Draft a DL or CB in first round?

Some things to keep in mind...

If we are gonna keep the scheme the same...which is basically cover 2 zone, we don't need to draft a man to man CB in rnd 1. What we WOULD need is a dominant front 4 and good lb's. There is a plethora of DL talent and depth in this draft and there are some good LB's as well. Frankly, we need a dominant DL, a dominant LB, and another CB...all preferably in the top 3 rounds.

Some of that can be aquired in free agency and I seriously hope it is. I would still go hard on defense unless there is an OC or OG we want. Keeping the OL strong is the best way to keep our D off the field and our Offense rumbling.

Haden is more of our scheme's type of CB. He is extremely active...especially in run support and reminds me of Finny. Not sure how good his man to man skills are because they usually have such a dominant pass rush he didn't have to cover for too long.

Robinson also played a ton of zone coverage. He doesn't look as smooth in coverage as a few others but he had a lot of hype this year.

A few of the guys who had a lot of hype coming into this season (Lindley and Thompson) had off-years for them so it'll be interesting to see what teams think of them.

Arenas and Wilson are interesting guys but both mostly played the slot WR. Many believe Arenas doesn't have the speed to play outside. We'll find out.

I somewhat suspect the Titans will let Brown walk and then draft McCoy if he's there.

Gut

 

Do you really see McCoy being there at our pick? I think Price is more likely if we go DT.

 

I don't think McCoy will be there, but if so, I wouldn't lose Brown, I don't think. I'd re-sign Brown and would cut Jovan Haye loose early. Otherwise, I think right now that 3rd 1-gap DT is Brian Price. FWIW, I don't expect McCoy or McClain to be there when we pick.

I think if he was worth a dang, the Titans would look hard at drafting Carlos Dunlap, as a guy who can play all three downs and get penetration and make an impact early as a rookie.

In my mind, though, a guy like McClain is ideal, because lost in this debate about which defensive player should go first is which among them is fit to lead? I don't want to overrate this intangible by saying something about losing Bulluck soon or possibly already, or KVB declining, but I think there needs to be a guy who's going to bring that eyes-on-me quality to your defense when you need it most. Ideally that guy is a linebacker or 3-down lineman. Then again, if that guy's not there when your team picks, he's just not there.

If the Titans have no interest in Dunlap, I think Jason Paul-Pierre is the likely choice, with a modest re-signing of KVB probable. If you consider the Titans may only keep Hayes, Ford and KVB at DE, then drafting one high and in the middle of the draft is possible.

To compete with Manning and Schaub especially, the Titans best advance is to increase the amount of pressure they get up front. Since acquiring a FA lineman is pretty remote, and if they stand basically pat on DT by re-signing Brown for the same reason, then the greatest area for improvement is DE. Getting someone like JPP or Graham or Dunlap early, then someone like an Austen Lane (6'6 258) from Murray State, George Selvie, or say Brandon Lang from Troy. I think they have to try to upgrade Ball and Kearse's positions no matter what. Priority one.

If the Titans can manage to get back a second or third round pick (which they should be able to use to get a 2nd), they should be able to get another pretty good linebacker, some of whom could fall. Thinking Greg Jones, Bruce Carter, Eric Norwood, Brandon Spikes, who may not hear their named called until round two or later.

 

Well...

While everyone and his Grandmother has McCoy as a sure fire top 10 pick...this influx of Jr's and the All Star games and combine can change things in a hurry.

Personally, I think a lot has to do with where the QB's, Spiller and which DE's - if any - look like sure fire top 10 picks by draft time. Same with CB's now that a lot of the best JR's have come in.

I could see them taking Price, but I could also see them going best LB, DE, or CB too.

And if you want a crazy pick...how about them taking Spiller in rnd 1 if he drops?

Gut

 

Well...

I kind of think there's a decent shot one of them WILL be there.

We have a good shot at drafting him because I'm not high on him. He's not a good enough pass rusher IMO to be a difference maker outside. I think he's a good player, but not what we need.

