News Titans Team Notes

[Tennessee Titans]

NFL announces change to first round of 2026 NFL Draft

The NFL announced today that the length of time to make a pick in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft will be shortened from ten minutes to eight minutes. That will make the first round move more quickly than it has in the past, which is a good thing. It has always made me crazy when the teams picking at the top take the whole ten minutes to make their selection when it is obvious who they are going to pick.

This will cut down the time teams will have to negotiate trades in the first round of the draft. That could come into play for the Tennessee Titans. If they do end up with the first pick, they will have a trade negotiated long before the draft ever comes. If they end up somewhere in the three to five range, they currently have the third pick; they could be negotiating a deal when they go on the clock.

The 2026 NFL Draft will take place April 23rd through 25th in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Source: https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/t...unces-change-to-first-round-of-2026-nfl-draft

 

[Tennessee Titans]

Titans Reacts Survey: What’s more important, wins or draft position?

Unfortunately, for the third year in a row, we as Tennessee Titans fans are torn between rooting for the team to win games for morale, or lose games to secure a better draft pick. It’s hard for me to cheer against the team on Sundays, but there is no doubt that getting the number one overall pick would be huge for the rebuild that is underway here. With all of that being said, this week we ask the question, what are you rooting for on Sundays; a win or a better draft pick?

There is also the standard confidence question. Honestly, I felt better about that one after the losses to the Houston Texans and the Seattle Seahawks than I do now. That all has to do with how well Cam Ward played in those games, and how poorly he has played since.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NFL. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Titans fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Source: https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/t...y-whats-more-important-wins-or-draft-position

 

[Tennessee Titans]

Titans news: NFL Draft order tiebreakers

With the Tennessee Titans winning against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, they moved into a three-way tie for the first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft. In case you aren’t aware, strength of schedule is the tiebreaker when it comes to where teams will pick in the draft. The team with the easiest schedule moves to the top of the line. That means that if the season ended today, the Titans, who have faced the toughest schedule in the league, would have the third pick in the NFL draft behind the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders.

Even if the Titans end up tied with just the Raiders at the end of the season, the Raiders, who beat the Titans earlier in the season, would get the first pick. Head-to-head doesn’t come into the tiebreaking scenarios unless strength of schedule and a few other things are tied. All of that to say, the Titans have to have the fewest number of wins in the league to get the first overall pick. There is no other scenario where they would win a tiebreaker for the first pick.

• Apparently, some people took issue with Cam Ward’s postgame comments. I guess they wanted him to do some somersaults after the team improved to 2-11 on the season. Ward is brutally honest with the media and has been that way since he first came to Nashville. I appreciate it.
• There is also the issue from Easton’s article where Will Boling revealed something that happened on the team plane. That stuff is supposed to stay in-house.
• Blake Beddingfield posted his weekly review over at PaulKuharsky.com. It’s a great read every week.
• Tony Pollard has been a solid contributor for this team over the last two years. It was fun to see him have a big game on Sunday:

.@NextGenStats:

Tony Pollard excelled on the edge of the field, with 141 yards outside the tackles, including a touchdown where he rushed for 60 yards over expected. #Titans

— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) December 9, 2025

• Jim Wyatt has the “hot topics” from Mike McCoy’s presser on Monday.

Source: https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/t...63010/titans-news-nfl-draft-order-tiebreakers

 

[Tennessee Titans]

Tennessee Titans week 15 rooting guide

For the third straight year, we, as fans of the Tennessee Titans, find ourselves scoreboard watching for draft position instead of playoff position. The Titans had the first pick in the draft before they beat the Cleveland Browns last week. The win dropped them to pick number three.

Here is the top 10 in the 2026 NFL Draft heading into week 15:

1. New York Giants 2-11
2. Las Vegas Raiders 2-11
3. Tennessee Titans 2-11
4. Cleveland Browns 3-10
5. New Orleans Saints 3-10
6. Washington Commanders 3-10
7. New York Jets 3-10
8. Arizona Cardinals 3-10
9. Cincinnati Bengals 4-9
10. Los Angeles Rams (via Atlanta Falcons) 5-9

As I mentioned earlier this week, strength of schedule is the tiebreaker when it comes to draft position. The Titans are at a big disadvantage there because they have faced the toughest schedule in the NFL this season. So a win this week could drop them all the way to pick eight if other things fell a certain way.

With all of that being said, here are the games we need to be paying attention to this weekend:

Cleveland Browns (3-10) @ Chicago Bears (9-4) 12:00 Sunday​

This one is pretty straightforward. We should cheer for the Browns to win here because that would get them to three wins and put them a full game ahead of the Titans.

Washington Commanders (3-10) @ New York Giants (2-11) 12:00 Sunday​

This one is a little more complicated, with both teams being right behind the Titans in draft order, but the Giants winning here would get them to three and one game clear of the Titans. Go Blue!

