General manager Jon Robinson has done a fantastic job building the Tennessee Titans into a contender, and that was never more apparent than when the team made a run to the AFC Championship Game last season.
On top of making some great draft picks, Robinson was responsible for pulling the trigger on a trade with the Miami Dolphins that sent Ryan Tannehill to the Titans.
Of course, Tannehill was the spark the Titans needed in 2019 to turn a 2-4 start into a playoff berth, all the while taking Tennessee’s offense to new heights it hadn’t seen in quite some time, if ever.
For his efforts, Robinson was ranked No. 8 on NFL.com’s GM Power Rankings, compiled by Gregg Rosenthal.
“Robinson’s draft record was already impressive before last year, when he selected Offensive Rookie of the Year candidate A.J. Brown and impact first-round defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons. All of the Titans’ transactions — including the hiring of Mike Vrabel — have a point of view. The organizational cohesion — built around physicality — helps explain why the team was greater than the sum of its parts in 2019. Robinson expertly navigated the transition from Marcus Mariota (whom Robinson inherited), while picking up Ryan Tannehill at a major discount (for one season, anyway).”
Robinson hit multiple home runs in last year’s draft. His first three picks — defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons, wide receiver A.J. Brown and right guard Nate Davis — were all starters last season.
His fourth-round pick, safety Amani Hooker, and sixth-round pick, linebacker David Long, both made significant contributions in reserve roles, also.
And that’s only one draft. He’s also found players like safety Kevin Byard in the third round (2016) and linebacker Jayon Brown in the fifth round (2017), to name a few other examples.
Robinson is going to have a tall order in trying to top what he did in the 2019 NFL Draft in 2020, but if anyone has the track record to make you believe it can be done, it’s the Titans’ general manager.
Regardless of what happens in the draft, the Titans are in prime position to compete for an AFC title once again in 2020 because of the totality of moves Robinson has made during his tenure in Nashville.
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