The good and the bad from the Tennessee Titans 2025 draft class

All right, all right. Welcome in to A to Z sports prime time

It is April 29th. The NFL draft is in the past. It is in the rear view mirror

as all eyes now turn to the Cam Ward era of Tennessee Titans football. It happened

you know, we were waiting for it to happen. Cam Ward is a Titan, but really an interesting

draft for Tennessee. And I, you know, we're going to talk about all of it here this evening

Kind of give you my thoughts about the good and the bad from the Tennessee Titans 2025 draft class

What things do we have to really get excited about? What things are our biggest positive

takeaways? And you know, what maybe are we a little bit underwhelmed by? I've got some takes

on both ends of the spectrum. So an interesting conversation today, as I see Richie, as I see

Karen already in the chat here. So welcome on in going to be a great show. Very, as I said

very excited for this, this conversation about the Titans overall draft philosophy. I pulled a

handful of clips and segments from the Titans press conference. We had our draft recap press

conference with GM, Mike Borgonzi, president of football operations, Chad Brinker on Monday

afternoon. So they talked about all of their picks reflected on how they feel like they did in the

draft. So a lot to go over after we talk about the draft class, we're going to talk about not draft

class, the undrafted free agents, more rookies that are coming in to help Cam Ward and the Titans in

2025, which guys are catching your eye, which guys are catching my eye. So a lot of interesting

conversation, maybe some hot takes coming. I don't know, but you know, when you review the good and

the bad and every draft class is certain to have both, uh, you know, it'll be a, it'll be

interesting. It'll be interesting. So, uh, welcome on in. I'm seeing people in already

Richie wanted to know if the bears took a project pick in round two as well. They did not Reggie Richie. They took Luther Burton. So, uh, the bears took an instant impact

guy in round two. I see Troy in here says the ysis are projecting four wins. I actually

will get to this. We'll save this Troy. And I'm going to talk about something right off the

off the bat here. John, what is going on? Seth says survivor ain't the same without me. I

appreciate it. Uh, yeah. Season 47 reigns supreme as everybody is, uh, is starting to learn watching

season 48 right here. So I appreciate it. Uh, from Seth, I see Bork, I see pistol. I see, uh

I see Richie with Jimmy Horn comments. Love to see it. Welcome on in. Let's do it officially

to a to Z sports prime time. We are not in the Zen sports studios tonight. I am not

buck rising, but I am Sam Phelan with you on Tuesday nights, and it is presented to you by

two rivers Ford, the South's most trusted Ford dealer, two rivers, Ford and Mount Juliet are

online at two rivers, four.com for more information, Zen sports. That is your place to bet. Uh, you

know, we've got the, uh, NHL playoffs. We've got the, the NBA playoffs going on. So, uh, you know

it's been a fun little sports thing. I think we got the Kentucky

Let me know, Robert, do we have the Kentucky Derby coming up here? Kentucky

I'm not sure. I would have to check that. I think, I think it's horse racing season

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All right. Let's get into some stuff here. Troy wanted to say that ysts are predicting four wins for the Titans next year

And it's not just ysts who are coming in with, you know, low expectations, I would say

because the betting odds for Cam Ward's rookie season also came out recently

I believe bet online set Cam Ward's passing yard total at 3,200 yards

his passing touchdown over under at 19 and a half, and his interception total at 12 and a half

So Vegas is expecting about 20 touchdowns and well over double digit interceptions

from Cam Ward as a rookie. that would be a pretty high figure only three quarterbacks in the NFL through more than 12

interceptions in 2024 so it would be one of the more reckless uh quarterbacks Seth confirms it is

Derby Saturday by the way uh so big deal in Kentucky where Seth is I have never uh never

I don't think I've ever watched a Kentucky Derby live on TV but I would absolutely love to go to

the Kentucky Derby one day. I love a good horse racing spectacular where I could get all kinds of

gambling and I'd be all over that. But I did find, as I was saying, it very interesting

The Cam Ward expectations are being set relatively low. Perhaps that's because of situation. Perhaps

that's just what they feel of the prospect. I mean, the Titans are not exactly a built to win

franchise that a lot of rookies can walk into, but let's say he's right around those numbers

Let's say Cam Ward's rookie season is 3,200 yards, 20 touchdowns, 12 interceptions. That'd be a worse

season statistically than Bo Nix had, than Jaden Daniels had, than Caleb Williams had. It's below

the bar for what rookie quarterbacks were able to do in 2024. I don't know if that's a bad season

by any means. It's certainly a building block year. The Titans win loss record

how he looks within those statistics is very important as well. But yeah, to the point

that was made earlier by Troy, expectations low. And I think for okay reason

which brings me to the draft class that we have to talk about

There is a lot of good in this Titans draft class, and there is a lot of bad in this Titans draft class

