Three Positions the Titans Could Add on the Waiver Wire

It’s may. Big ticket free agency is over with. The draft has come and passed. Rosters are inflated with cut downs looming — yet needs still remain. As he was last season, I think Jon Robinson could hit the waiver wire once again this year.

These are the three spots that stand out to me.

Safety

The biggest surprise of the Titans draft class was not taking a safety after working out and visiting with several options. The board just didn’t fall right to take one, so that will leave the Titans with Jonathan Cyprien, Da’Norris Searcy and Kevin Byard in some sort of rotation. Outside of those three, Jon Robinson has added Brynden Trawick — who was signed as more of a special teams force, but has filled in for Baltimore and Oakland in the past.

Trawick didn’t play much on the defensive side for Oakland, but did come up big for the Raiders against the Broncos late in the year. Maybe they feel that he can offer a reserve safety role, he just hasn’t really done that with any consistency yet in the league.

Edge Rusher

The Titans actually have three bodies behind Brian Orakpo and Derrick Morgan that they’ve invested draft picks in now. Aaron Wallace, Kevin Dodd and Josh Carraway should be the depth rushers, but I don’t think you can count on any of those guys yet. This was the role Dodd was drafted to fill at the top of the 2nd round in 2016, but that foot injury has kept him from filling it to this point. I don’t think you can count on him with any confidence yet.

Wallace flashed a little speed rush ability, but wasn’t very good against the run. Carraway is a productive rookie, but it’s hard to put a lot of trust into a late day three pick at a position of such importance.

You certainly hope one of these three emerge to be that 3rd pass rushing option, but I don’t think it’s a slam dunk that either of the three step up. If an unexpected veteran hits the waiver wire, Jon Robinson might just have to pounce. This is one situation I can’t wait to watch unfold in camp.

Running Back

I took some heat for listing running back as a need a couple months ago, but the Titans were never entering the season with just two on the roster. They took Khalfani Muhammed in the 7th round as a speed guy with some return ability, but he’s really undersized. I’m not sure you could rely on him in a pinch quite yet. The only other option is David Fluellen, but he seems like more of a camp body at this point.

Running backs get banged up perhaps more than any other position. Maybe Jalston Fowler could handle things in a pinch, but I would think the Titans would need an insurance policy other than Muhammed, who barely weighs over 170 pounds right now. Tennessee was fortunate last year to stay pretty clean on the injury slate at running back — I don’t think you can assume that will happen again.