The Tennessee Titans preseason schedule is over after a 24-15 preseason loss to the Chicago Bears. General manager Mike Borgonzi and head coach Robert Saleh have less than 24 hours to cut down from 91 men to the initial 53 man roster for the 2026 Titans.

With the NFL’s new roster cut day schedule moved to Sunday August 30 at 5pm CT, it’s a good thing (for the staff and front office) that most of the roster seems fairly cut and dry. This team signed a massive free agent class and is stacked with newcomers and players entering just their second year with the franchise. In a weird way, the competition during training camp hasn’t been as much on the cut-line as it has been the pecking order above the cut-line.

Monday will be when the staff puts together the 16 man practice squad roster (17 if they keep International Pathway player in DT Laki Tasi), which will have discussion points of its own. Without further ado, our final Tennessee Titans 53 man roster prediction.

Final Titans 53-Man Roster Prediction (August 29):

• Veteran Newcomers: 17
• Rookies*: 7

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Quarterback (2)

• IN: Cam Ward, Mitch Trubisky
• Notable Cuts: Will Levis, Hendon Hooker (practice squad option)

Tiebreaker: None.

Stanley: The Will Levis era has come to an end in Nashville Saturday night. Hendon Hooker will be released with a possible return to the practice squad. This is the most straightforward position group on the roster.

Running Back (4)

• IN: Tony Pollard, Tyjae Spears, Nick Singleton*, Julius Chestnut
• Notable Cuts: Kalel Mullings (projected short term IR), Michael Carter

Coin Flip: Last RB

Stanley: Chestnut received a glowing review from special teams coach Bones Fassel this past week, so I don’t see any way he loses out on a spot. The running back group has legitimately had a great camp from start to finish, but the hip pointer injury to Mullings in the August 7 scrimmage has kept him on the shelf ever since. At the time of the injury, I thought Mullings was the fourth back with his running ability improved and his linebacker background for special teams.

Chestnut wins the job, and I think the Titans can use one of their two pre-cutdown injured reserve designated to return options on Mullings to keep him around while he works his way back. Carter should be back on the practice squad, because I think he’s the first man called up to run the ball if something significant happens to Pollard or Spears.

Wide Receiver (6)

• IN: Carnell Tate*, Wan’Dale Robinson, Calvin Ridley, Elic Ayomanor, Chim Dike, Bryce Oliver
• Notable Cuts: K.J. Osborn (practice squad option), Xavier Restrepo (practice squad option), Mason Kinsey (practice squad option), Hank Beatty* (practice squad option)

Tight End (4)

• IN: Gunnar Helm, Daniel Bellinger, David Martin-Robinson, Kylen Granson
• Notable Cuts: Jaren Kanak* (IR), Joel Wilson

Coin Flip: 4th TE vs 7th WR

Freeze: Xavier Restrepo will be the 7th WR if this team keeps 7 on the initial 53. But will they choose to have him up full time from the practice squad if it means keeping one less tight end (or offensive lineman)? We lean no. But the question is interesting, because there’s no doubt Restrepo is a better football player than the 4th TE or 10th OL on this roster. But what specifically is he better at? Offense. So the question becomes, how much impact does an offense-focused WR have the opportunity to make on the average gameday compared to a special teams-focused TE4? It’s worth digging deeper on this question with somebody like Bone Fassel, but my gut says the edge goes to the latter.

Offensive Line (9)

• IN: Dan Moore Jr., Peter Skoronski, Austin Schlottmann, Fernando Carmona*, JC Latham, Pat Coogan*, Jackson Slater, Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, Cordell Volson (instant cut candidate)
• Notable Cuts: Andre James, Austin Deculus

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Defensive Line (9)

• Tackle IN: Jeffery Simmons, Jordan Elliott, Solomon Thomas, Jackie Marshall*
• Big End IN: John Franklin-Myers, Keldric Faulk*
• Rush End IN: Jermaine Johnson, Jacob Martin, Femi Oladejo
• Notable Cuts: Malik Herring, Truman Jones, Earnest Brown IV, Jaylen Harrell (IR)

Coin Flip: Keeping a 10th DL

Stanley: If there’s one thing I’m most certain about getting wrong it’s the ninth or tenth defensive line spot. They’ll keep nine at minimum, and we have the rookie draft pick Marshall getting the tiebreaker because of the investment used on him in April.

Herring, Jones, and Brown IV all are capable depth players in this league, to say the least. I don’t think a tenth spot ultimately makes sense because really none of the three are as versatile on special teams as guys like Martin-Robinson and Granson (at tight end) and the two linebackers below.

Linebackers (6)

• IN: Cody Barton, Cedric Gray, Anthony Hill Jr.*, James Williams Sr., Mohamoud Diabate, Dorian Mausi
• Notable Cuts: N/A

Coin Flip: Keeping all 6 linebackers

Freeze: We’re going to stick with 6 linebackers on this roster. They bring the kind of specials teams prowess that Fassel laid out as his most coveted early in camp: block busting. And they’ve all stood out in one way or another in this camp. Put simply, we think the Titans can use these guys. Easy to justify it when you put it that way.

Cornerbacks (5)

• IN: Alontae Taylor, Cor’Dale Flott, Marcus Harris, Josh Williams, Micah Robinson
• Notable Cuts: Nazeeh Johnson (IR/6 game suspension), Keydrain Calligan, Jalen McMurray*

Safeties (5)

• IN: Amani Hooker, Kevin Winston Jr., Tony Adams, Kendell Brooks, Erick Hallett II
• Notable Cuts: Jerrick Reed II, Bishop Fitzgerald*, Derrick Canteen (all practice squad options)

Coin Flip: The final nickel DB

Freeze: On our previous iterations of this 53-man roster prediction, we were diving the edge to S Erick Hallett as the most direct backup to Marcus Harris as the inside DB on this team. That was over Keydrain Calligan, who’d had some moments of his own this camp but mostly early on. Fair or not, the late risers tend to get the nod in this race. And Calligan’s oh-no moment in the final preseason game at least feels like it may have sealed the deal. He stumbled on a double-pump from Bears WR Zavion Thomas, who got wide open as a result and scored a 97 yard TD on Chicago’s first play on offense. One play is hardly everything, but we’re sticking to our guns with Hallett after that one.

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Specialists (3)

• IN: Joey Slye (K), Tommy Townsend (P), Morgan Cox (long snapper)

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The Titans will learn their final lessons from a joint practice against the Bears and the last preseason game before cutting from 91 to 53 in less than 24 hours. The margins are thin, and special teams value is proving to be the tiebreaker at nearly every contested position.