Tennessee Titans’ First Round Was A Letdown At NFL Draft

The Tennessee Titans ended up not trading down in the 2017 NFL Draft.

Before we get too far, I didn’t watch the first round of the NFL Draft live on Thursday night. And I purposefully haven’t read any analysis of the Tennessee Titans‘ draft yet.

I was across the river from Nissan Stadium on Thursday evening, catching a concert in downtown Nashville. Obviously I was checking in on the draft on my phone, but for the most part I was trying to wrap my head around the $18 cocktails that were being served (seriously, who charges that much?!?).

As the draft results started popping up on my phone, I was as surprised as anyone. The Bears taking a quarterback at number two and the Jaguars taking a running back at number four was exactly what the Titans needed to happen.

Throughout the “draft season” I felt like the Titans needed to land an elite playmaker on defense. Tennessee has some needs on both sides of the ball, but they already have a playoff roster in place. I certainly hope they aren’t planning on a rookie helping them make it to the playoffs next season.

That’s why I figured the dream scenario for the Titans was for either Jamal Adams or Malik Hooker to fall to them at five, both of them are game changing safeties and potential franchise players like Eric Berry.

So that’s why I was shocked when both of those players were available and the Titans went with….Corey Davis?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big fan of Corey Davis. He seems like he will be a solid wide receiver in the NFL. Had the Titans traded down, I feel he would’ve been a great pick around the 10 to 12 range.

But the Titans’ defense, I feel, was a much more important unit to upgrade. The Titans are a run first team. That isn’t going to change with Corey Davis on the roster.

It seems like folks put way more importance on wide receivers being a key part of a playoff team than maybe I do.

I look at teams like the Patriots last season, or the Panthers in 2015. Teams that didn’t have an elite wide receiver, that were built similar to the Titans, that reached the Super Bowl.

Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like Jamal Adams or Malik Hooker is going to help a team go deep in the playoffs before Corey Davis does.

As for the Titans’ 18th pick? I thought cornerback Adoree’ Jackson would go later in the first round, but he’s still going to be a good player.

(For what it’s worth, I think Gareon Conley, who went 24th to the Raiders, is a better player, but I understand the legal situation surrounding him made him a gamble.)

The Titans had plenty of options with the 18th pick. No one thought tight end OJ Howard would still be there at that point, but Tennessee likely didn’t want to go with two offensive players in the first round, which I applaud.

Overall I feel the first round was a bit of a letdown for the Titans. Missing on a player that could have an Eric Berry like impact on a team is a big loss. Adams and Hooker were two of the most sure things in the draft. The fact that were both available for the Titans is something that could haunt the franchise in the future.

Wide receivers drafted in the first round have a relatively high bust rate. Just look at guys like Justin Blackmon, Cordarrelle Patterson and Troy Williamson (and many, many more).

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I hope for the Titans’ sake that Jon Robinson got this one right. It’s a hell of a risk, but maybe it will pay off for Tennessee.