The Titans/Oilers have drafted 27 players in the fourth round since 1997, the year they relocated to Tennessee. The best of the fourth-rounders was the first they selected in their first year in Tennessee. Derrick Mason has been an extremely productive NFL player who was a casualty in the Great Salary Cap Purge of 2005.
Mason’s selection was followed by a drought with only one good selection in the next 13 fourth-round picks. Peter Sirmon was a pretty good linebacker before tearing an ACL. Sirmon played two more years but wasn’t close at all to being the same player he had been.
The Titans have enjoyed recent success in the fourth round. Eight of the last nine fourth-rounders and 10 of the last 13 are presently on the roster. Five of them (Fuller, Stewart, Tulloch, Harris and Hayes) will be starters this year and a sixth (McRath) could be. Yes, I consider Fuller to be a starter even though he’s not often on the field for the first defensive play of the game. He’s the first nickel and is on the field for about half of the defensive plays.
Here’s the list of the 27 fourth-round picks. Mason’s stats include only those as a Titan/Oiler.
1997 WR Derrick Mason: 8 years, 122 games, 74 starts
453 receptions, 6,114 yards, 37 TDs
182 PR, 1,590 yards, 2 TDs, 156 KR, 3,496 yards, 1 TD
2 Pro Bowls, 1 first-team All-Pro selection
1997 DE Pratt Lyons
1998 DT Joe Salave’a
1999 DB Brad Ware
1999 CB Donald Mitchell
2000 DB Bobby Myers
2000 LB Peter Sirmon 7 years, 81 games, 53 starts, 342 tackles, 5 sacks, 4 INTs, 1 TD, 1 FF, 1 FR
2001 WR Justin McCareins
2002 DB Mike Echols
2002 CB Tony Beckham
2002 LB Rocky Boiman
2003 DT Rien Long
2004 DE Bo Schobel
2004 CB Michael Waddell
2005 S Vincent Fuller 5 years, 53 games, 5 INTs, 4 TDs, 125 tackles, 2 FF, 1 FR
2005 T David Stewart 5 years, 61 games, 61 starts, 5 FR
2005 WR Roydell Williams
2006 S Calvin Lowry
2006 LB Stephen Tulloch 4 years, 64 games, 29 starts, 292 tackles, 3.5 sacks, 1 INT, 4 FR
2007 OL Leroy Harris 3 years, 36 games, 3 starts
2007 WR Chris Davis
2008 DE William Hayes 2 years, 24 games, 11 starts, 41 tackles, 5 sacks, 3 FF
2008 WR Lavelle Hawkins
2008 LB Stanford Keglar
2009 LB Gerald McRath
2009 T Troy Kropog
2010 CB Alterraun Verner
While Mason is clearly the best, I consider Stewart to be the second best. What are your thoughts on the Titans fourth-round draft picks? Any in particular you really like or dislike?
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