Five Senior Bowl Players Who Could Help the Titans

Ran Carthon and his staff will get an up-close look at these players and others during the annual showcase for NFL Draft talent.

Katie Stratman / USA Today Sports

NASHVILLE – Under former general manager Jon Robinson, the Tennessee Titans dipped regularly into Senior Bowl talent.

In the last two years alone, Tennessee selected eight players who took part in the annual pre-draft showcase. They were: wide receivers Dez Fitzpatrick and Racey McMath; cornerbacks Roger McCreary and Elijah Molden; offensive lineman Dillon Radunz; inside linebacker Monty Rice; outside linebacker Rashad Weaver; and quarterback Malik Willis.

Will new general manager Ran Carthon and his staff follow a similar pattern?

We’ll start to get an idea this week when the Titans and the rest of the NFL converge on Mobile, Ala., to watch some of the top senior prospects for this year's draft.

The Titans have plenty of holes to fill following a disappointing 7-10 season.

Here’s a quick look at five senior bowl players – at five different positions – who might be able to help in 2023.

Rashee Rice

• Position: Wide receiver
• School: SMU
• Height/weight: 6-foot-2, 203 pounds
• Background: Treylon Burks flashed plenty of potential during his rookie season, but the Titans still desperately need quality help at this position. Rice had an incredibly productive year for the Mustangs, catching 96 passes for 1,355 yards and 10 touchdowns. He led all FBS schools with an average of 112.9 receiving yards per game. Rice has enough speed to get deep, even if he his not considered a burner. He’s versatile enough to play on the outside and inside and is tough to bring down after he makes the reception. He forced 19 missed tackles in 2022 and totaled 593 yards after the catch, an average of 6.2 yards after catch per reception, according to Pro Football Focus.

O'Cyrus Torrence 

• Position: Guard
• School: Florida
• Height/weight: 6-5, 347
• Background: The status of the Titans’ two starting guards moving forward is uncertain. Aaron Brewer is a pending restricted free agent and Nate Davis is a pending unrestricted free agent. Needless to say, the primary concern regarding Brewer last season – that he was at times overpowered in the pass rush because of his size – would not be an issue with the monstrous Torrence, who transferred to Florida last year after three seasons at Louisiana. He proved more than capable against tougher competition and earned consensus All-America honors. He posted an overall PFF grade of 88.0 last season, rating 89.9 in the run game and 76.1 in pass protection. In 355 pass-blocking snaps, Torrence allowed zero sacks, zero quarterback hits and only eight pressures. He also took zero penalties last season.

John Michael Schmitz

• Position: Center
• School: Minnesota
• Height/weight: 6-4, 315 
• Background: The future is cloudy at center, as longtime starter Ben Jones, 33, missed five games last season due to concussions and finished the year on injured reserve. Is his eventual replacement on the roster in either Brewer or Corey Levin? Schmitz played five seasons at Minnesota, earning All-America honors last season. His size and strength make him an especially capable run blocker, and he’s mobile enough to move, as he earned a 95.7 pff grade on outside-zone scheme runs last season. Schmitz isn’t considered quite as strong a pass-blocker, but the numbers are pretty strong in that department nonetheless. He allowed just two sacks on 302 pass block snaps last season.

Luke Musgrave

• Position:  Tight end
• School: Oregon State
• Height/weight: 6-6, 250
• Background: The Titans clearly have a budding talent in Chig Okonkwo, who caught 32 passes for 450 yards (14.1 yards per reception) and three touchdowns as a rookie. But they need another weapon, and it’s unclear whether Austin hooper – a pending unrestricted free agent – will be back in 2023. The obvious red flag is that Musgrave only played two games before a knee injury ended his 2022 season, and for an organization that is trying to steer clear of players with a recent injury history, that might be a deal-breaker. But Musgrave gets high marks for his athleticism and pass-catching ability, traits that he flashed with 11 receptions for 169 yards and a touchdown prior to the injury. One season earlier, Musgrave had totaled 22 catches for 304 yards and a touchdown. He isn’t considered an over-powering blocker, but rather good enough so that he can play in-line and in the slot.

Matthew Bergeron

• Position: Tackle
• School: Syracuse
• Ht., wt: 6-4, 315
• Background: The Titans almost certainly will be in the market for a new left tackle as Taylor Lewan likely will be cut to createmore room under the salary cap. The Titans may well use the 11th overall pick on a left tackle, looking for one of the elite prospects at the position. But Bergeron could be an intriguing second-day selection. Analysts give him good marks as a mobile, zone-scheme blocker in the run game. Bergeron also did good work in pass protection at left tackle, where he posted a pff grade of 80.9 last season, surrendering five sacks on 392 pass-block attempts. Bergeron played the last two seasons at left tackle but has experience at right tackle, which would offer versatility.