed was an otherworldly shutdown cornerback last year against some of the best in the game. If he's half that good for the Titans he'll be better than any cornerback the team had in 2023.
Sure, the sticker shock on Sneed's new contract in combination with Awuzie's deal may seem like a high price to pay for two cornerbacks, but it might be exactly what the Titans need to become instant contenders.
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