Winners and Losers of Titans Huge Trade Week

The Tennessee Titans stole the show with multiple big-name trades.

Aug 10, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan holds up his fist as he takes the field during the first half at Nissan Stadium / Steve Roberts-USA TODAY Sports

The days leading up to the final NFL roster cut deadline from the pre-season are always eventful, but the Tennessee Titans have added to the festivities with two recent trades.

On Monday, August 26 the Titans traded backup quarterback Malik Willis to the Green Bay Packers, and on Tuesday traded for Ernest Jones IV from the Los Angeles Rams.

Here are some winners and losers from these trades:

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1. Winner: Tennessee Titans

Oct 29, 2023; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Titans general manager Ran Carthon before the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Nissan Stadium / Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Titans general manager Ran Carthon has been wheeling and dealing, not only making the team better right now, but also securing more future draft capital.

Carthon had been actively searching for trade partners for Malik Willis nealry the entire offseason with many fans and news networks urging him to release Willis, but he finally convinced the Packers to give him a 7th round pick for the quarterback.

This trade also ends the QB2 competition in favor of Mason Rudolph.

One concern of fans was the Titans linebacker room, but Carthon cleared that up by trading for Super Bowl winning linebacker Ernest Jones IV from Los Angeles.

On Sunday the Titans had a 5th, 6th, and a 7th round pick, but on Tuesday afternoon they have two 6ths, two 7ths, an answer at QB2, and a new middle linebacker in Ernest Jones IV.

2. Loser: Los Angeles Rams

Aug 24, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay walks the sidelines as he coaches against the Houston Texans in the fourth quarter at NRG Stadium / Thomas Shea-USA TODAY Sports

The Rams have had an up and down offseason which started with the retirement of future Hall-of-Fame defensive lineman Aaron Donald.

General manager Les Snead did his best to fill the hole left by Donald through the NFL Draft where they selected FSU teammates Braden Fiske and Jared Verse.

However after trading away Ernest Jones IV, they're left with an even larger hole at linebacker than the Titans had.

Undrafted free agent rookie linebacker Omar Speights from LSU will get more opportunities this season than he thought as he's currently projected to start alongside Christian Rozeboom who had 79 total tackles last year and an interception.

3. Winner: Malik Willis

Aug 25, 2024; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Tennessee Titans quarterback Malik Willis (7) looks over the New Orleans Saints defense during the second half at Caesars Superdome / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Malik Willis has been criticised a lot during his professional career thus far, with fans wanting him benched, traded, and released, but he's finally been traded and I think it's a good thing for him.

Willis wasn't leading the race for QB2 and if he was he wouldn't have been cut so now he finds himself as the QB2 on a Packers team that is looking to compete immediately.

He also will have some new people to learn behind like Jordan Love who has shown more potential than Will Levis thus far, and head coach Matt LaFleur who has had so much success during his tenure with guys like Aaron Rodgers and now developing Jordan Love.

4. Loser: Cedric Gray

Tennessee Titans fourth-round draft pick Cedric Gray works out during rookie minicamp at Ascension Saint Thomas Sports Park in Nashville, Tenn. / Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK

Trading for Ernest Jones IV means that rookie 4th round pick Cedric Gray gets buried on the depth chart a little bit.

Gray is currently behind Jones IV, Kenneth Murray Jr., Otis Reese IV, and Jack Gibbens sitting with Luke Gifford. Barring any injuries from anyone ahead of him, that's not a great sign for Gray's playing time.

However Gray has been dealing with his own nerve-related shoulder injury this offseason which held him out of the pre-season, and head coach Brian Callahan said his timeline for return is unknown.

On the brightside, there's another veteran linebacker in the locker room for Cedric Gray to learn under.

5. Neutral: Ernest Jones IV

Dec 17, 2023; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams linebacker Ernest Jones (53) reacts after a defensive play against the Washington Commanders during the second half at SoFi Stadium / Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Ernest Jones IV finds himself on a new team after coming off his best year yet with 145 total tackles including 17 for loss and 4.5 sacks. He's also a healthy player, participating in 15, 17, and 15 games respectively over the last three seasons.

I don't think there's much change in Jones' projection though. On the Rams he was the clear starting middle linebacker while on the Titans he is still starting, but will be sharing duties with Kenneth Murray Jr.

In most situations the player performs better, but does lose some production due to more competition.

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