Not to say that these are all bad picks, but I think an overwhelming takeaway for the Titans draft class in 2025

is that they went a developmental route. after cam ward i was curious to see where they would go on day two and day three

um and i was a little bit surprised by the lack of high impact day one players

the titans targeted we heard from mike borgonzi and chad brinker ahead of the draft that

you know it's all about this two or three year projection what can a player become

right what what is the guy going to be in the future um and and i certainly think that is

always true when you talk about round four, round five picks. When you talk about those day three guys right You trying to hit on development But I think to the surprise of many the Titans went for development as early as their second pick with Femi Oladeo

kind of a guy who is more raw. And so I think, you know, you have a situation and probably why

you're seeing the win loss total for the Titans being so low, probably why you're seeing these

numbers for Cam Ward being so low is because they do not have a rookie class and they did not do a

lot in free agency to immediately be like, let's win a bunch of football games, right? It is a

building block season for the Titans. Here is our first video of the evening as Mike Borgonzi and

Chad Brinker talk about the upside that is within this class and their strategy of targeting

developmental players. How early in the process did you kind of land on favoring the developmental types

over maybe some pro-ready types? And can you kind of talk through why favoring one over the other

Well, like I said, they all have developmental, you know, things that they have to go through here

But then once you start getting into the mid to later rounds and some of these guys, you're looking at some traits, you know

speed at the receiver position with Alec and DK. And Marcus Harris is a guy that played really one big year of football at Cal

But you saw the traits on film, the quick twitch athlete that can develop

And same thing with Mullings, too. You're looking at a guy that played linebacker for two years when he first came in

And really, last year was really his first workload of carrying the football

But you saw a big body there that runs hard. And you saw a lot of upside with him

And we were able to get him later on the sixth. So you hear from Mike Borgazzi there

And, you know, I agree with a lot of what he said. The Titans went for traits, high trait type of guys

And there is upside in that, especially in the later rounds. But what I find interesting is that he specifically said traits in later round guys and talked about the speed that he sees in DK and Iomanor and just like these later round picks

But the Titans did the developmental route as early as round two

As I said, it's not like they only did their late picks. Marcus Harris, Alec Iomanor, you know, Gmaray DK, you know, Khalil Mullings

Like these were not the only developmental guys that they targeted. They went, you know, with Oladejo, who has played one year at edge

It was sort of a philosophy that they took. Maybe good, maybe bad

I think some of the moves that they made to take chances on developmental players were huge, huge, huge successes

Some of them I was not super happy with. that being said it just because they went the developmental route does not mean that they uh

you know were bad picks by any means yet if you develop a guy and he becomes what you are

hoping he becomes it's an absolute home run here is the full Tennessee Titans draft class

Cam Lord number one Femi Oladejo Kevin Winston Jr. Chimere DK Gunner Helm Alec Iom Iomanner

I got to work on getting that to be second nature. Alec Iomaner, Jackson Slater, Marcus Harris, Kalel Mullings

Nine players, something that Chad Brinker talked about as a massive success for the team

Given the amount of picks that they started with to come away with nine players

they felt very good with that. And my first question for you today is let's reflect on the good

Let's reflect on the positive. what was your favorite pick the Titans made during the 2025 NFL draft I guess if you say

Cam Ward you say Cam Ward but I prefer you not say Cam Ward like what was your favorite draft

pick here that got you uh pumped up about the draft class I'll play some videos later on about

some of the guys that are more optimistic picks in the Titans eyes and in my eyes but curious to

what you guys have to say in the chat while you guys, you know, let me know. I'm going to tell you

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Two Rivers Ford is your Ford Bronco headquarters. All right, let's get to those answers

What was your favorite pick the Titans made during the 2025 NFL draft

Richie G says Restrepo. Bad news, Richie G. The Titans did not draft somebody named Restrepo

We will get to Restrepo a little later on when we look at the UDFAs

but this is the draft class. So we're looking for draft picks. Um, Alec Iow Manor from MB Gunnar

Helm from American Toph Alec Iow Manor from Ryan Gregg. So, uh, Iow Manor Helm, let's see, uh

two is Kalel Mullings for far sender, uh, getting Alec where they got him. Helm, Helm from James

and John, let's see, Alec, Io Manor, Helm. Those are the two most popular answers, you know

Alec Io Manor and Gunnar Helm. So let's go ahead. Let's listen to what the Titans had to say about

Alec Io Manor. Here is Mike Borganzi reflecting on pass catchers that they drafted. So there's a

little bit in here about Chimere Dike, but he really talks about the traits that they saw in

Iow Manor as well. You guys needed pass catchers coming into this draft

What did you guys identify in the draft that led you to wait until day three

and then you found three there and whatever, 25 picks, and then also Tyler Lockett's addition

What does that do? Yes. You're looking at the value of the board for these guys

and where we took Chim and Alec at that point, we were looking for young guys with some speed, and they both fit that

