ESPN's Latest Rankings Deliver a Harsh Blow to the Titans' Skill Position Players
During the annual offseason evaluations, ESPN assesses and ranks each NFL team's running back, wide receiver, and tight end units. In the 2021 rankings, the Tennessee Titans enjoyed a lofty third-place position, boasting a formidable trio of Derrick Henry, AJ Brown, and Julio Jones, which solidified their status as Super Bowl contenders. However, the Titans' […]
During the annual offseason evaluations, ESPN assesses and ranks each NFL team's running back, wide receiver, and tight end units. In the 2021 rankings, the Tennessee Titans enjoyed a lofty third-place position, boasting a formidable trio of Derrick Henry, AJ Brown, and Julio Jones, which solidified their status as Super Bowl contenders. However, the Titans' fortunes have taken a sharp downturn since then, as reflected in ESPN's latest edition, where they are sitting at a disappointing 29th spot in the rankings.
The Titans continue to possess one of the premier running backs in the entire NFL in the form of Derrick Henry. Following another exceptional season, Henry amassed 1,538 rushing yards and tallied 13 rushing touchdowns, placing him second league-wide in both categories. Nonetheless, despite his remarkable production, it is worth noting that Henry is getting older and exhibited glimpses of regression during the previous season. ESPN appears to hold the belief that Henry may be poised to regress in the upcoming season:
That would be fine, maybe, if the Titans had prime Derrick Henry, A.J. Brown and Corey Davis as their big three. We're not there. Henry stayed healthy last season but continued to shed efficiency; after generating 685 rushing yards over expected (RYOE) between 2019 and 2020, he has mustered only 114 over the past two seasons combined. He also fumbled six times. Henry set career highs as a receiver, which helps his case, but it's more likely 2023 reveals the good player from 2021 and 2022 as opposed to the Offensive Player of the Year candidate from the prior two campaigns, just given his career path, workload and age (29).
No matter what you expect from Henry going into this season, he may be the only thing holding this team out of last place. The Titans are incredibly thin at tight end and even thinner at wide receiver. While Chig Okonkwo and Treylon Burks have potential, neither has proven they can be reliable number-one options yet. Behind them, the Titans' depth chart starts to look bleak.
Nick Westbrook-Ikhine currently holds the position of WR2 for the team, even though the team released then resigned him earlier this offseason. The third wide receiver spot is occupied by Kyle Philips, a fifth-round pick with a modest total of eight career catches. The situation at the tight end position is equally challenging, with Trevon Wesco and rookie Josh Whyle serving as the second-string options. Unfortunately, neither of them instills a great deal of confidence. Here is what ESPN had to say about their situation:
The receiving game will almost entirely belong to a pair of second-year players. Treylon Burks was unfairly forced to play in the shadow of the Brown trade and ran just 242 routes all season because of injuries, but the first-round pick did average 1.83 yards per route run. That's roughly in line with what Christian Kirk did for the Jags, but in addition to playing with a much better quarterback, Kirk ran 350 more routes than his divisional counterpart. The Titans have no choice but to turn the lead wideout role over to Burks. The most pleasant surprise for the Titans amid a disappointing 2022 season was the emergence of rookie fourth-round pick Chigoziem Okonkwo, whose 450 receiving yards nearly led the team. (Robert Woods got there with 527 yards.) Okonkwo averaged 14.1 yards per reception in a season in which he seemed to break free for one big play every week, and there's still more meat on the bone for a tight end who played 378 snaps. In a perfect situation, Burks and Okonkwo would be secondary and tertiary players primed for breakouts behind established stars. Here, they're the passing game's only hope.
If Chig or Burks break out as anticipated, or if the Titans successfully sign Deandre Hopkins, they could shoot up these rankings in a hurry. Until then, the skill position players are ones to keep an eye on throughout the offseason.
Featured Image via: © Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
