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Levis wasn't a 'bad' pick. A 2nd round pick on a QB is always trying to find value where value may not exist. That said, he plays dumb. Which isn't to say he is dumb. Listen to him speak. Kid is intelligent. He is ultracompetitive. He works his ass off. But somehow the combination of those assets turns into hero play that simply hurts more than it helps. He is still only 10 games into his career. But I have stated watching Quinn Evers highlights with greater interest.

The mass murderer defense employed by Team Trump. One person was killed. Ok, maybe he did it. Two people were killed. Now they are reaching. There people were killed. Witch-hunt. Four people were killed. Politically inspired. The more times he is indicted, the less guilty the GOP presumes him to be.

I should leave it at ditto but I won't. I think Sankey is better then advertised here, but he has not looked special Of course, the original plan said that you don't need special, you need a committee that can become special. But, there is no depth at the position after Sankey, so the point is moot. I want to take the most positive spin on the OL and just say that RT is a priority, hoping though doubting that Schwenke and Warmack are both still salvageable. TE is a one-man gang. Fortunately finding a blocking TE and an H-back type can be done at relatively low cost. WR is as discussed. Might prove to be the biggest need spot on the team. My position on QB is that we will know in 7 more games. We badly need a OLB with dominant rush skills. We could use an upgrade at the corner opposite McCourty but give the current NFL rules, we might have what we need in Wilson, Huff, Sensabaugh ... provided we can find a player that could create a rush. NT is still a significant need. Woods got exposed when he had to play a full game and Hill is just a guy at the position. I think Stafford will be ok at S. Not sure if Griff or Pollard comes back and Wilson's contract is done at end of year. I do think that Woodyard and Williamson look like they will be successful in the middle of the D, and the d-ends with Casey, Pitoitua, Martin and Klug seem to fit the scheme well. Just have to replace Wimbley/Phillips in the worst way. So no big deal: OLB, NT, S, RT, WR 1, WR 3, WR 4, TE, TE, RB, RB, RB, OG and maybe a QB. Oh, KR & PR would be helpful as well. We got that. Nice article Scotty.