Chim's a guy that has returnability as well. He's done punt returns

He's done kick returns. You know, Alex, a big body receiver, X receiver

that's strong physical at the catch point. You know, he gives a good catch radius for the quarterback

So, so those are the, some of the things that we looking at with those two guys when we when we took them So catch radius speed Those are the things that the Titans saw um in in uh Alec Io manner uh which is why why they very high on him Um Gunnar

Helm as well as a guy who, you know, they expect to have sort of an instant impact on the team

They saw one good year, uh, from him at Texas where he got a lot better. I actually have it

I have two answers to this. It was a little tough, uh, picking which one I wanted to go with

because I, I agree on Alec Io Manor. I think he is a very, just, I wasn't huge on the prospect

actually coming out, uh, you know, like blind resume. I was kind of out on Alec Io Manor and

I sort of had to shift my, my mindset as the draft went on because I, the only reason I was out on

him is because he was being projected as a second round pick. And I didn't like him as a second

round pick, but where they got him, I certainly think was a, a great selection. The potential is

absolutely there. We saw him just dog walk Travis Hunter in a college football game

I think, you know, his numbers possibly way larger, way more explosive in a better offense

than Stanford with better quarterback play than he had. But you see the traits, you see a guy who

has a very solid brain for the game, like good mind for the game. He, he talked in an interview

that I had, uh, you know, with the rest of the media, we talked to Alec Iomanor. He said he

thinks his mind is his biggest asset. So when you talk big, you talk fast, you talk good mind for

the game, good leader, team captain type of a guy. Uh, I think this is really good value for the

Titans. I don't know if he's ever going to be like a star 1000 yard wide receiver, but I certainly

think he can be a solid NFL contributor. Um, and so I think this was very good value

My favorite pick, this is a little bit controversial. I think, uh, I think it might

be their last one. I think the, as far as like taking swings is concerned, I think we have to

give a little bit of credit to the Kahlil Mullings selection. Um, here's what Mike Borgonzi had to

say about Khalil Mullings uh just wanted to to play this for everyone talked about a little bit

earlier with Mullings but just the lack of tread on the tires and for what you guys were looking to

add at the running back position how much of a factor was that and I guess how how much more

difficult did it make an evaluation of a player with a limited sample size yeah I mean he certainly

jumped off the tape when I watched him in the fall um you know he provides a a different back

in the room that we have right now. You know, he's 6'2", 230-pound back

Like I said, he was a former linebacker, and it's impressive, you know, the way he just kind of hits the hole

and gets upfield. He's physical, and he'll provide us that short yardage

four-minute type back. So there is a little bit on that sixth-round pick

at number 188, Khalil Mullings. he is probably one of the under talked about guys I don't know if he's going to have the best career

of this bunch I doubt he would you know he's a sixth round pick they took him late for a reason

but I think value for what the Titans were looking for I think this is the best fit possible I had

some concerns right the Titans were talking about bringing in a running back some point in this

draft adding a guy to the room that filled the need that they didn't currently have and for me

it didn't seem like a pressing need. Like you have Tony Pollard and Tajay Spears and sure

would it be nice to get like a guy who's got good contact balance and be a short yardage back

Yes. But was drafting Cam Scadaboo in like the third round, a good option, given the other needs

that you need to fill and the other premium positions that you'd like to build towards the future? No. And so when I look at Mullings, you got them with your absolute last pick in the draft

I think it is a perfect blend of immediate impact at something you need and upside

That's really intriguing. He's a former linebacker. He's six foot one, 235 pounds, but he runs a lot faster than I think his build would

lead you to believe. And he was a linebacker for three years in college, did not switch to running back until

2023, or he was a limited back with only 36 carries for Michigan this past year, 950 yards

and 12 touchdowns on 185 carries. So the yards per carry really impressive. You know, as, as

Mike Borgonzi says, certainly popped on film when you just look at his ability to, to identify a

hole and hit a hole hard. I think he is still raw in the sense that he, his ability to yze run

lanes as he gets the ball and have good vision is not great, but he's played one year of running

back, two years of running back, right? Like he's not an experienced guy. Well, most of these

running backs in the draft have been playing the position their whole lives. I find it interesting

you know, the idea that he comes into the Titans and has an immediate impact as a, as a four minute

short yardage back, like Borgansi said in year one and potentially develops. And for a sixth

round pick, I, I really like this value. So I think value wise, that's my favorite pick

I think my favorite player, if I was on, if I was betting on one of these players, uh, to be

just another value, it would be IO manner. Probably for me at one 36 is just like

for what you're getting there. Um, the ceiling is really fun. The ceiling is really fun

And I will say, don't sleep on Kevin Winston. It's the other guy. It, this is an interesting

clip from Mike Borgonzi talking Kevin Winston says the Titans gave him an early second round

grade and believed he was one of the best safeties in the draft class before he got hurt at Penn

