Haters of the Titans’ Free Agency spending spree are missing a big recent NFL trend, but supporters should think twice before gloating about it

To spend or not to spend? That is the question when you enter free agency with a ton of money and a ton of holes like the Titans did.

Easton Freeze — Tennessee Titans Beat Writer
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Nobody in the NFL spent more than the Tennessee Titans in the first week of free agency this year.

$313.3 million. That’s how much money they dedicated to new contracts at the beginning of this player acquisition cycle. They brought in volume at the back of the roster to fill out some depth, but you don’t get to such a staggering figure without signing some big time starters too.

The player making the most money on an average annual value basis (AAV) is Jeffery Simmons at $23.5 million. He is now followed by six free agent signings until you get to the next homegrown Titan: Amani Hooker at $13.5 million.

DT John Franklin Myers at $21 million, CB Alontae Taylor at $19.33 million, WR Wan’Dale Robinson at $17.5 million, and CB Cor’Dale Flott at $15 million AAV have all just been added to the books between Simmons and Hooker. They constitute a majority of that $313.5 million figure.

Detractors of how the Titans have approached free agency look at this kind of spending spree as the “winning” of free agency that typically ages horribly in the actual season. But recent history offers an interesting rebuttal.

Recent top spenders in NFL free agency have won more games

It’s long been sage advice to remember in the spring: Champions aren’t built in free agency, they’re built in the draft. And fundamentally, that is true. Building your roster through the draft is far more efficient when aiming for long term success than taking big swings in free agency. We see teams spend big and then fall flat on their faces all the time. The Titans did this just recently in 2024, a cycle that ultimately led to GM Ran Carthon’s dismissal. This is why every front office in the league aims to draft and develop first, supplementing their roster with veterans second.

But you may be surprised to learn that since 2019, the team who spends the most money in free agency has enjoyed a year-to-year increase of at least three wins! So at least lately, you can in fact buy yourself some more W’s!

The 2019 Jets spent $202 million and went from 4 wins to 7. The 2020 Dolphins spent $236 million and went from 5 wins to 10. The 2021 Patriots spend $286 million and went from 7 wins to 10. The 2022 Jaguars spent $268 million to go from 3 wins to 8. The 2023 Broncos spent $254 million to go from5 wins to 8. The 2024 Panthers spent $258 million to go from 2 wins to 5. And the 2025 Patriots spent $384 million to go from 4 wins to 14, a staggering ten win increase.

So Titans fans should tell the haters to shove it, right? Well, not so fast. This is clearly all about setting a floor for your franchise. Yes, you can establish competency and a baseline level of competitiveness by blowing out the budget in free agency. But as you’ll notice about most of these top spenders, they mostly stepped out of the basement with these off seasons. Only the Patriots stepped into the penthouse. And does anybody look back on that having more to do with free agent additions than the breakout of Drake Maye and addition of Mike Vrabel? Of course not. Elite QB play in particular will always lead to higher tides.

Titans fans should also remember that they themselves were top-5 in spending for two of these seasons, and it led to a grand total of one more win. Going big on free agent contracts in Nashville hasn’t gone particularly well recently.

So yes, The Titans have reason for hope thanks to this free agent haul this season. Three more wins, if they follow the trend, will mean they at least double their win total from each of the past two years! But that accomplishment merely gets them to a slightly less pathetic 6-11 record. Taking that first step is critical and would be a welcome sight around here. But you must strive for better. And that’s where prudence and nailing the draft makes or breaks you.

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