As with the review of the offensive side of the ball, this overview of the business season is built on a central organizing thought: free agents are signed to address immediate needs; rookies are drafted to fill holes one league year down the line. The trick in assessment is simply following the money. Look at the roster, see where dollars are committed after 2014, and then evaluate rookie talents ability to replace the guys that will likely be lost to free agency/veteran cuts. In that vein, this offseason has to be evaluated on three levels: • Coaching changes • Free agent signings / losses • Draft class & UDFA / players not taken in the class Please note that I am far less confident in my ability to review the defensive changes made in this offseason specifically because I am less knowledgeable about Coach Horton’s plans for the defense, specifically with the discussion of multiple fronts. My take on that is simply that we will play some 4-3, some 3-4 and I suspect that there will be plays where we see only 2 defenders with their hands in the dirt while others are standing and moving into various configurations to confuse offenses. Draftniks are likely shaking their heads at my ignorance. That said, the Titans made a number of moves in the draft and in free agency to address the defense. I’ll do my best to put them into context. DEFENSIVE LINE Titans entered the offseason with Morgan, Wimbley, Marcus Dixon and Lavar Edwards under contract through 2015. They made the decision to resign Pitoitua to a significant three-year deal, and to retain Wimbley at a reduced cost contract. If we were talking conventional 4-3, this would be the group reviewed. But we aren’t. Morgan and Wimbley have been redesignated as LBs. Edwards and Pitoitua have been joined at the end positions by Casey, Klug and Martin. Al Woods was signed to a short term deal with the thought he could work across the line. Mookie Johnson was brought back to work with Hill at NT position. And the draft brought a very solid pick up in DaQuan Jones who 6’4, 322 pounds sounds like a guy who can play NT. Twelve guys competing for at most ten positions, depending upon how one classifies Morgan and Wimbley. Titans chose note to take Aaron Donald in the 1st or Louis Nix in the 2nd, so my first thought was that they were confident in Hill (who came on as the season progressed) and Johnson. But further thought suggests to me that they have given themselves multiple options on the nose (Hill, Johnson, Woods, Jones, and Martin) and will see how that group plays out in OTAs and in the fall. Possibly the most troubling decision on the defensive side of the ball has been NOT to resign Casey, a guy who is a fantastic one-technique in a 4-3 but may be a man without a position in the 3-4 front. Casey has been the single most dominant player on the Titans defense the past two seasons. The new coaching staff simply has to put him in position to make plays. He and Klug are both off the books in 2014. Jones was drafted to replace one or the other, while Woods is also a short-term gap filler unless he can prove himself as Pitoitua did and earn a longer term deal. None of us would be shocked to see Wimbley fall victim as a camp cut. But remember that he was more effective in the rush role in Oakland’s 3-4. While Casey and Morgan may not fit the new scheme, Wimbley may actually begin to be worth the contract he was given. Keep in mind that by 2016 only Jones will have an active contract amongst the DTs, while Wimbley, Edwards and Pitoitua are signed at DE’s. LINEBACKER GROUP No group underperformed more than this one last year, and perhaps no group stands to benefit more from the change in the coaching staff than this one. In an all too short period of time, the Titan linebackers went from being led by one of the best in the business (Gunther Cunningham) to one of the least proven (Chet Parlevecchio). Yep, the biggest addition to the position group is Lou Spanos. Once again with the shifting roles of multiple defenses come changes to player roles. Inside guys appear to be free agent starter lock Woodard, and then a group of guys fighting for the spot next to him beginning with fellow Kentucky alum and 5th round pick Avery Williamson. Others in the mix include McCarthy, Fokou, Bailey and Brown. Of that group only Brown is signed through 2015. The expectation going into camp has to be that Woodard and Brown are the front runners to start. Ability to dominate on special teams will determine who sticks on the roster beyond the starters. Outside likely sees Ayers, Gooden, and Phillips in competition with Wimbley and Morgan for playing time. Ayers is on his last year of rookie contract while Phillips 2-year deal certainly screams stop gap. Gooden was underwhelming in his rookie year. All of this leads to my personal disappointment that Anthony Barr was chosen a few slots ahead of Titans pick in round 1. Muck like with the defensive line I suspect we won’t know how these guys will actually line