State. How big of a value add was Kevin Winston to be able to find him in the third? Yeah, it was

a big value because really, you know, before, you know, the injury, he was, you know, at the really

the top of the second round for us, you know, he's one of the top safeties in the draft

um you know he he's gonna be fine he had the you know the injury early on in the season

um and we were fortunate enough to get him there at that spot so i saw a couple people saying uh

you know they were in on winston brian says i heat winston will be a pro bowler yeah i mean

winston is considered one of the better tacklers in the draft class um which for a safety is

valuable especially in the denard wilson defense uh he's another guy that i think

needs to demonstrate a more refined approach to his position. Uh, you know, he's not excellent in

identifying runs and being like the first guy in, he's not excellent in, uh, you know

ball hawking necessarily, but he can cover he's versatile. He can tackle, uh, and then just like

a lot of athleticism, uh, to get you excited. So for, uh, Tennessee, you know, there's some

questions, right? Why would you take him over Xavier Watts? And that was really my only reason

why I was a little hesitant towards the pick because Watts feels like a more proven product that can come in and contribute But with the Titans having two safeties already Xavier Woods and Amani Hooker ready for 2025 Winston is probably a rotational

guy that you plan to turn the keys over to in 2026. And in year two, he's a starter. So I think

there is a trajectory there where he could end up being a very good player as well. And as Borgansi

said, he's probably drafted much higher and valued much higher and a more common name if he doesn't

get hurt at Penn state in 2024. So, um, yeah, those are some of the better ones. Let's go to

the, the other side of things, right? I'm going to ask you guys to get a little bit negative

because let's face it, every pick in every draft class is not going to be amazing. There are going

to be some flops. What is your least favorite pick the Titans made? We did most, we did favorite

we did best, talked about a lot of upside. What is your least favorite pick the Titans made during

the 2025 draft. Again, here is the list of picks. If you need them to go off of Ward

Oladejo, Winston, DK, Helm, IO Manor, Slater, Harris Mullings. Let's hear it. Least favorite

pick the Titans made in the 2025 NFL draft. And while you guys go ahead and sound off

let me know what you're not liking. I'm going to tell you what I am liking. And that is my friends at TrueMav Fitness, get your first workout free as a Middle Tennessee resident

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If you're a middle Tennessee resident, you get your first workout free. All right, let's go to

the chat. Let's see those answers. What is your least favorite pick the Titans made? You see

Femi, Winston, and DK over cam Scadaboo from Richie, the trade back, not a pick, but a move

from Troy, the trade back. I think that's a fair criticism. I was critical of that as well when

that happened. Chimere DK from Kenneth DK. Bortz says we're all going to say DK. John says the edge

guy. Harris probably from MB. Harris from Michael. Harrison, it's not even close, is interesting

Not a lot of love from Marcus Harris. We see everybody's going to say DK. They should have

went Royals instead. Jalen Royals is my guy, so I don't disagree with Brian there. Harris from Nate

Femi Oladejo, DK or Harris, DK, DK. I don't, I don't think you can say Harris. I really don't

I don't think you're, you're the least, sorry, that's, we'll get to that later. I don't think

your least favorite pick in the draft can be the guy you take in the sixth round at number 183

overall. I think it's fine to say it's your favorite if you're super high on one of these

guys like I am on Mullings, but I mean, the risk is just so small. These guys are not supposed to

be high impact guys. If Marcus Harris makes your roster and is a special teamer for the next couple

of years in the sixth round, that's a fine draft pick, right? So I kind of don't buy into the idea

that it can be your least favorite pick. I mean, if that's your least favorite pick, you think that

this is an absolute home run of a draft class. So I, you know, as Bork says, he's CB five at best

low impact depth as a rookie, right? I think it's whatever. I have two

I'm with you guys on DK. I really am. I, you know, I'll play Mike Borgansi on Chimere DK

I don't get it. I really don't. So here's what Borgansi had to say about why they liked him and picked him

Maybe open up the field for you, I guess, with that speed he has

I guess what does that do not only for him but maybe for some of the others? I'm sorry, who? DK

Yeah. Yeah, he certainly has speed to stretch the field. And he's competitive downfield

He's smart, versatile. He can line up in a bunch of different spots on offense. And the one thing that we liked about him is just his competitiveness

after the catch as well. So you've got a guy that's smart, tough, dependable, can line up

Um, and he also has a big catch rate is too. Um, so, you know, those are the things we liked about him

So they liked the tools. Um, this was not my favorite pick

I think they took him over a lot of wide receivers that were better, uh, than him

You know, there's some measurable shore, but he played five years of college football and

was never really productive. Uh, his best season yards wise was 783 yards as a fifth year senior at Florida last year

Um, in four of his five college seasons, he scored two or one touchdowns

So not really, uh, much red zone capabilities there either. Yeah. He scored six touchdowns for Wisconsin in 2022, just pretty limited route tree

