NFL Draft: Titans Add More Muscle, Take Defensive Tackle T'Vondre Sweat with No. 38 Pick

The Tennessee Titans' second-round pick, T'Vondre Sweat, won the 2023 Outland Trophy as the nation's best interior lineman and was a unanimous All-American selection.

Texas Longhorns defensive lineman T'Vondre Sweat (93) sacks TCU Horned Frogs quarterback Josh Hoover / Ricardo B. Brazziell/American-Statesman

NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans stayed in the trenches with their second pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, taking Texas defensive tackle T'Vondre Sweat.

Sweat won the 2023 Outland Trophy as the nation's best interior lineman and was a unanimous All-American selection.

"We think T'Vondre can be a three-down player," Titans coach Brian Callahan said. "He has the ability to push the pocket, has explosiveness. He can play the run as well as anybody in the class."

Sweat is familiar with Titans first-round pick JC Latham. Sweat's Longhorns defeated Latham's Crimson Tide at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. The former combatants are now teammates with the Titans.

"I think we've added maybe 700 pounds worth of players in two picks," Callahan said. "But that's on purpose, that's by design. It's a big man's league, and you need big people to move the line of scrimmage. We wanted to make sure we invested the right players into the fronts. Those are important parts of building a football team, and it's hard to pass up people that are of that size and have that kind of playing ability."

"We've added 700 lbs worth of player in two picks"

Stacking up on size on both sides of the line 💪 pic.twitter.com/K03dCfcImq

— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) April 27, 2024

The Titans selected Sweat in spite of an arrest earlier this month in Austin, Texas, on suspicion of driving under the influence. Sweat was arrested and booked on April 7 with a Class B misdemeanor. The next day, he made his top 30 visit to meet with Titans staff.

"We brought him in and spent the day with him," Carthon said. "If you know him, he's a jovial kid with a great personality. But you can tell he was extremely affected." 

Carthon appreciated how Sweat was transparent about the situation. Carthon, Callahan, and defensive line coach Tracy Rocker visited Sweat's family in Houston and it helped the Titans feel comfortable drafting Sweat.

"We went down to visit with his family," Carthon said. "We wanted to know more. We spent the morning with him, his mom, brother, and his grandfather. We had some tough conversations while we were there, not only tough conversations with him, but tough conversations with his family in the room with the understanding that it's going to take all of us, just like it would be with any other player, just like it's going to be with JC (Latham). Taking that trip made us comfortable making this pick."

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• LATHAM'S JOURNEY TO NASHVILLE: In high school, JC Latham played at IMG, a program known for nurturing professional athletes. He then played for legendary coach Nick Saban in Alabama. He's hoping to continue evolving in the National Football League with the Tennessee Titans. CLICK HERE
• WHAT CALLAHAN, CARTHON SAID: Here's everything general manager Ran Carthon and coach Brian Callahan said after the Tennessee Titans selected JC Latham in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. CLICK HERE
• O-LINE MUSCLES UP: Peter Skoronski, the All-Rookie team left guard, now will be flanked on the Tennessee Titans offensive line by center Lloyd Cushenberry, who allowed only one sack in 2023, and first-round draft pick JC Latham, a 6-foot-6, 342-pound anchor at left tackle. CLICK HERE