An excellent point, but I think they won't rate that too highly in their determining factors.

A lot of people are very high on JPP but he's very raw, was not even the best DE on his team, and greatly benefited by having Selvie on the other side. JPP is a boom or bust guy IMO. I don't think he'd beat out Ford or Hayes on the outside and I doubt the Titans could re-sign KVB on the cheap. They be better off attacking a premier pass rusher in free agency and then drafting someone between rnd 2 and 5.

Priority one is getting a premier pass rusher. I think Ford and or Hayes COULD be dominant pass rusher, but I wouldn't count on it. Selvie is like 245lbs...I don't see the Titans drafting him as a DE.

At the moment, 2nd rnd would be a good spot to aquire a good CB. I think there will be good LB's in rnd 1-3 as with CB's and DE's. Unless a 1st rnd LB drops, there should be better value at cb and DL than LB IMO. 2nd or 3rd round would also be a spot to aquire a new dominant OC or OG.

Gut

 

Best DE/DL available at #16. We need some QB pressure. If we had our #2 pick, I'd use it on Javier Arenas- good DB with excellent return skills/experience. We'll have to see how Mouton and McCourty pan out.

 

I don't think there is anyway the Titans simply draft the best DE available. They will probably draft the best defensive player at CB, DE or LB and I wouldn't discard the possibility of drafting a DT if the right guy dropped. I do think with the DEs in this draft there is a decent chance we draft one but it will be the top rated guy on their board and it might not be a DE.

That is why I think it could be McClain if he happens to be there (he won't be, some 3-4 team will take him very early if they are smart).
I don't see anyone they would rate higher than maybe Harden.
If a guy like Morgan slips IMO it is a no brainer to get him.

Until the workouts, the all star bowls and the combine it is hard to get a handle on these prospects right now. I've seen mocks with Morgan going #3 in the draft and some with him going to us. As GUT said it is difficult to predict who will drop to #16. There are some QBs (Clausen, Bradford, McCoy and who knows, maybe Tebow), OTs (OKung, Cambell, Davis), and DTs (McCoy, Suh, and maybe Cody or Dan Williams as NTs). Ss (Berry for sure and maybe even Thomas) Haden, McClain and Spiller that I think could go before our pick. Morgan is a pure 4-3 DE and the guy I would target and because he is a pure 4-3 guy he might be there with so many teams running 3-4.

Morgan IMO is the best fit for us right now.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=10cTyF6CxOE

 

You'd like to think that by draft day our needs will have adjusted a bit.

It's hard to pick up a top CB in free agency, but there will be at least 3 or 4 on the market that would be an upgrade and at least buy us time and options. A Lendale trade for a good CB would be ideal for both sides.

I said before the season that we should wait to see if Bulluck shows signs of decline - if not then re-sign him to a deal that would have him retire as a Titan. IMO, he's still playing at a very high level. The injury bites, but at this point I'd still take him over any draft pick, and over most veterans. McGrath can handle the other side.

That leaves the D line, and I agree with Soxcat that a DT should be on the table as well. If LB isn't as big of a need as it seems now, then I feel like we can pick one up in later rounds. Without a 2nd round pick we'll need to be active in FA, with virtually every unit on D having glaring needs right now.

 

Where I am standing now our immediate need for improvement for next season is an improved pass rush and I am hoping for a quality DE or DT to drop to us in the 1st round. I could also easily see us going for McClain if he dropped to us. With the exception of Haden I don't think we will take a CB in the first, I would expect us to upgrade at CB through free agency.

However, there are so many different permuatations with free agency this year that we could, and probably will be double guessing all the possible scenarios over the coming months.

 

In reality we don't know if our biggest need is DT or DE right now. Personally I'd sign Brown and go after Seymour. Seymour would be awesome as a DT in our scheme. Then hope the best player available in round one is a passing rushing DE. We have to invest in our DL for our defense to work.

We can then address LB and CB in round three.