Special Teams Core Stays Largely Intact

Ola Adeniyi is the latest contributor to the kicking and return games to agree to a contract for the 2022 NFL season.
Matt Pendleton/USA Today Sports
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There was a time when NFL teams set their rosters and then figured out who was available to play on special teams.

Not anymore. Not the Tennessee Titans, in particular.

Under general manager Jon Robinson and coach Mike Vrabel, the Titans have invested annually in core special teams players. This year they are spending on proven commodities.

When the new NFL contract year commenced last week, seven who played exclusively or primarily on special teams last season were free agents. That group included their kicker, long snapper and their top four in special teams tackles.

Four have now re-signed with Tennessee, the latest being outside linebacker Ola Adeniyi, who agreed to terms on a one-year contract Wednesday night. Those negotiations ended after the team announced a new deal with inside linebacker Dylan Cole earlier in the day.

Also returning on new deals are kicker Randy Bullock and long snapper Morgan Cox. Additionally, punter Brett Kern agreed to renegotiate his contract to ensure he would be back for a 14th season with the franchise.

Those whose status for 2022 remain undetermined are safety Matthias Farley and inside linebacker Nick Dzubnar.

Adeniyi tied for third with 10 special teams tackles but also contributed on defense, particularly early in the schedule when injuries tested the Titans’ depth at outside linebacker. He finished fourth on the defense with 20 quarterback pressures and registered the first two and a half sacks of his four-year career. He also was credited with 11 tackles, two tackles for loss and one pass defensed.

He led the AFC in Pro Bowl fan voting among special teamers. 


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David Boclair
DAVID BOCLAIR

David Boclair has covered the Tennessee Titans for multiple news outlets since 1998. He is award-winning journalist who has covered a wide range of topics in Middle Tennessee as well as Dallas-Fort Worth, where he worked for three different newspapers from 1987-96. As a student journalist at Southern Methodist University he covered the NCAA's decision to impose the so-called death penalty on the school's football program.