After quarterback, running back, fullback, wide receiver, tight end, offensive tackle, guard, center, defensive line, outside linebacker, and inside linebacker, the next stop on our trip around the Tennessee Titans position by position as we head into the 2016 offseason is a look at the cornerbacks.
In the OLB positional analysis, I noted that the Titans’ defense, namely their pass defense, completely collapsed after Derrick Morgan’s injury. In that post, I stressed the inadequate nature of the Titans’ depth at OLB and their desperate need to add another contributor-level player there. But the pass defense wouldn’t have collapsed anywhere close to as badly as it did if the Titans did not have serious, devastating, potentially crippling roster weaknesses opposing passers could then exploit.
My preseason cornerback positional analysis actually expected some improvement. But as I noted in my later roster breakdown, that improvement was from a dismal 2014 campaign where they had extremely obvious and glaring weaknesses and virtually no chance corner would be a non-disaster unless absolutely everything broke right. I stand by my assessment 2015’s grouping was better, but there were no known quantities entering the season and, well, the disaster scenario my glass-mostly-empty mind constructed came to pass the last six weeks of the season once the front seven stopped covering for the weaknesses at corner.
Jon Robinson will clearly have to do something at corner, lest the end of last year be repeated. Before diving into what form that might take, though, let’s look at what the Titans got in 2015.
Jason McCourty was supposed to be the one player who was a known quantity. Then he hurt his groin in training camp, had surgery on it before the season began. He finally made it to the field in Week 5, then aggravated his groin injury, and ended up on injured reserve after playing only four games (212 snaps, 20.0% of total, 81.9% when active). I’m writing it off as a lost season.
His $7 million salary and that 2015 was a lost season might put him on other people’s list of potential cap casualties, but not mine-the Titans have too many issues at just corner, let alone the rest of the roster, to create more. The other suggestion mooted by people not connected with St. Thomas Sports Park has been that he should move to safety. It’s easy to see where that suggestion came from-the Titans need a free safety, and his twin brother successfully made the same move. So far, they’ve given us zero indication that has a chance of actually happening.
So, my expectations for J-Mac for 2016: he’ll be on the Titans, he’ll play corner, and he’ll play a lot as long as he’s healthy.
I wasn’t sure exactly what the Titans would get from Perrish Cox because for an older player (broke into NFL in 2010), he had a fairly limited track record and fell off a cliff at the end of the one season he was a starter. Did he do the same this past year? Eh. A midseason hamstring injury cost him most of Weeks 6-10 (8 snaps, inactive, inactive, 33 snaps, inactive), but I thought the rest of the time he was the Titans’ best, most consistent cornerback. Granted, that’s not saying much, but it was something. He ended up playing 702 snaps (66.2% of total, 93.1% outside Weeks 6-10), was credited with 7 passes defensed, and had 1 interception.
My guess is his likely 2016 role depends a bit on what the Titans do at the position. Like last offseason, my early guess is he’s at least the nickel and may compete to start on the outside once again. By next training camp, it might be as obvious as it was last training camp that he’s locked in as the starter opposite McCourty, but I’m not counting on it.
Coty Sensabaugh played the most snaps of any Titans defensive player at 1007 (95.0%), not just any corner. So why am I listing him third? Because I did actually watch the Titans play in 2015, as unpleasant as the experience was at times, and the order in which I list players is a slight mishmash of their actual 2015 role, their 2015 role when all players were available, and their potential role with the Titans going forward. Sensabaugh’s rookie contract is up, and I doubt the Titans have interest in re-signing him. That he played as much as he did in 2015 was a reflection of the Titans’ depth chart, not what I think his likely 2016 role is. By FO numbers, he actually tied Zach Brown for second on the team in pass defeats, which include turnovers, tackles for a loss, and tackles (or passes defensed) that resulted in a stop on third or fourth down. That he did so is a testament to the fact that he battled (and that he was targeted a lot).
Blidi Wreh-Wilson began the season as the fourth corner, but fell out of favor and was a healthy inactive six times, including in the final four games (297 snaps, third among the group, 28.0% of total). He’s heading into the final season of his rookie deal, but after the way he ended the season I have zero confidence he’ll be on the 53-man roster.
A former Dallas Cowboys pick, B.W. Webb started the season on the practice squad and was signed active roster before the Saints game. He finished the season as the nickel corner for the last five games (256 snaps, 24.2% of total, 41.5% when active). I was surprised he played as much as he did, given that he seemed to be a preferred and often successful target of opposing passers from when Drew Brees first sighted him on the field. But the Titans kept trotting him out there, so I assume they liked him. Maybe a CB4 candidate, but I’d be very hesitant to go into the season with him penciled in for more after how he played last year.
Cody Riggs surprised my early expectations by making the team as an undrafted free agent, got some playing time around midseason, then played just 12 snaps in the final six weeks (inactive twice). I’ve seen reports of unknown reliability Dick LeBeau likes him. His size likely limits him to a slot role going forward. That he didn’t get more of a live tryout late in the season (sorry, 170 snaps, 16.0%, wasn’t enough for me) tells me the Titans aren’t necessarily counting on him. He’s probably in the CB4/5 mix, but I’d be very hesitant to go into the season with him penciled in as the nickel given (a) Cox is a better slot option, and (b) he didn’t play more as a rookie.
Brandon Harris tore his ACL in the offseason and spent the season on injured reserve. He’s set to be a free agent and I doubt he returns. Curtis Riley was another undrafted rookie and spent the season on injured reserve after his injury. He should be in the depth mix come training camp. Former Vandy player Steven Clarke was signed to a futures contract after the season ended. He was with the Dolphins in training camp in 2014 and played in the CFL last season. Throw him in the depth mix as well.
Conclusion-Type Thoughts
Going through what the Titans have really clarified what the Titans need to do this offseason. They have two players they could reasonably count on to play prominent roles on defense. They have a larger number of players who could be candidates for the CB4/5 spot, but whom they probably should not be counting on to play major roles if they don’t want corner to be a disaster area like it was in 2014 and 2015. Thus I believe the Titans should add a player capable of contributing at least at a significant rotational level in 2016, and to ensure they have quality depth should consider adding two such players. I would not be surprised by, and could easily defend, the Titans using some of their cap space to pursue a starter in free agency while also drafting a corner in the middle rounds.
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