Titans Positional Analysis: CB

FA, Antonio Cromarti or Chris Houston, good pickup, Houston has Rocker ties.

 

I think we're set with Finnegan, Verner, and McCourty as our 1-2-3. Hood and Fuller make up for solid depth. I'd like to see us get rid of Mouton, and sign an average FA to provide extra depth.

I wish we would of drafted Davon House with our 4th round (comp), and Harper with our 5th. That would complete our CB spot, but oh well!

 

This is a position that a lot of board members wanted the Titans to upgrade in the draft, but it's not one that I see as a position of need. I actually like the depth the Titans have. The Titans seem to feel the same way, since they didn't draft any new CBs.

I think we can expect Finnegan to bounce back a bit. He may never get back to a Pro Bowl level, but he should improve his play. Verner should be even better in his second season. McCourty is a solid nickelback and could probably be a decent starter if Finny or Verner get hurt. After them, the depth is acceptable.

I think the key to getting better play from the secondary is getting an improved pass rush and we should see that, since the Titans will be getting back Derrick Morgan and I'm hopeful that Akeem Ayers and Jurell Casey will help improve the overall pass rush. I think we might also see the Titans make a medium-sized splash by signing a pass rusher in free agency.

I expect several people to say that they think the Titans should pay whatever it takes to sign Nnamdi Asomugha, but that definitely won't be happening. He will sign with a team that really, really needs him (maybe the Texans) for a lot more money than he's worth. He might even become the highest-paid defensive player ever. The Titans would be better off spending that money on more important positions (like a contract extension for CJ, a veteran mentor for Locker and maybe a new MLB). If the Titans sign any free agent CBs, I expect they will be depth moves and nothing more.

 

I think Finny will bounce back, and it was more mental last year, he's a better athlete than people give him credit for. He's at his best when he's annoying, and after Johnson socked him, it was obvious Finny was avoiding contact. Which is why the second game against Houston needed to just be over for Finny's sake, as you can tell it was awkward as both him and Johnson were avoiding even touching each other. As long as he's annoying, but smart about it (not taking cheap shots), he'll be fine and could return to pro bowl status.

See, Asomugha isn't just another good player at his position. He's a legitimate shutdown corner, and those are rare. Not only that, but he's top 5-10 player in the entire league. It doesn't matter if another team needs him more because guys like him alter an entire offense and mask other flaws. See Haynesworth 08.

Knowing our history, I'm not going to hold my breath to signing him, but either way, Asomugha deserves to be the highest paid defensive player in the league today.

I'd throw him a reasonable offer, why not, maybe he even likes the city of Nashville and would like to live there. And if he declines, he declines, so be it, we move on.

 

We have 3 maybe 4 good CB's in Cortland Finnegan, Rod Hood, Jason McCourty, & Alterraun Verner. IMO that's barely enough. You know one of those guys will be hurt, all their history says they will miss some kind of time. I'm a firm believer that CB like WR is a position you can never have too much talent at. I mean think about it, you can have up to 5 WR's on the field at a time, how can you keep up if you don't have 4-5 solid CB's to follow them down field... With that said, I think we need one more big name to be able to compete with Indy and other teams that have 3 or more WR's that can burn you. And as I said before, it's almost guaranteed one of them will be hurt for some duration of time.

Mouton needs to be cut, plain and simple.

 

I expect Finnegan to bounce back, I believe he is a Top 10 corner in the league. Verner I expect to be even better, and McCoutry will play solid out of the nickel. Not to mention Fuller will probably see time at CB, and we may bring back Hood. I'd like to see us go after a bigger/faster corner, for special teams and developmental purproses... I think Campbell may be that guy (even though he was a 7th rounder)

I don't think the Titans have a shot at NA, he'll want a team where he can get paid, and have a shot of winning a ring. My bet is he'll end up with the 49ers or Cowboys.

 

You think the 49er's have a shot at a ring?

 

I'm hoping Tommie Campbell can play safety. He ran a 4.31 40 and as long as he can hit and cover, I'd love to have that speed out on the field for us. All that to say I think they drafted him to play safety not CB, but I could be wrong.

 

Our secondary is a weakness, period. We had 44 sacks last year but gave up 250 YPG passing. That spells secondary problems. And it's not all Chris Hope, either: it's a CB problem.

Finnegan was great for us for a while, but the injuries are taking their toll. We can't count on him for 16 games anymore and we have to prepare as though he'll be out at least four games.

People think Verner is good because he made a lot of tackles last year. Well, how many of those tackles occurred because he allowed a catch? Tons.

McCourty and Mouton are proven garbage. The whole D falls apart when either starts; and when both start it spells 59-0.

Rod Hood was solid before he got hurt last year. I'm skeptical about a CB with a torn ACL, but he should at least be in camp at the right price.

Nnamdi's price will be astronomical, but we may be able to sneak away with Jonathan Joseph at a fine price (still top corner money but closer to $8 million/year average). And even if we're heavily committed to Verner, I'd love to see Chris Carr back on the roster.