Um, not very refined. Sure. He's fast. Um, I think he'll be a punt returner and a kick returner, but I'm not taking a punt

returner and a kick returner with the first pick of the fourth round when there's some other uh high

upside receivers that I think will actually have offensive impact I would have taken Alec Io

Manor before DK like if I was if I was just looking at the two of them I would have much

rather they take Io Manor before DK now they got both of them so okay to each their own sure hey

we'll take both um I'm not a big fan of this pick Jalen Royals was a guy uh who I was all over

but certainly think that there were wide receivers that would have been higher impact than DK

I'm setting the bar very low for him this year as a rookie. I think he is probably your wide receiver five, five this year

He's your wide receiver five this year. And he's a kick returner and a punt returner

But I think immediate impact, right? Guys that are actually going to see the field

you know this i we have to address a crazy comment from michael in the chat right now

um but immediate impact calvin ridley tyler lockett elec isle manor will have a bigger role

i think uh i think van jefferson will have a bigger role this year than than chimer adk will

have on offense um he might even be six you could argue or you could argue for like restrepo or

somebody like that. Um, you trailing, right. I don't know if he, I would, I he'll make the team

because of his special teams and, uh, he'll return. I, I, I think I'm a little bit lower

on what you'll actually get from him offensively. Um, then the Titans front office might be

Michael says, did you say that when you got Hester? This is a crazy comment. This is a crazy

comment. Uh, if, if, if Chimari DK is the greatest returner in the history of pro football

It was a good pick. There's one Devin Hester. This is crazy

Devin Hester was also a corner. when he got drafted. So he, he played both sides at that. I just had to show that because like

if, if your expectation for Chimere DK is Traylon Burks, I think you're, uh, fairly green when it

comes to these drafts. Um, and you probably have rose colored glasses looking at the picks. So I'll

just wanted to throw that out there. I think that's a fair answer. Um, I will actually say

that my least favorite pick though is Oladejo, is Femi. And he's an intriguing prospect. And

you know, it really is just a matter of value, where you took him and what his immediate impact

is going to be. This is a former inside linebacker that has only played 10 games in his entire

football career as an edge rusher. He is considered to be a plus defender against the run

at setting the edge. The Titans like that he's athletic and he can drop back into coverage

For me, edge was a need because you needed pass rush help. Like that was the need

Harold Landry was good at dropping into coverage and setting the edge. Harold Landry was good at

being against the run, right? Now, obviously Harold Landry was expensive and, uh, you know

Femi is on a rookie contract. So there are some long-term and financial trade-offs for the Titans

moving on from Harold, but is, is he better than Harold? I don't think so. I don't think

the Titans have necessarily improved edge rusher play than they had last year. It's close

maybe slightly improved, but it was a massive, massive, massive weakness for them in 2024

for. I've heard a lot from inside the building about how desperate they were to improve their

pass rush. And you come away with a guy who has very limited production as an edge rusher

very limited experience as an edge rusher. Arden Key still in his same role and Draymond Jones

I mean, I was talking with other people in the Titans media. Borg says Femi can be a solid edge

too. I agree. He can be, but right now he's probably your edge for like, he's probably your

fourth best edge rusher right now today. And to take that guy in the second round, that was my

least favorite part of this draft. The idea that you were sitting with pick 35, that there was

talent on the board at pick 35, like Donovan Azaraku, right? Like guys who come in and are

immediate impact pass rushers for you. And because you trade down and you swing for an upside guy

you end up without a talent that really will impact your pass rush ability in year one

So he's fast. Uh, as Steven says, let's give him some time. They know a lot more than us. I'm kind

of disagree with that. I, you know, I think people vastly overestimate how much, uh, front offices

know versus the average person that watches tape. I think, you know, it's just as easy to throw a

dart at a dartboard as it is to draft from inside, uh, you know, a war room

and that's evidenced by the amount of general managers that get hired

get it wrong, and then get fired all the time. I don't know

I question the process there when you know that edge rushers were a weakness

for you and you get a guy that doesn't really contribute to your pass rush

this year. That was my least favorite part of the draft. And then real quick, get to a third question for you all

which Titans draft pick besides cam Ward will have the biggest impact in 2025

Titans draft pick with the biggest impact in 2025. We went through favorite and least favorite

Maybe favorite doesn't mean they're the best this year though. So who will be the most prominent and big

most impactful this year for the Tennessee Titans. Let me know what you think in the chat

I've got an answer ready to go. And while you guys do that

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Bart Durham.com and Bart Durham injury law. Who is the highest impact Titans rookie in 2025

I see Restrepo. I see Kevin Winston. I see, uh, I O Manor, I O Manor, Winston

bemi helm slater or helm oh the wide receiver from stanford i'll manor slater lineman adapt

quickly i'll manor i'm surprised more people are not saying gunner helm that's my answer here is

mike borgonzi talking about the titans new tight end did the did you see anything in particular

that kind of accounted for his huge year didn't do too much the first three years there in terms

of production, but what were some of the things he did particularly while that final year? Helm. Helm

