The Titans draft DT David Howard with seventh-round compensatory pick

Written by Andrew Strickert on .

The Titans conclude their portion of the 2010 draft by selecting Brown DT David Howard. The selection was made with the Titans' seventh-round compensatory pick, the 241st overall.
 
The 6' 3", 293 pound Howard had a good pro day with some outstanding measurables: 39 bench reps and a 5.03 forty. That's better than a lot of DTs who have worn the two-tone blue.
 
Playing against smaller Ivy League linemen, Howard was frequently double teamed. We'll see how he does going against NFL o-linemen in training camp. He has something in his favor, 39 bench reps indicate he won't be outmuscled by anyone. 
 
Like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates, you never know what you might get from a seventh-round pick. Previous Titans' drafts have found  a diamond in the rough (Cortland Finnegan) and contributing starters Kevin Long, Carlos Hall, Eugene Amano and Reynaldo Hill. Those are the exceptions, the guys who didn't pan out are more numerous. Some seventh round draft picks spend a year on the practice squad, as was the case with last year's seventh-rounders, Ryan Durand and Nick Schommer.
 
Howard will fill the void left with the loss of Kevin Vickerson and will compete to fill out the back end of the DT rotation.

Tennessee Titans select WR Marc Mariani in 7th round

Written by Tom Gower on .

With their own pick in the 7th round of the 2010 NFL Draft, 222nd overall, the Tennessee Titans selected Montana wideout Marc Mariani.

Mariani was a tremendously productive receiver for the Grizzlies as a junior and senior, catching 69 catches for 1308 yards and then 81 yards for 1495 and 13 touchdowns as a senior as the Grizzlies made it to the FCS (I-AA) championship game before losing to Villanova.  At Montana, Mariani was a teammate of Jeff Fisher's son Brandon.

Mariani was not invited to the Combine, but apparently had a good workout at Montana's pro day, running a 4.48 and 4.49 in the 40.  One scouting report considers him the FCS version of Texas wideout Jordan Shipley, a possession receiver who also returned punts and put up good numbers but may be best suited on the slot at the NFL level.  Or, rather, he lacks NFL athleticism and won't be able to get open against non-Big Sky defenders.

But, hey, it's a 7th round pick and they pretty much all do nothing.

Tennessee Titans select SS Myron Rolle with 6th round compensatory pick

Written by Drexel Perry on .

The Tennessee Titans have added a distinguished Rhodes Scholar to their roster.

With the final selection of 6th round, the Titans picked up talented/intelligent former Florida State defensive back Myron Rolle. no comments

QB Rusty Smith goes to Titans in sixth round

Written by Andrew Strickert on .

With the 176th overall pick (obtained from Seattle), the Tennessee Titans have selected QB Rusty Smith from Florida Atlantic. The Titans had already showed some interest in Smith, who was invited for a visit.
 
The selection answered the question posed by Drexel, whether or not the Titans would draft a QB. In that article, Drexel named Smith as a QB who could become a Titan and gave us some info on him.
 
Continuing with the theme of productive players, Smith holds a number of passing records at FAU, for whatever that may be worth.
 
One interesting thing is if the Titans keep Smith as a developmental player, he'll take a roster spot from a regular position player, which I'm sure we'll discuss in more detail during training camp. Tennessee has gone with both two and three QBs in the past. For the time being, Smith will join QBs Vince Young, Kerry Collins and Chris Simms on the roster.
 
What's your opinion on drafting a QB in general, and Smith in particular?

Titans add S Robert Johnson in 5th round

Written by Tom Gower on .

The Tennessee Titans added to their secondary depth by taking Utah S Robert Johnson with the 17th pick in the 5th round, 148th overall in the 2010 NFL draft.

Like 4th rounder William Hayes, Johnson was not invited to the Combine but was a 1st-team All Mountain West Conference selection in 2009 for the Utes.  He needs to add strength and improve his man coverage skills, especially in his backpedal and hip flexibility, but is a very good zone player who can potentially develop into a starter.  Like Verner, his immediate impact will likely be on special teams and it's unlikely he'd be ready to replace Chris Hope next year, but Hope does have 2 years remaining on his deal.

I know I wasn't big on the Hayes pick, but it's worked out better than I thought it would and Johnson fits this year's theme of guys who were very productive in college.

What do you think of this pick?  Happy with the Titans' new-found focus on production?

Tennessee Titans select CB Alterraun Verner with newly acquired 4th rounder

Written by Drexel Perry on .

With the pick they just acquired from Seattle in exchange for LenDale White, the Tennessee Titans added some depth at the CB position by selecting CB Alterraun Verner of UCLA.

Verner's described as being a scrappy, undersized corner who makes up for his lack of size with a high level of toughness. He's a guy who will probably make an impact initially on special teams but with his competitive nature, maybe he can emerge as a contributor down the road.

Selecting Verner continues this year's draft trend of the Titans picking up players who produced on the college level at big-time programs.

Any thoughts on this selection? Feel free to comment below.

 

LenDale White traded to Seattle

Written by Drexel Perry on .

In breaking news, the Tennessee Titans have acquired an additional 4th round pick (selection #104) in exchange for the running back formerly known as Smash, LenDale White.

White was made expendable due to the emergence of all-world RB Chris Johnson.

With White's departure, expect CJ to continue to carry the load, with Javon Ringer being the guy behind him. Also, don't be surprised to see the Titans draft a RB to replace White on the depth chart at some point today.