Las Vegas Raiders (2-11) @ Philadelphia Eagles (8-5) 12:00 Sunday​

Another easy one here. Let’s go, Raiders!

New York Jets (3-10) @ Jacksonville Jaguars (9-4) 12:00 Sunday​

J-E-T-S. Jets! Jets! Jets! This one would be double fun because it would mean those idiots who scream Duvall would be sad.

Arizona Cardinals (3-10) @ Houston Texans (8-5) 12:00 Sunday​

Another easy one here because it’s always fun to root against the Texans.

Carolina Panthers (7-6) @ New Orleans Saints (3-10) 3:25 Sunday​

I love me some Bryce Young, but hopefully we’ll get Bad Bryce in this one so the Saints can pull off the upset.

Source: https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/tennessee-titans-news/63071/tennessee-titans-week-15-rooting-guide

 

[Tennessee Titans]

Are the Titans going to cut Lloyd Cushenberry?

The Tennessee Titans are coming off their best offensive line performance of the campaign. The Titans rushed for 184 yards in Sunday’s 31-29 Week 14 victory over the Cleveland Browns. Tony Pollard rushed for a career-high 161 yards and two touchdowns, scores of 65 and 32 yards respectively.

Rookie quarterback Cam Ward was sacked just once despite facing the potential sack record-breaker in Myles Garrett. Also, 90 of Pollard’s rushing yards occurred before contact, per Next Gen Stats, proving the offensive line was creating rushing lanes.

All of this was achieved without starting center Lloyd Cushenberry in the lineup.

Here's an insane Tony Pollard stat to go along with his epic run chart:

Per @NextGenStats, Pollard got 90 of his 161 rushing yards today before contact. Shoutout the offensive line!

But here's the hilarious part: coming into today, he had 83yds before contact on the SEASON pic.twitter.com/eMdKVnUbVr

— Easton Freeze (@eastonfreeze) December 7, 2025

Cushenberry has missed two consecutive weeks with a foot injury. He’s been replaced by veteran Titans fan favorite Corey Levin in the lineup. The offensive line has been better with Levin as opposed to Cushenberry, who entered this season coming off a catastrophic 2024 torn Achilles injury.

Cushenberry has struggled, to be expected, given last year’s injury. Levin is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent, but the former Chattanooga standout has been a Titan for the majority of his career and could easily be re-signed to a team-friendly deal. The Titans should also be careful to overreact and make Levin a permanent starter, something he’s never been considered to be in his career.

But you can’t help but wonder if Mike Borgonzi will consider releasing Cushenberry this offseason. He inherited his four-year, $50 million contract from Ran Carthon. Borgonzi has already severed ties with several Carthon acquisitions. Cutting Cushenberry would create $8 million in additional cap space if designated as a post-June move, per Over The Cap.

There was also this interesting tidbit from senior team editor Jim Wyatt in a recent mailbag. “As for the o-line group next year, I suspect three of the five will be back,” Wyatt wrote. Doing some simple math, it’s essentially a guarantee that Peter Skoronski, JC Latham, and Dan Moore Jr. will return next season. Wyatt could be hinting that Cushenberry and free-agent-to-be Kevin Zeitler will potentially be replaced.

Alternatively, upgrading Cushenberry would be difficult. In-house option Jackson Slater seems destined to replace Zeitler at right guard, though it’s difficult to say what his long-term potential is considering we haven’t seen him play yet. Replacing Cushenberry adequately would probably mean the Titans are drafting a center highly, or paying someone like Tyler Linderbaum (who probably won’t actually hit free agency) handsomely.

Cushenberry could also improve next season, another year removed from his Achilles injury. The Titans have a difficult decision to make with Cushenberry’s status this coming offseason. Right now, they’re better off with Levin in the lineup despite the vast difference in their salaries.

Source: https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/t...are-the-titans-going-to-cut-lloyd-cushenberry

 

[Tennessee Titans]

5 observations from the Titans’ Week 15 loss to the 49ers

The Tennessee Titans were defeated 37-24 by the San Francisco 49ers in Sunday’s Week 15 contest. The Titans dropped to 2-12, but remained No. 3 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft order due to fellow losses for the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders. We’ve conjured up five observations from Sunday’s latest setback.

Secondary all out of sorts​

The Titans’ secondary entered the game with rookies Kevin Winston Jr. (nickel) and Marcus Harris (boundary) playing out of position for the third straight week. Reserve safety Mike Brown went down with an injury, and then Winston left with a hamstring. Dennard Wilson responded by putting Kendell Brooks at safety with Xavier Woods, moving Amani Hooker to nickel. Well, Woods then left with a hamstring injury, forcing Wilson to shuffle again. Harris went to nickel, Hooker went back to safety (with Brooks) and Kaiir Elam entered to play cornerback opposite Darrell Baker Jr.

