The Tennessee Titans didn’t achieve a 12-5 record and the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs on pure luck. Mike Vrabel’s club had a number of players step up in a big way this past season, including our honorable mention here in safety Kevin Byard.
The 28-year-old experienced a bounceback season after being a non-factor for the most part in 2020. Byard accumulated 88 combined tackles, one sack, two forced fumbles, two defensive touchdowns and five interceptions, tied for fourth-most in the National Football League.
For his efforts, Byard was recognized as a First-Team All-Pro, while also earning his second Pro Bowl honor.
“He’s our leader. He runs the show,” defensive coordinator Shane Bowen said back in October. “He’s our communicator, and he’s getting himself in position to make some plays and he’s making them. That’s what we expect of him. That’s what he expects of himself and it’s kind of showing up right now, so hopefully it will continue.”
Byard set the tone for what we’ve come to expect from him as a player when he burst onto the scene in his sophomore year, when he led the league with eight interceptions. In 2018 and 2019, the Middle Tennessee State product racked up a combined nine picks before regressing some in 2020.
Byard didn’t make the list of players who saw their stock rise the most in 2021, but here are five players who did.