Woods a First-Rate Resource for First-Rounders

Wide receiver Treylon Burks (2022) and cornerback Caleb Farley (2021) already have benefited from the veteran wide receiver's presence.

George Walker IV / Tennessean.com / USA Today Network

NASHVILLE – The list of challenges Robert Woods will face in the coming weeks and months is a lengthy one.

In relatively short order, the veteran wide receiver will be expected to recover from a torn ACL, learn a new playbook, develop chemistry with quarterback Ryan Tannehill and likely become – at least in the early going – the Tennessee Titans’ top option in the passing game.

That sound daunting?

Apparently not for Woods, who seems to have tackled yet another important responsibility on his own: He’s taken a direct role in the mental and physical growth of the Titans’ two most recent first-round draft picks – cornerback Caleb Farley (2021) and wide receiver Treylon Burks (2022).

His work with Burks might be considered a natural, as the two play the same position.

Still, Titans coaches, teammates and fans should be overjoyed that a player with Woods’ impeccable reputation is guiding Burks, whose offseason introduction to the NFL has been a bumpy one. Burks didn’t make it through the first drill of rookie minicamp before leaving the field, looking exhausted under the hot sun last month. He’s made gradual progress in that department in the OTA sessions open to media, but even on Wednesday, Burks wasn’t a full participant in all drills.

Woods has both offered advice to Burks and placed expectations on him.

In talking with the former Arkansas star, Woods has told Burks, “(This is) the NFL. This the highest level of football. It’s not going to be easy for any rookie to just pick up, especially this offense that we run. It’s a lot of learning, a lot of studying. That’s what I tell him. Make sure you stay in your (playbook) and play fast. You’re going to make mistakes, but as long as you make them at full speed … we just need you going.”

Once the rookie begins to get more comfortable in practice sessions and with the playbook, the 30-year-old Woods expects the 22 year-old Burks to push Woods and make him better.

“I know I’m a veteran and he’s a rookie,” Woods said. “But I need him to compete with me so I can better myself and everybody. That’s how you really become good. It’s a competition, all-around at every position. That’s how you keep guys playing at an elite level. You don’t want guys to get complacent and comfortable.”

Said Burks: “I would say (my relationship with Woods) has come a long ways. Robert is a great player, great leader and he keeps encouraging everybody in the locker room. We can’t be any more thankful for him.”

That’s a snapshot of the player offensive coordinator Todd Downing first met in Buffalo in 2014, when Downing was the Bills’ quarterbacks coach. Woods managed 65 catches for 699 yards and five touchdowns in his second NFL season, despite the fact Buffalo’s quarterbacks – Kyle Orton and E.J. Manuel – hardly set the standard for performance at their position that year.

“I was fortunate enough to be with Robert in Buffalo for a year, so I kind of knew what we were getting,” Downing said. “He’s a hard worker. He is a guy that loves football. He’s passionate about the game. So, none of that surprises me when he got here. I just love the way he plays. I love his physical demeanor. He’s got some dog to him. It’s infectious to be around.”

With Woods recovering from the ACL injury, he’s also spent a lot of time with Farley, who was limited to three games and 60 defensive snaps as a rookie before tearing an ACL in mid-October. Just as is the case with Burks, Woods expects his relationship with Farley to be a two-way street –each player finding ways to help the other.

“He’s strong, he’s fast,” Woods said of Farley. “I think that’s good for me to have someone next to me and kind of gauge that.

“We just talk a lot. We’re rehabbing, obviously, but we’re being able to just pick each other’s brains of why I do a certain release (off the line of scrimmage), or what does he prefer -- as a corner -- in press? … It’s really just being able to get reps on the side, off the field. It goes hand in hand. I’m learning from him. He’s learning from me.”

Added coach Mike Vrabel: “It’s been really cool for Caleb to be with (Woods) as they go through their rehab process.”

Meanwhile, Woods himself has raised eyebrows with the impressive progress he’s made since suffering the knee injury last November.

He’s been an active on-field participant ever since the Titans’ OTAs began, running without a limp through individual and team drills.

The only way observers would know he’s recovering from a significant injury is because he’s wearing a knee brace and a yellow non-contact jersey.

It seems somehow fitting that Woods occasionally forgets to put that yellow jersey on for the first snap or two of team drills.

He doesn’t look like he’s holding much back.

“I’m obviously being smart in what I can and can’t do,” Woods said. “But I would say I’m always going to push it and try to feel it out. For me to get confidence, I have to do it and know what I can and can’t do. I’m going to go out there until they tell me I can’t, or (that) I’m doing too much.”

Woods is pushing the envelope on his recovery, just as he’s pushing a pair of Titans’ first-round draft picks to reach their full potential.