Byard Aims to Be Even Better in 2022

After an All-Pro and Pro Bowl season that he says was his best yet, the veteran safety eyes improvement.

Stephen R. Sylvanie/USA Today Sports

Kevin Byard says 2021 was the best season of his NFL career. He also believes the best is yet to come.

“You never stay the same,” the Tennessee Titans safety said Friday on the NFL Network’s Good Morning Football. “You get better or you get worse. I want to continue to get better to help my team bring a championship to Nashville.

“… I definitely had my best year to date, and I honestly feel like I’m just starting to hit my prime. I feel like there’s always room for improvement in every facet of the game.”

In his sixth year with the Titans, Byard was named a first-team All-Pro after he tied for fourth in the NFL with five interceptions, which matched the second highest total of his career. He was one of two players – Miami’s Xavien Howard was the other – who scored touchdowns on an interception return (24 yards against the L.A. Rams) and a fumble return (30 yards against Jacksonville). He also led the team with 88 tackles, broke up 13 passes, forced two fumbles (a career-high) and recovered one.

Byard was the AFC Defensive Player of the Month in October, which made him the first member of Tennessee’s defense to claim that honor since safety Michael Griffin did so 11 years earlier.

Last week, he appeared in his second Pro Bowl, and he made two tackles and intercepted a pass in just 20 snaps on defense during the AFC’s 41-35 victory. That only added to his desire for improvement.

“Being around a lot of great players and, obviously, our coaching staff gave me a lot of motivation going into this offseason,” Byard said. “… Even just being a leader, being more vocal, just doing all the little things. And that’s something that I want to continue to try and improve in my career.”

A third-round pick in 2016, Byard has been a part of the Titans’ defense longer than anyone on the current roster. That means he has been a part of the franchise’s first back-to-back division titles in 60 years and five playoff games in the last three years, including this year’s 19-16 divisional round defeat against the Cincinnati Bengals.

And he is under contract for another three seasons, which means he is not going anywhere anytime soon. Just don’t expect him to stand pat.

“(We) know Jon Robinson and Mike Vrabel are going to add a couple pieces,” Byard said. “We just got to run this thing back.

“… Over the past couple of weeks there’s definitely been a lot of reflection, thinking about the woulda, coulda, shoulda deals, what we could have done better. That’s always what I look at with myself – what could I have done better? How can I go into next season trying to do more?”