The Titans’ running back room looks different in 2026, but not in the way that many of us suspected it would. The rookie that GM Mike Borgonzi came out of Draft weekend with wasn’t Notre Dame superstar Jeremiyah Smith in the first round. Smith was off the board at third overall, so Tennessee pivoted and picked up Penn St. RB Nick Singleton in the 6th round.

Singleton had a fascinating college career that lends to more NFL intrigue than you’d usually expect from a 6th round back. And in a room that seems like it could be ripe for the winning, there’s a growing number of (I believe fantasy football-drive) fans who think Singleton is here to shake things up.

Head Coach Robert Saleh turned the volume way down on that drumbeat on Thursday.

Robert Saleh makes it clear who his bellcow running backs are

Like the coaching staff before them, it’s clear at practice just how much Daboll and Saleh like the complimentary nature of Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears. When asked about the division of labor between those two veterans, he told us Thursday “we’ll decide that as time goes, but those two complement each other very, very well. They’re both really, really good third down backs. I remember studying last year, you’re not beating Tony (Pollard) one-on-one in a protection system. The guy’s an elite blocker, and he’s also really good out of the backfield. And then Tyj (Spears), from a route-running ability, he’s really good in that regard. They do a really nice job complementing one another. So, like I said, we’ll figure all that out as time goes, but both are really good.”

This answer came on the heels of being asked about how much rookie Nick Singleton fits into the picture. And if you take Saleh at his word, the answer roughly equates to “not a ton”.

“It’s early, obviously. Big back, fast,” Saleh said, describing his rookie RB. “He’s learning it all, he’s got a long way to go from that regard, like all rookies do. But to be clear, Tony (Pollard) and Tyj (Tyjae Spears) are the bell cows of this football team, and Nick’s (Singleton) got to compete his way in to find his way into that group.”

It’s true that this is often the kind of stock answer you get about any rookie who has to earn their keep. But I think it’s pretty close to the reality of the situation this season.

Singleton broke his foot at the Senior Bowl and got surgery in February, which he’s well down the road of returning from. His involvement in OTAs looks as close to “full” at this point as at least the uninformed eye can discern. But is he at full athletic capacity? I’m reminded of when Derrick Henry broke his foot in the exact same way and came back for the playoff game against the Bengals, looking rusty and slow after months of rehab. Perhaps Singleton will reach his 100% fresh mark later on in training camp, I hope to ask him at Mandatory Minicamp this week to see where he thinks he is right now.

But my conservative estimation for Singleton goes far beyond his injury recovery. While he as a uniquely promising rookie profile for NFL breakout potential down the road, he just is not in a position to compete with Pollard or Spears any time soon. Pollard is the league’s current title holder of “Mr. Consistency”, reaching just over 1,000 yards a season in each of the past four years. Singleton isn’t supplanting that guy.

And Spears is a high quality change-of-pace back whose ability seems to have gotten a bit lost on this fanbase thanks to the frustrating fog of injury issues. He hasn’t been available, and it’s why so many write him off. But when he is healthy, he’s better than Singleton is right now. I feel very strongly about that.

Singleton’s path to disrupting things on this roster and proving himself seems to threefold. The first opportunity, God forbit, will be if either starter goes down with an injury. The second seems likely to be if this team is terrible again and in the final games of the year, this coaching staff and front office want to see what they have in him. And the third opportunity, the largest of the bunch, is heading into 2027 when both Spears and Pollard are set to become free agents.

Singleton may be the RB of the future for this team, and I like the upside he brings to the table. But don’t get ahead of yourself on what he’s likely to do this year.