The Tennessee Titans weren’t done at the NFL trade deadline. Tennessee sent safety Amani Hooker and a 2027 fifth-round pick to the Buffalo Bills for a second-round pick. That Bills selection sits at No. 63 overall right now, and it adds real juice to the Titans’ 2027 NFL draft capital.

Hooker leaves on a heater. He has an NFL leading five interceptions, including four in the last three games and three against the Bengals. Buffalo, fresh off a Monday Night Football win, gets a playmaking safety to help push Josh Allen toward a Super Bowl.

So naturally, it’s time for a rapid Titans mock draft.

Why the Amani Hooker trade is a win on paper

A quick note before the picks. When you try to make this trade on the A to Z Sports mock draft simulator (for my money, the best one out there), it gets rejected. Buffalo says no because it would be giving up too much. . . almost DOUBLE the value.

We talked about the same thing Monday when the Jacksonville Jaguars traded for Jessie Bates. The Atlanta Falcons got two picks for Bates, also roughly double his simulator value. Tennessee got one pick, but swapping a fifth-rounder for a second-rounder is a deal I’m totally down with.

I had to force a trade that actually happened. Look at it that way, and it’s simply a good thing for the Titans.

Losing the fifth-round pick doesn’t bother me whatsoever. We’ve talked about this on our 13 Personnel show. NIL is thinning out Day 3 of the draft because players head back to school for more money than a fifth-, sixth-, or seventh-round rookie contract pays in year one, hoping to boost their stock. The back end of the 2026 class was thin, too.

Titans’ first 4 picks in the mock draft

I ran a four-rounder on the A to Z Sports simulator with our guy Ryan Roberts, who handles draft content for A to Z Sports. Jeremiah Smith, still my No. 1 option overall, went first to the Chargers. From there, we went with a ‘stick and pick’ approach with Tennessee’s slots: Nos. 2, 28 (from the Bears), 35, 63 (from the Bills), 66, 104, and 129 (also from the Bears trade).

No. 2: Colin Simmons, EDGE, Texas

For my money, Simmons is the best edge rusher in the class, and I like him over South Carolina’s Dylan Stewart. He has 10 sacks this season, five of them in a single game against Tennessee. He’s dealing with an ankle injury right now, but he’s still an absolute beast.

He posted nine sacks as a freshman in 2024 and 12 last year, so that’s three straight productive seasons. He wins in multiple ways, and the Titans need exactly that.

Put him in No. 98 so nobody has to throw their Jeffery Simmons jerseys in the trash.

No. 28: Zereoue Williams, OT, Utah

This pick probably won’t grade out well on many simulators. Williams is an older prospect but a first-year starter, a big tackle who can move. Utah just had two tackles drafted fairly high last year.

My rule is to draft left tackles before you need left tackles. The Titans did that with Taylor Lewan in 2014 while Michael Roos and David Stewart were still there, and it worked. They tried again in 2020 with Isaiah Wilson. . . and he became the biggest bust in NFL history.

Williams wouldn’t start in year one behind Dan Moore. He’d push for the job in year two and raise both the floor and the ceiling at tackle. Ryan doesn’t think he lasts to 28. However, with two first-rounders, one high and one low, you can afford a longer-term project, like Keldric Faulk. You just have to hit on Carnell Tate and Simmons in the meantime.

No. 35: Kingston Lopa, S, Cal

Here’s the catch with the Hooker deal: it creates a brand-new hole. Hooker was under contract for 2027 and 2028, was playing his best football, and looked like a fit in Robert Saleh’s defense.

Enter Kingston Lopa. He’s long (6’5, 210 pounds) and rangy, a big-bodied safety who plays the middle of the field well. Kevin Winston Jr. can handle the aggressive work down in the box, but Tennessee needs a better center fielder. Pick 35 has been kind lately, too. Seattle took South Carolina’s Nick Emmanwori there, and he became a difference maker on last year’s Super Bowl team.

This safety class is strong. KJ Bolden (Georgia) went 17th to Seattle. Tae Johnson (Notre Dame), who has been injured a lot this season, went 29th to Baltimore (it feels like a Ravens pick). Lopa was the third safety off the board at 35, and Jaylen McClain (Ohio State) went 52nd. Add Ty Benefield (LSU) and Jelani McDonald (Texas), and that’s six safeties in the first two rounds, which is a lot given positional value.

No. 63: Tavion Gadson, DT, Kentucky

You can’t replace Jeffery Simmons, but you need another difference maker up front. Ryan called Gadson an explosive defensive tackle who can play in the B-gap. He has three sacks and five tackles for loss this season, already topping his 2.5 sacks from a year ago. He’s been floating in the 57-63 range in mocks, and we grabbed him right at the Bills’ pick.

Rounding out the Titans’ mock with corner, receiver, and running back depth

No. 66: Vicari Swain, CB, South Carolina

Swain is a good football player. He’s a long, freaky athlete who can run with anybody, and he’s one of the best punt returners in college football. Ryan says he didn’t love Swain entering the season, but he’s improved.

No. 104: Amari Thomas, WR, Houston

Thomas is bigger than Wan’Dale Robinson and could be a more explosive yards-after-catch option out of the slot. Robinson is limited by his 5-foot-8 frame, while Thomas is 6-foot, 205 pounds with more juice after the catch. If Brian Daboll likes using the slot, more depth there makes sense.

No. 129: LJ Martin, RB, BYU

Martin is a bigger back at 6-foot-plus, 220 pounds. He’s not a burner, but he’s a talented runner. Ryan compared him to another former BYU Cougar, Tyler Allgeier, who spent time with the Falcons and Cardinals.

That’s seven picks in the top 130, with five inside the top 66. This assumes Cam Ward is the quarterback or that Tennessee adds a veteran. Still, the Titans address edge, tackle, safety, defensive tackle, corner, receiver, and running back, all with valuable picks.