Yeah, you know, he was another guy that just continually got better, too. He was a former receiver in high school that made the transition to tight end at Texas

And I think that was part of the, you know, you're looking for these guys that continue to get better

Like I mentioned with DK and with Helm, they got better every year

And he had a big season last year. but those are the traits that you look for

and that's what you hope to continue here when they get to the league Gunnar Helm I think is the biggest impact rookie for the Titans in 2025 I think there is a legitimate chance he the tight end one in terms of pass catching options for Tennessee

He needs to work on his run blocking a lot. That is sort of the developmental aspect of his game

Everybody has a developmental aspect to them that the Titans drafted. Really developmental

aspect of helm is going to be his run blocking, but I think, um, highly productive at Texas last

year, big frame, big body, um, just like good, reliable target with, uh, you know, inability to

contribute, especially on third down. Uh, so I think, I think helm will be more impactful than

Josh Wiley for, for certain and probably contests with Chig for who the most impactful tight end in

the Titans room is, but I think of all these guys, the one guy that we are for certain to see

in the offense every week is going to be Gunnar Helm. If you told me that G-Marie Dike wasn't in

the offense, I'd believe you. If you told me that Alec Io Manor wasn't in the offense

I'd believe you. Those guys could maybe have some growing pains that they need to work through

Gunnar Helm is going to contribute. He's going to catch balls. He's going to score touchdowns

At worst, I think he's tight end two, as Rock says. High upside, he's tight end one

And they use him not really as an inline blocker, but really as just like a target for them on third down

And you saw all of that kind of factored into his game over at Texas

He'll score some touchdowns. He'll be an influential player for them. So if you're looking for a guy to rally behind in this year

Gunnar Helm is my guy for that. Let's go to real quick. The

the non draft picks that we think could have an impact for the Titans. I want to talk about these undrafted free agents

Here's a list of the undrafted free agents. The Titans have agreed to terms with so far

I think I know where most people are going to go, but I do want to ask the chat real quick

which Titans UDFA. If you know, if you've been paying attention to this list

which one's the most exciting, which Titans undrafted free agent is the most exciting for you

um isaiah rakes brandon crenshaw dixon xavier restrepo clarence lewis michael bernard

davion ross davante o'malley david gabenda jaylen kimber philip blitty desmond evans

virgil lemons garnett holland caden moore jamari harris cam horsley that's the list of undrafted

free agents xavier restrepo restrepo maybe as the fourth receiver xavier then gabenda from john boy

uh Restrepo Restrepo uh you know I felt like that was going to be the most popular answer

Restrepo from Smokey uh Kimber could be somebody Brock has his eyes on Jalen Kimber out of Penn

State David Gabenda is a tackling machine says Brian who uh has seen him at Texas a good bit

uh Bernard Micah Bernard on the uh on the radar of Richie a thousand yard rusher for Utah last year

O'Malley, uh, Devante O'Malley out of Northern Illinois, my Northern Illinois. Um, and the real reason I wanted to do this is I wanted to sort of spread awareness

of some of the players that I think are worth monitoring, worth watching

Obviously Xavier Restrepo is going to be like, I mean, could you get a more instant fan favorite

Titans fans love their undrafted free agents, by the way, love their undrafted free agents

To get a guy with a very good story is Xavier Restrepo, who comes from Miami, who's a teammate

of Camp Ward, who's rootable, who wanted to be a Titan. Yeah, Restrepo, easy fan favorite

But what are the other guys that are potentially worth paying attention to? I think the two other guys that I have on my radar to make the team

Because I do think Xavier Restrepo is going to make the 53-man roster

I think Jeff says he's mid. I, you know, I think we can obviously temper our expectations for what he's going to be

He was undrafted for a reason. Um, the speed is a concern

You know, how much is he, how much will his speed translate? He ran a four, eight, he ran it hurt, but he ran a four, eight 40

Um, you know, so what does the speed look like in the NFL and how does it translate

But I do think he can do enough to make the 53 man roster guys that I have on my radar

to also make the team. I love that somebody brought up Devontae O'Malley. Yes, I'm biased. Yes, I watched every

Northern Illinois football game for the last five years of Devontae O'Malley's career

So obviously he's going to be my guy. He's a little bit undersized at six, two, two 65

but he can add a little bit of weight, I think. And I think he's got plus athleticism

highly, highly, highly productive college player and a very experienced college player

He has played 58 games at Northern Illinois over his five years of college

So highly experienced. Like I said, 130 tackles, 31 tackles for loss, 22 and a half sacks

This past year had 12 tackles for loss and eight sacks as a defensive lineman for a very good Northern Illinois team that played some played some high end competition

They played Notre Dame. He had a very good day against Notre Dame and kind of gave that offensive line some issues

Tested very well on the RAS. So like I said, plus athlete, under talked about because he's undersized and from a small school

but productive, good numbers. I think production matters. And so I'm watching Devontae O'Malley

