Titans rookie gets “Better As A Pro Award” from NFL Draft Analyst for player who will outperform their college career
The Tennessee Titans eight man NFL Draft class felt like “great fits” for the new Robert Saleh coaching staff, and Todd McShay saw exactly that with one pick on his draft superlative episode of “The McShay Show”
One of the more frustrating things when covering an NFL team, the Tennessee Titans in my case, is hearing all of the NFL Draft media reacting to how teams did, and you see the media member completely miss the mark.
Well, that’s the opposite of what happened with Todd McShay and Tennessee Titans first round pick Keldric Faulk.
Not that I’m going to throw shade or change my opinion of a national draft media member for missing something. It’s frustrating, not maddening. Because if you’ve heard the Titans discuss Faulk in press conferences you’ve understood what their plan is, specifically.
Faulk is a phenomenal athlete at 6-foot-6, 276 pounds, but his production his last season at Auburn was a head scratcher. After having 7.5 sacks in 2024, the former Tiger posted only 2.5 sacks in 2025.
The Titans were able to trade back up into the end of the first round on draft night to make sure they got someone they new would thrive under new head coach Robert Saleh’s defense.
And that’s where McShay was all over it.
Faulk named “better as a pro” draft pick on The McShay Show”
McShay and his co-host Steve Muench handed out draft pick superlatives on the last episode of their podcast, part of The Ringer’s network.
One of them being the “better as a pro” award. McShay described it as player who had a good college career but they expect the player to blossom into a player who has a better pro career than the college career that got them drafted.
“Keldric Faulk out of Auburn. I just have this clear vision (for Faulk), and I think that was the thing when talking to some people in the league is they felt like they lacked a clear vision. Well, my clear vision for what he could be when I did his report was I saw some shades of Rashaan Gary, but a lot more shades of Arik Armstead.”
“Love it, love that comp, yeah, especially this defense,” Muench enthusiastically adds.
“Oh, and then they get, and then he gets drafted by the Titans,” McShay said. “Guess who was Armstead’s coordinator at San Francisco?”
Saleh was the coordinator for Armstread, and the coach who has seen a few of these big-bodied, quick footed defensive ends that don’t fit specifically what the modern “edge rusher” is supposed to look like.
McShay continues on why Faulk wins this superlative for him:
“Of the top 10 edge rushers in this class, he had the lowest pass rush win rate, but man, did I see flashes when he kicked inside… Thinking about him, the utilization, Saleh, and that defense for the Titans, they traded up for him for a reason.”
“Salah, (could utilize Faulk) on on the first in 10 (downs), or second in threes, higher percentage rundowns on the edge, setting a hard edge with his length. Then kicking him inside on third and 13, third and nine, even second and 14. I can still in my mind see (Faulk) there, like a handful of plays where it’s that quick first step with his length against short arm guards. It was such a mismatch when he was reduced inside as a pass rusher.”
That’s where McShay nailed it. Saleh and Titans GM Mike Borgonzi have spoken exclusively about Faulk’s non-exclusive position on the defensive line in press conferences since trading up from the 35th pick to 31 to get him.
“We see him outside on early downs and kick him inside on pass downs… We think he’s got an elite trait to rush the passer on the inside, and combination between him, Jeffery (Simmons), John Franklin-Myers, I mean, that’s a pretty lethal combination between the three of them. We’ll find different ways to get them all on the field.
Robert saleh
on Faulk April 24
Titans fans should be excited about how the Titans plan to use Faulk, however, immediate expectations need to be contained.
I don’t think it’s fair to expect Faulk to be one of the team’s top sack getters as a rookie, or even as a second year player. Saleh’s defensive front will rotate between seven or eight guys, limiting overall individual opportunities for the sake of fresh legs. I expect Faulk to play on that second rotation, in a default setting, behind Franklin-Myers.
The Titans traded up to get Faulk in the first round, and it should be worth it solely to get the fifth-year rookie contract option of control, exclusive to first round picks.
Faulk could truly explode in the back half of his rookie contract, which is why I love the McShay superlative given to the Titans new defensive lineman.