Titans Need to Find Big-Play Threat(s)

Offensive coordinator Todd Downing will try to identify who can fill that role after his unit lacked pop, relatively speaking, in 2021.

NASHVILLE – In trying to pump life into an offense that wasn’t productive enough last season, one of the Tennessee Titans’ first priorities must be finding more explosive plays in the passing game.

The Titans produced just 35 pass plays of 20-plus yards last season, a total that ranked 31st in the NFL, ahead of only the woeful New York Giants.

To their credit, the Titans – thanks to their defense and a good running game – still went 12-5 last season, winning the AFC South and earning the conference’s No. 1 seed.

But finishing near the bottom of the league in “big-chunk” passing plays doesn’t feel like a formula that will lead to repeated success.

Only three teams in the bottom 10 of that category last season – the Titans, Steelers and Colts – made the playoffs, while nine that finished in the top 10 made the playoffs.

The obvious question: Just where will the Titans find explosive passing plays in 2022, especially given the fact that wide receiver A.J. Brown – who produced a team-high 10 of Tennessee’s 35 catches of 20-plus yards in 2021 – was traded to Philadelphia? Other big-play contributors no longer with the team are Julio Jones (four catches of 20-plus yards last season), Marcus Johnson (three), Chester Rogers (three) and Jeremy McNichols (three).

But the Titans might not be as bad off as it first appears when it comes to big-chunk gains in the passing game.

“I think it’s like making a meal out of a fridge full of ingredients,” offensive coordinator Todd Downing said. “Sometimes you have to figure out what you’re working with first, and then you can start to make the finished product. So we’re kind of in that phase of figuring out what we got in there and seeing what pieces fit where.

“That’s the fun part of coaching, right? Trying to get guys developed from where they’re at to where they want to be and where they can fit the team.”

Here’s a look at some of the players who may contribute. We divided them into three categories:

RETURNING PLAYERS

WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine – Westbrook-Ikhine finished second on the team last year with five catches of 20-plus yards. He averaged one such reception for every 7.6 catches, not so far behind Brown (one per 6.3 catches). Can he take another step forward in his third year?

FREE-AGENT ADDITIONS

WR Robert Woods – Before tearing his ACL last season, Woods was ripping off big chunks at a surprisingly good pace, helped in part by the presence of fellow wide receiver Cooper Kupp. Woods posted eight catches of 20-plus yards in just nine games last season, averaging one every 5.6 receptions.

TE Austin Hooper – Hooper isn’t a big downfield threat, but don’t sleep on him either. He had four receptions of 20-plus yards last season in Cleveland, a total that almost matches the five the Titans got from their three tight ends combined in 2021. In his two Pro Bowl seasons of 2018 and 2019, Hooper caught a combined 15 receptions of 20-plus yards for Atlanta.

ROOKIES

WR Treylon Burks – Burks isn’t a speed-burner, but – assuming his asthma and conditioning issues are under control – he’s very capable of producing big-chunk plays. He led the SEC with 22 plays of 20-plus yards last season. A number of those came on shorter receptions that he turned upfield, as Burks averaged over nine yards after the catch.

But two of Burks’ biggest assets -- his ability to stack defensive backs and to bring down contested passes – led him to catch 12 throws of 20-plus yards in 2021, which ranked 25th in the nation. He averaged nearly 17 yards a catch overall.

TE Chig Okonkwo – Okonkwo was not a downfield threat at Maryland last season, as he averaged just 8.6 yards on his 52 catches. But the 6-3, 238-pound Okonkwo was the fastest tight end at the NFL Scouting Combine, where he ran a 4.52 40-yard dash. So it stands to reason that Okonkwo should catch at least a few deep passes, forcing defenses to account for him.

One other possibility when it comes to improving the Titans’ big-play capability is adding a free agent.

Will Fuller is a name commonly brought up, as the speedy receiver has a Houston Texans background with Titans coach Mike Vrabel and passing-game coordinator Tim Kelly. The oft-injured Fuller had some very impressive deep numbers in his 11-game season of 2020, catching 14 passes of 20 yards or more and averaging 16.6 yards per reception.

But another name to consider might be 35 year-old Emmanuel Sanders, who averaged 14.9 yards per catch on 42 receptions for Buffalo last season. Ten of those catches went for 20 or more yards.

One way or another, the Titans have to stretch the field more than they did last year.