Here's the other guy you should have on your radar. It's Brandon Crenshaw Dixon

Brandon Crenshaw Dixon, a Florida offensive tackle. kind of hurt himself and tanked himself at the combine

Tested very poorly in terms of offensive line athleticism, but went to San Diego State for five years went to Florida last year played 11 games started 11 games at right tackle In 2023 for San Diego State he played four games at right tackle five games at left tackle

12 games as a starter, San Diego State, 13 games at right tackle in 2022, 14 games at right tackle

in 2021. So 40 plus games of college experience. NFL.com's overview gave him a fifth or sixth round

grade. He's a big tackle with a broad frame. He's got long arms. 46 college starts to his name

Good run block connections. Good size to create movement on double teams and down blocks

big knock against him is he's not quick enough, uh, to expand very far beyond the batter's box

as a run blocker. Uh, yeah, he ran a, a five, three, three in the 40. So the athleticism knock

um, is a real, real problem for him, but the frame I think is, uh, intriguing

big guy, big, strong guy, six foot seven, 316 pounds with a solid 34 inch arm and a lot of

experience for an undrafted free agent. By the way, Brandon Crenshaw Dixon got a fat guarantee

from the Titans. I think he got over $200,000 in, in guarantees. Um, so typically if you want to

look at which guys are going to make the Titans roster, which guys are in contention to make the

roster or which guys are, uh, highly thought of by the organization. Look at the amount of

guaranteed money that they are given. So Crenshaw Dixon is certainly on that radar. And mainly like

to me, tackle is sort of wide open right now. The Titans have made a lot of moves at interior

offensive line, right? They, they got Kevin Zeitler. They got Blake Hance. They drafted

Jackson Slater. They signed Brandon James. They signed Sam Mustapher. They signed Oli Yudo

These are all interior guys. They brought back Corey Levin. They've got Andrew Rupcich. They've

got Lloyd Cushenberry. Interior offensive line. Very, very competitive. Let's look at the

the tackles, Dan Moore, JC Latham, John Ajuku, Jalen Duncan. Those are the tackles that you've

got on the roster. They're low on Jalen Duncan. John Ajuku did not do anything last year. He's a

undrafted free agent himself. I think there is an opportunity for, Braden says, can any of them

play tackle? Those guys that I just listed are all interior linemen. You've got four tackles on

the roster right now, more Latham, Duncan, a Juku. So for Crenshaw Dixon to come in, um

and have experience as a tackle, have a frame that's intriguing, have the ability to, uh, you know, work with Bill Callahan. I think he's another UDFA to watch that

the Titans could maybe try to develop as like a little bit of a swing tackle option for them

if they're not currently happy with what they have. So Restrepo, fine. I hear it totally

I think he is a candidate to make the team for sure. But out of this list, watch Devontae O'Malley

and Brandon Crenshaw Dixon to also crack the 53 or at least be in the conversation come training camp

Okay, that's all. Let's go ahead. Let's move it on. Let's get Burton here

Let's do some gone viral. I don't know what we've got today. So, you know, always excited to see what Roberts got cooked up for me

What's going on, man? And you know exactly what I've got cooked up for you

Oh, yeah. If you've been on the Internet in the last six days

So the conversation that has dominated Twitter, Instagram. All right. I immediately know where you're going

Can 100 men take down a gorilla? So flatly, even before this became a thing

As soon as this conversation started, I was like, yes, absolutely 100 men can take down a gorilla

That is overwhelming force at that point. And a little thing about gorillas, they are not endurance runners

They are the sprinters of the herbivore world. So after they exert that energy, throwing people like a cave troll in Lord of the Rings, they're going to be pretty pooped

And that's when everybody's going to jump in there and stick a thumb in their ass, stick a thumb in their ass. and we're going to mess this gorilla up

But everybody thinks about this when they see a gorilla. Oh, man

Yeah, I'd hate to be number one. One more time. One more time. that video might have changed my mind

see see i did i did the research sam so you ain't got to worry about it i asked chat gpt

how many brave fit men would it take to take down a gorilla

And they said 30 to 35. I can deal with that number

Strong, brave men. Then I asked how many morbidly obese adults, everybody with a BMI greater than 40 to take down a gorilla

And it said over 100. And the casualties would be massive. So the real factor here is can you get 30 to 35 guys who don't give a shit about dying and are willing to fight this gorilla

Which brings me to the actual question. You go ahead. You get rebuttal. Well, yeah, go to the question real quick because I think I'll answer it

Could the Tennessee Titans, 53-man roster, take down a gorilla? Yeah you think so you think that you say the so Jeff and T might be able to do it alone

yeah and see that's and that's exactly what I have been able

to use to change people's frame of mind they're like hell no

that gorilla would beat the hell out of everything and it's like okay half of the number you're saying is just about

a full NFL roster could an NFL team beat up a gorilla Yeah

I think they could. Yeah. Like, so the only thing that gets me thinking maybe no

the old is when you look at that video, I think the underrated thing about a gorilla is how fast they are is like

that gorilla got like, he was walking. He was, I don't even know if he was running and he just like was bang

