L’Jarius Sneed reveals his plan for when he’ll be back in Titans lineup after coming off PUP, practicing for first time all year

The Tennessee Titans finally got their top cornerback back onto the practice field today. Rumblings about L’Jarius Sneed returning from the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list this week began this weekend, were amplified by head coach Brian Callahan leaving the door open at Tuesday’s practice, and the announcement was finally made on Wednesday morning. […]

Easton Freeze — Tennessee Titans Beat Writer
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Oct 13, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Titans cornerback L’Jarius Sneed (38) runs out during player introductions against the Indianapolis Colts at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

The Tennessee Titans finally got their top cornerback back onto the practice field today. Rumblings about L’Jarius Sneed returning from the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list this week began this weekend, were amplified by head coach Brian Callahan leaving the door open at Tuesday’s practice, and the announcement was finally made on Wednesday morning.

Sneed was back on the practice field on a day in which the Titans weren’t in full pads, and participated in some conditioning and individual drills to ease back into the lineup. He spoke to the media after practice as well, which was the first time those of us in Nashville have had the chance to talk to him since locker clean-out day in January. He even shared his expectations for when he’ll be ready to play in the regular season. Here’s everything we saw and heard at Wednesday’s practice:

Sneed’s First Practice Back

Sneed’s return to the field was largely muted, as you’d expect it to be after such a long time in rehab. Week 6 at home against the Indianapolis Colts was the last time he was on a practice or game field in any real football capacity, which was October 13th, 2024. That was 311 days ago. Here are a couple of videos that provide a brief glimpse of his work today:

It was all pretty much a jog through for him in these individual periods, which weren’t really the highest intensity drills for anybody in shorts and helmets today. After practice, he told us about the support he’s felt from his coaches and teammates throughout this process.

“Everybody’s been on my side, just trusting the process. I think they’ve been frustrated for me, because I’ve wanted to rush and get back.”

He seemed relieved and at peace with his situation, explaining how glad he is to be back.

“It’s a very big release, coming out here, being a part of everybody as a whole and not just in there rehabbing all the time. It’s a big deal.”

He clarified that his quad injury, which was the initial reason he missed most of last season, is healed and totally behind him. He also said his legal issues in Texas aren’t a concern for him right now. The reason he’s been missing time in camp recently is recovery from the knee scope he got back in May, cleaning up the chronic knee issue he’s had since his time in Kansas City. Everything is management at this point, Sneed said. No more active rehab. So with that in mind… when will he be back?

When Will Sneed Be Ready To Play?

The Titans need Sneed back so, so very badly. He is arguably the skeleton key to unlocking the potential of this defense. And as much as you’d like for him to play up to the level that you’re paying him to play, they really just need him to at least be an average starting NFL cornerback. That’s the bar he needs to clear first and foremost for this secondary to feel stable. When asked how much juice he can bring to this team, Sneed didn’t hold back with the expectation-setting…

“Oh you’ll see. You’ll see. When it’s time for them lights to come on, you’ll see a whole different L’Jarius Sneed”

When will that be? Well, Sneed said he’s very confident he’ll be ready to go for Week 1 in Denver. That’s 18 days away from when this article is being written, and Sneed’s first day back doing team drills and some jogging. You can choose to believe whether or not that’s going to come to fruition. Against a good Denver team, they certainly could use him. But it would be a pretty aggressive, impressive ramp-up.

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