up until the third preseason game. Titans brought in three guys to bolster the group (Woodard, Phillips and Williamson). Based on past performance I would expect Morgan, Ayers and Brown to find roles. Two others likely make the roster from Wimbley, Shaw, Gooden, Fokou, and McCarthy. That should be quite the battle in the months ahead. SECONDARY The strength of last year’s defense took a significant hit with the loss of Alteraun Verner in free agency. Draft pundits expected that the Titans would replace him in the 1st, possibly with Darquez Dennard or Brandon Gibson. When Gibson was picked, and Lewan surprisingly fell to the Titans, the team trusted their board and took best player available. That decision cost the Titans some Pundit grade points. Every year we say ‘take the best player available’. I haven’t seen any ranking that didn’t indicate that Lewan was the definitive best player available at that slot (ranked from 5th -8th best available player – Manziel was typically in the 20’s). What we know for certain is that Mike Griffin and Bernard Pollard (resigned for two more years as a free agent) will start at S with George Wilson, now in his final year, as their primary sub. Titans are said to like Stafford who is under contract through 2016, and can convert Marqueston Huff, drafted in the 4th, to that position as well. In short, we know what we have up the middle. McCourty, coming off of his best pro season, will hold down one of the DB spots. Huff might be in the mix to compete with Wreh-Wilson and Sensabaugh for the starting slot. I believe the Titans are very confident that Wilson will start on the outside, and that Sensabaugh will continue to excel in the slot. Tommie Campbell is here for comic relief, and I believe that Micah Pellerin of the Cowboys and Huff will be fighting it out for back up positions behind McCourty and Wilson. SPECIAL TEAMS Rob Bironas will either be replaced by Bonani or UDFA Travis Coons from Washington. That should insure that we no longer ‘settle for 3’ once we get into the red zone. In fact, we may opt never to kick a field goal. Punting will be reliably handled again by Brett Kern, while Beau Brinkley looks to cash a $580,000 check for another year as long snapper. Return team will certain benefit from either a full year of Leon Washington, Mark Mariani, or Dexter McCluster. That alone can add 2 wins to the schedule since the lack of this crew last year absolutely cost us two years. LEADERSHIP I mentioned in a previous thread that the Titans focused their attention on team captains in this year’s draft. Every player we drafted held that role on their team. Pollard was brought back in large part because he was a vocal leader, and Walker serves a similar role on the offensive side of the ball. Titans have had a helluva time pulling out of tailspins for a number of years now. Leadership is critical in this area. Jake is well liked on this team and he is clearly positioned to be ‘the man’ now with Fitzgerald gone. Be curious to see which players emerge on the defense to claim the leadership reins (beyond Pollard). PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER With only six picks thanks to last year’s Justin Hunter trade and the free agency spending binge the Titans were simply not going to get an ‘A’ grade in this draft. Too many holes, too few opportunities. Trading up for Bortles was impossible. Trading back for Carr was clearly not desirable to the front office. So we were left with choosing the best available player in the first, our highest rated running back in the 2nd, and then were fortunate to get a good talent in DaQuan Jones who was projected to go higher by most. Huff will make an immediate impact on special team as will Williamson. Frankly it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if Williamson is able to earn the spot next to Woodard. For many Mettenberger was the talk of our draft. Fans wondered why we didn’t take him in the 2nd. When we got him in the 6th a smart draft became a very exciting one. Someone posted that there are few football reasons why he can’t/won’t start over Jake this season. I’m not going to pretend to enter that argument without bias. For me, it’s Jake’s job until he is outplayed for it (could happen) or is reinjured (CMJ would bet my name Michael that it will happen). THREE STARTERS MAKES THIS AN ‘A’ DRAFT That’s Pat Kirwan’s measuring stick. Get 3 starters from a draft and you have gone a long way to rebuilding a franchise. I have no doubt that Taylor Lewan will be a starting LT. It might happen this year. It might happen next year. But he will certainly carry on the Hopkins>Roos>Lewan legacy. I have no doubt Bishop Sankey will be the Titans starting RB for the next four seasons. And I think he will get the majority of carries this year. If Jones, Huff, Williamson or Mettenberger can break into the starting line-up this year or next, we will clearly have had an effective draft. I like our chances. Click here to view the article