He was there. Um, and I think the athlete, like people think of gorilla

they think size, they think strength, but do they factor in the athleticism of

of, speed of vertical leap of, of all of these things that like make the gorilla a little bit more

difficult to, to pin down. You know, I think if you got a gorilla in a room that that's that

that I think is the factor is the gorilla in a room. Is it, I agree with that. Is it sectored

off so that you can corner the gorilla and, and have the guys just go at it because you'd lose

you'd have quite a few casualties. Absolutely. We'd have a few casualties. But if you

if you had people willing to die and send, send it, and they were given it, they're all absolutely

The men could take down the gorilla and absolutely the Titans could, but if you put it in an open field where the gorilla had the ability to move

around and sort of like minimize the amount of humans that it was fighting at

one time. So it's like, I'm, I'm going to Bob and weave and constantly jump and run around

So now it's like, you can't get me on behind you. I'm over here. I'm over here. I think the gorilla might mess them all up

Yeah. I, I could agree with that. My whole thing is if for whatever reason 100 people are fighting a gorilla, they're going to televise it

We are going to be able to watch it. They are going to put it somewhere where we can see these 100 men's lives not be wasted

And Woody comes in hand-to-hand, 100 isn't doing it. It doesn't matter how fit they are

No man is going to be strong enough to deliver a lethal blow. That's right. No man

But 100 men stomping the hell out of a gorilla. I mean, it's like the fact that, believe it or not, you probably lose a fight to 100 geese, maybe

Probably. Geese are mean as hell. They're mean as hell, and one of them is not going to kill you

One of them can't deliver a lethal blow, but there's a little thing here, a little thing there, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah

They get you, and then next thing you know, this is great

One bear-sized duck or 10 duck-sized bears, which would you rather fight

I would beat the hell out of them duck-sized bears. I would beat the hell out of them duck-sized bears

I've had aunts and grandmas who had them mean yippee dogs. I've been having to fight off dogs my whole life

Ten of them? Bear-sized duck or a duck-sized bear? I think I'd rather fight the duck-sized bears, right

A duck-sized bear is just like a mean dog. It's just like a little bulldog that's upset

so all in all i think this whole conversation is stupid people are making gorillas who

love gorillas gorillas are cool as hell but they ain't whooping a hundred people

unless you're telling me oh half of them don't want to be there and the other half got birthday

parties they're supposed to be at later if you give me a bunch of people that don't want to fight a gorilla then sure yeah he gonna whip the hell out of all of them right yeah i mean if you

give people like brains and consciences where they're like, ah, don't be the first person to die

And so then they go at them one at a time and it's just like weird because, you know, like, yeah, the

gorilla's gonna knock them all out. But if you send 100 people go full out, full send

it, I think they could take them. 10 pit bulls. Hell, how big

of a duck? How big do you think ducks are? A duck? It's like

10, it's like 10, like, female pit bulls. Yeah, maybe half baby pit bulls

I don't know. I don't know how many ducks y'all get to hold, but ducks ain't as big

A pit bull? I ain't fighting 10 pit bulls. That's like baby bears

I mean, baby bear is not actually a bad – we were – you know

10 duck-sized bears might just be 10 baby bears. I ain't doing that

Maybe you do want to fight the one bear-sized duck. I don't know

I had to fight a goose in a movie theater parking lot one time, and that thing beat the hell out of me, man

Their head is so long. You're trying to duck and weave with it, and that goose will just flog you one time

You can't even catch him. I would not fight any long-necked animals

Ostriches, geese, giraffes, they all have those. That was my worry when you're talking bear-sized duck

It's like a bear-sized duck. The beak on that thing is like one chomp of a bear-sized duck's beak, and it'll take my arm off

Y'all want to hear some messed up stuff. Go look up all about ducks mating rituals

Go look that up. That's pretty messed up. That's my homework I'll give all y'all. Go look at how ducks get married and all that

I'm not going to do that. You would be very sad for ducks

That's all I'll say. Ducks are messed up, man. Yeah. You know, I tend to..

Ignorance is bliss when it comes to wildlife. I like to assume that all animals are happy and treat each other with respect

Oh, yeah. It's a Disney forest. all around. All right. All right. That's all for us tonight. Uh, you know, uh, Buck will be back

tomorrow night, uh, here on prime time. I will be back on the A to Z sports morning show tomorrow

Keep it locked here on A to Z for all of your, uh, your post draft content, your UDFA content

Mini camp is, uh, you know, just a few weeks away here. So we'll have, uh, all the cam ward

updates coming here for you soon. Um, so, uh, yeah, till then tighten up. We will see you later