Tennessee Titans Sign Linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair According to Report
NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans added their third free agent of the offseason according to a report for Dianna Russini from ESPN. The Titans are set to bring in four-year veteran linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair, the Titans second linebacker signed on Tuesday.
Al-Shaair played four seasons, all with the San Francisco 49ers. He has played 56 games in his four years and was able to total 199 tackles with 11 tackles for loss and two interceptions. His only year as a consistent starter was in 2021 when he played 13 games, starting them all. Al-Shaair had career highs with 102 tackles, nine tackles for loss and two sacks.
Al-Shaair is a do-it-all linebacker who gives you a level of competency across the board in multiple categories. Al-Shaair can stop the run demonstrated by his 82.1 run defense grade, per Pro Football Focus. You wouldn’t want him consistently guarding tight ends in man coverage, but Al-Shaair has shown the ability to not be a liability in coverage. He tackles well and has good athleticism. Al-Shaair doesn’t give you anything special in any one area, but does enough well in all of them to be a starting linebacker in the NFL.
You may be asking yourself how a player with this description could go under the radar. The answer is two-fold. First, the San Francisco 49ers had two better players ahead of Al-Shaair by the time the 2022 season rolled around with Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw. Also, Al-Shaair has dealt with some injuries. He only played 13 games in 2021 and 12 in 2022. Missing five games in 2022 due to a knee injury.
After losing David Long, this gives the Titans one solid starting linebacker heading into 2023. They can head to the NFL Draft without a five-alarm fire on defense at linebacker. That doesn’t mean the Titans won’t also draft a linebacker, but now they can let the draft come to them without over-valuing the position due to a tremendous need.
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