I just finished my defensive write up. Waiting for Guru to post it. Log jam at LB and DL spots. So much has to do with how 'multiple' the multiple sets become. Curious to hear your take after reading my article. Warning. It's long. Surprised? Hell no you aren't.

Thanks Tim.

Roos + Hopkins = 15 plus years. Agree on Thompson. Not related to your post, but I was referencing the NFL.com draft analysis on Sankey about his pass protection. Glad to learn others disagree with that being an issue for him.

Here is the central organizing thought of this analysis: free agents are signed to address immediate needs, rookies are drafted to fill holes one league year down the line. The trick in assessment is simply following the money. Look at the roster, see where dollars are committed after 2014, and then evaluate rookie talents ability to replace the guys that will likely be lost to free agency/veteran cuts. In that vein, this offseason has to be evaluated on three levels: · Changes to the coaching staff. · Free agent signings / losses · Draft class & UDFA / players not taken in the class The consensus on this site, and as best I can tell by NFL pundits, is that the most significant improvement the Titans made this offseason is replacing Munchak and his underperforming coaching staff with Whisenhunt and what most believe is a superior coaching staff. If coaching matters in the NFL, we may have added 2-3 wins before a single player was signed or a rookie drafted. That said, Webster’s front office continued to build on the philosophy established last offseason. Specifically, strengthen line play on both sides of the ball, add leadership, and delete guys that for whatever reasons were less focused on winning and more focused on individual accomplishment. While it has been frequently stated as of late, the roster is perceived to be lacking in star power in general, and just depth of talent on both sides of the ball. Here’s where the Code color glasses begin to show out. It’s my belief that if the coaching staff was significantly underperforming, the talent was defused. In short, we should get a significant talent upgrade simply by matter better use of the players on hand. What we believe the 2014 Titans will be is a power running team that asks our QB to stay in the pocket and deliver longer throws down field (Kurt Warner to Larry Fitzgerald). On the defensive side of the ball it’s all about multiple fronts, increased pressure, and press coverage. End of preamble. How did we do? QB Position Group Titans smartly parted company with Ryan Fitzpatrick, the more accomplished QB on the roster, in favor of career back-up Charlie Whitehurst. While it’s a clear trade down in talent, Whitehurst's history with Whiz means that he will not have to suck valuable reps away from Locker in OTAs and through preseason. The team’s decision, again a wise one, not to extend Jake made it clear that Jake is down to his last chance. Fans wanted a replacement QB to be found in the draft. What we know definitively is that the Titans didn’t put much value in Bridgewater, Carr, Manziel, McCarrons or any of the other top rated guys at the position. What we can’t know is if they had targeted Bortles and if his selection by Jacksonville wholly shifted the Titans' focus. What we do know is that Mettenberg was considered a 2nd or 3rd round talent with flags for back, knee, and drug sample issues. The pre-draft comparisons were to Rapistberger. Good feet, strong arm, accurate thrower, tough, and strong. He comes in with zero pressure and an unproven starter ahead of him. I suspect that he will be given a 30% chance to win the starting job. If Jake’s foot hasn't healed, or if Jake again succumbs to injury bug, I would suspect that Zack will be given a chance to make a few starts. Whiz gets two bites at this apple. He can start with Jake and then fall back to Zack if the season has been flushed (along with Jake’s career in Tennessee). If Zack shows potential we might avoid burning a pick next season. If Jake has a good year we move forward with both guys into the future (provided that Locker can be signed for 2015). RB Position Group In Bishop Sankey the Titans got a 3-down back with comparisons to Lesean McCoy and Ray Rice. He can run between the tackles. He can catch the ball out of the backfield. While he won’t be the HR hitter that CJ was, he can pick up large chunks of yards. Five years ago he would have been a first round pick. Which really helps in my mind offset choosing a first round OT that really has been brought in for 2015 to replace Mike Roos. McCluster should get most of his touches in the slot. Green is still on hand for short yardage situations and possibly as a change of pace and to give Sankey some rest. We should expect a good amount of use of FB in the Whiz offense. I think the position battle with be between Mooney and Battle (rather than Quinn Johnson). I’m curious to see how Sankey does behind a FB. His weakness is in pass protection, so until that gets cleaned up, we might see Green on the field in obvious passing situations to give Jake a little extra protection. TE Position Group No real movement. Walker remains the main man and Stevens with his reduced cost brings blocking capability. If David Wright beats out Taylor Thompson, Ruston might want to hang his head about that original draft decision. Offensive Line The surprise of the draft for many was the selection of Lewan in the first. Not really much of a surprise when you looked at the position group in 2015 and saw that only Oher was under contract at the tackle position. As a fan base we have largely been spoiled by consistently good T play, particularly at LT, with Hopkins giving way to Roos providing roughly 15 years of solid LT play. If Lewan can carry on that string, paired with long-term signed Gs in Warmack and Levitre, the Titans o-line may well be the strength and the identity of the team. I thought the most interesting signing among UDFA was C Gabe Ikard. Expectations of Schwenke significantly upgrading C play last season were never met. Some of that can be attributed to injuries. Some of that can be attributed to inexperience. But bringing in a smart, relatively athletic rookie might allow the Titans to save a few bucks over the cost of a veteran offensive lineman. Wide Outs Titans have investments in Wright, Hunter, and a few dollars in Preston through 2015. Washington comes back and will be counted on in a significant way. McCluster is more a member of this group than the RB room. Preston is the only true big body in the group, which could potentially open the door to UDFA Josh Stewart or former high draft choice like Brian Robiskie attempting to get his career restarted in Tennessee. Addition by Subtraction On offense it’s possible that the three biggest additions in this offseason were actually subtractions. The former face of the franchise, Chris Johnson, is now a Jet. Kenny Britt, unlucky in love, unluckier in the health department, took his first round talent to STL. Ryan Fitzpatrick, a great beard but nothing more than a journeyman QB has stopped stealing reps from Jake and Zack. Add the changes to the offensive coaching staff and we will clearly see a very different Titan offense. It’s been said that it’s all on Jake. I don’t think so. In fact, I think the team has done everything they can to take it off of Jake. They gave him a potentially dominant offensive line. They gave him a back that will get the yards that are blocked for him. They gave him a scat back/slot guy in McCluster who can turn 5 yards into 50. They gave him two high round WRs in Wright and Hunter. Now if Jason Michael and the Whiz can get his head straight, and if his body can catch a break, we will finally learn in year four what we should have learned in year two … can the Titans win with Jake at QB? Click here to view the article

