The Tennessee Titans’ 2019 draft class might go down as one of the best in franchise history, as general manager Jon Robinson added several impact players who are either already starters or have a chance to become one.
The stars of that class are wide receiver A.J. Brown and defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons, two players the team can build around for years to come. Adding to those two, right guard Nate Davis has been a starter for the past two seasons and took a big leap forward in 2020.
Safety Amani Hooker and linebacker David Long have both made their presence felt off the bench and could push for a starting role in 2021, depending on how the dominoes fall in Nashville this offseason.
The only player who didn’t work out from that class was outside linebacker D’Andre Walker, who was released prior to the 2020 campaign. Still, five out of six is a great early success rate for draft picks.
In an article listing the best draft decision of every NFL team in the past five years, Pro Football Focus’ Michael Renner named the Titans’ entire 2019 draft class as theirs.
Jeffery Simmons, A.J. Brown, Nate Davis, Amani Hooker and David Long — 2019 was a foundation-laying draft for the Titans. It’s why they went to the AFC title game that year and won the AFC South this season. They’ll be well-positioned for the foreseeable future because of it.
While the 2019 class made an immediate impact, Robinson’s 2020 picks did not, with injury and off-the-field issues plaguing that group.
It’s almost as if Robinson and the Titans experienced a market correction following the success of the year prior, although it’s still too early to write that group off — or most of it, at least.
Robinson now heads into 2021 not only hoping the 2020 class will rebound, but that he’ll also have some semblance of the kind of success he had with making picks in 2019.
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