Cam Ward from a clean pocket​

The Titans’ offensive line has consistently improved in recent weeks. They were excellent in pass protection last week and that largely continued versus the 49ers. Rookie quarterback Cam Ward was especially sharp throughout the first half, going 10-of-150 for 1o5 yards and a touchdown. This 34-yard passing score from Ward to Gunnar Helm was a thing of beauty.

WARD TO HELM FOR 34-YARD TD!

TENvsSF on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/6wK6aJe4L1

— NFL (@NFL) December 14, 2025

Responding up front​

Speaking of that offensive line, they had to shuffle the lineup as well. Center Lloyd Cushenberry returned from a multi-week injury, but Dan Moore Jr. missed the game at left tackle, with Oli Udoh stepping up. Tony Pollard rushed for 98 yards and a touchdown via 13 carries (7.5 YPC) and Ward was not sacked. The offensive line has drastically improved in recent weeks.

Missed Cam Ward opportunity​

As effective as Ward was throughout the first half, one glaring misfire hurt the offense. Ward missed a wide-open Jefferson on a 1st-and-10 from the 49ers’ 40-yard line with 19 seconds left. Jefferson had won deep on a double move and may have scored a walk-in touchdown had the rookie quarterback connected with his veteran wideout. The Titans only gained eight more yards on that possession and Joey Slye missed a 50-yard field goal.

Draft order​

As mentioned, the Titans remained at No. 3 in the 2026 NFL Draft order after the Giants and Raiders also loss. Essentially every bottom-feeding team lost in Week 15, including the Jets, Saints, Cardinals, and Browns. It’s a reminder that the Titans won’t have an easy time moving back up the draft order following their Week 14 victory over the Browns, though it’s worth acknowledging the Raiders-Giants play in Week 16.

This Jeffery Simmons TD was AWESOME​

Scramble drill TD to Jeffery Simmons? Scramble drill TD to Jeffery Simmons!

Cam Ward to JEFFERY SIMMONS for the TD!

TENvsSF on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/q6OfAvFbIZ

— NFL (@NFL) December 14, 2025

Source: https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/t...ons-from-the-titans-week-15-loss-to-the-49ers

 

[Tennessee Titans]

Titans drop to 2-12 with 37-24 loss to the 49ers

It’s almost over. The Tennessee Titans dropped to 2-12 on the season today after losing in San Francisco 37-24. The Titans’ defense had no answers for the 49ers’ offense today. To be fair, they lost three safeties in the first half. It’s going to be tough to stop any offense when that happens.

There was at least one fun thing that happened in this game. Cam Ward scrambled to keep a play alive and found Jeffery Simmons in the back of the end zone for a touchdown. That came after a 43-yard Ward pass to Van Jefferson.

The only thing to even care about with this team on the field anymore is Ward. He missed another potential big play down the field today to Jefferson. He’s missed too many of those throws this year. There were also at least two passes he threw that could have been intercepted. It’s tough to evaluate him playing with such a bad supporting cast, but it is safe to say there is a lot of stuff he needs to work on this offseason.

Gunnar Helm set the franchise record for receptions as a rookie and had a really nice touchdown catch. He also inexplicably lined up offside twice on the same drive. Then, he left the game with a toe injury (he did return at least). It’s been that kind of year for the Titans.

The Titans had a chance to get the ball back down by two touchdowns with good field position in the fourth quarter after the 49ers missed a field goal, but Simmons hit the long snapper again. The penalty gave San Francisco a first down. They would end up getting a field goal.

The Titans also didn’t get much help in regards to the 2026 NFL Draft order today. The Saints won to get to four wins, but that was it. The Titans still currently hold the third pick in next year’s draft.

Source: https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/t...ans-drop-to-2-12-with-37-24-loss-to-the-49ers

 

[Tennessee Titans]

Titans opening odds: Tennessee a 3.5-point underdog vs. Chiefs

The Kansas City Chiefs come to Nissan Stadium to take on the Tennessee Titans this week. Before yesterday, that game looked like another one that the Titans had no chance at winning. This defense, being as banged up as it is, against Patrick Mahomes would be a blowout. Well, Mahomes went down with a torn ACL yesterday. That means the Titans will get the Chiefs with Gardner Minshew at the helm.

The Titans are currently a 3.5-point underdog over at FanDuel Sportsbook. Look, I’m still not touching that line. As I sit here on Monday, do I think the Titans have a chance to cover? Absolutely, I do, but if we know anything about this team, we know that they are wildly inconsistent. That makes them a terrible team to ever bet on.

We also don’t know what the Chiefs ‘ mindset will be coming into this game. They were eliminated from the playoffs yesterday. It is the first time they will not be a part of the postseason in over a decade. There are also rumors out there that Andy Reid could be retiring at the end of the season. All of that to say, there are a lot of things going on with Kansas City. How locked in will they be when the game kicks off on Sunday?

It might be worth sprinkling some money on Titans +3.5….

Source: https://www.musiccitymiracles.com/t...odds-tennessee-a-3-5-point-underdog-vs-chiefs