It would be awesome to agree or disagree with Oilerman. I just am very uncertain in terms of where the team is heading and how they plan to use personnel. In general, I agree that superstar splash signings are fraught with risk. That said, our defense with Mario Williams would have been significantly better than without him. In general, I agree that you build through the draft, filling out short term gaps in free agency, particularly in areas where the draft is weak. When you consider the four guys Oilerman specifically mentioned ... here are my initial thoughts: > Wimbley in last year's defense was a bust. With the switch to the 3-4, his value may be increased. Is it increased to the level of his current contract? No idea, but tend to think no. > Washington. Important piece in the offense and a veteran presence. That said, this is an incredibly deep draft for WRs. We don't necessarily need his cap savings. The future, in theory, is Wright and Hunter. I would rather see us spend the money to lock up a younger Damian Williams for three years rather then hold on to Washington. I will say that Derrick Mason proved that an older vet has his value when we let him go to the Ravens. > CJ. Running back is just a diminished value position in the NFL. I don't think committee approach will be a lasting trend. But I think that there are enough locker room mitigating circumstances that end CJ's tenure here. > Verner. Very tough. He is entering his prime. Despite some limitations, he has been very productive. We have the cap room. And I don't think he is the type of guy who would cause problems under the franchise tag. On the flip side, Sensabaugh may be every bit as good, and Wreh Wilson was drafted I think specifically to take AVs spot. I guess the decision is made based on coaching staff perception of Sensabaugh and Wilson and I have no idea where that evaluation comes out. If we were tight to cap I would think AV would be gone. But we aren't, and a 1-year commitment makes some sense. This may come down to whether the staff wants new veteran leadership on both sides of the ball, and what Pollard is asking for to re-up. Got no strong opinion one way or the other.

Oldschool. Was he fired?

Refer to my earlier post. Transformed a very bad SD offense into a very good one (top 5) with a bunch of spare parts and a very good rookie in Keenan Allen. I think the best thing he has done is turn Philip Rivers career around plus he got more out of Ryan Matthews then anyone could have expected. I like this hire. Glad we went offense. Glad we went to a Cowher disciple. This could fail or succeed, but the decision makes sense after having attempted to grown an assistant into a Head Coach. Wiz knows the drill (Roman, Bevell, Quinn would all have been learning on the job as Munch had done).

Personally I like a 3-4. We don't have anything close to the personnel for it. But I have always liked the multiple looks it allows. I wonder if Casey and Klug can work on the outside? I have no doubt Hill and Johnson can at least in the short term play the nose. Morgan is probably too small as a 3-4 end, but maybe he can play it. I would guess Ayers would slide into the middle. Brown and Gooden are on the edges, and McCarthy gets the other inside slot (think he played in a 3/4 at Miami. Really, I guess I am most excited about a change to a 3-4. No good reason. Just like the formation.

I think he chose TN over Detroit because he liked the GM more and felt like he fit bet with Webster. He knows he is only as good as the guy he shops for the groceries. He must be comfortable with Webster as his partner.

Bellicek sucked as a retread. Bet the Pats wished they never hired him. And no, nobody can say that they thought Bellichek was going to be great after he failed in Cleveland. Wiz makes sense to me. Whether he will be great or not is very much a question. But for me, this is as good of a hire as we were likely to make and now no one can say that we have just stayed in the Fisher tree. Things will be different in Nashville. Better? Not sure. Worse? Not sure. Different? Absolutely.