Report: Titans Trying to Trade Isaiah Wilson
The Tennessee Titans got virtually nothing from Isaiah Wilson during his rookie season.
They, at least, would like to get something for him before the next one.
Franchise officials are actively pursuing a trade of the 29th overall selection in the 2020 NFL Draft, according to an NFL.com report Thursday. The development is not surprising given that it comes days after Wilson wrote on Twitter – the post was deleted soon after – that he was “done” playing football for the Titans.
It is clear that the Titans will take a loss on the 22-year-old (he celebrated his birthday earlier this month) tackle out of Georgia. There is no way that they will get anything close to a late first or early second-round pick in exchange for a player who had repeated off-the-field missteps, was in uniform for just two games and saw action – three snaps on offense, one on special teams – in just one contest during the 2020 season.
General manager Jon Robinson said recently that the player they got was not the one the one scouted and came to know during the pre-draft process.
The challenge now is to convince another team that it is worth their while to give up something – anything – to acquire Wilson. Absent a trade, the only other choice that is available to the Titans is to release him outright given that it seems the relationship between the sides is irreparable.
Wilson, who signed a four-year, $11.53 million contract, was the last of six offensive tackles selected in the first round of last year’s draft. The other five were starters for most or all of their rookie seasons. The only first-round pick, regardless of position, who saw less game action in 2020 was Green Bay’s Jordan Love (26th overall), who was a backup to league MVP Aaron Rodgers.
Among the things that limited Wilson’s opportunities with Tennessee were two stints on the COVID-19 reserve list, one of which was for an extended period, a one-game suspension for violation of team rules and a move to the Reserve – Non-Football Illness list, which was where he spent the final four weeks of the regular season.
It is clear now that he was not worth the investment that Titans made him. The best they can hope for now is that he some value to another franchise.