Category: Latest Titans News

Titans WR DeAndre Hopkins on contract status: ‘Happiest I’ve been in any organization’

DeAndre Hopkins wants to stick around beyond 2024.

All eyes are on Tennessee Titans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins as he enters the second leg of his two-year contract signed last offseason. The 32-year-old experienced a bounceback year in 2023, hauling in 75 catches and eclipsing the 1,000-yard mark for the seventh time in his 11-year career.

Originally drafted by the Houston Texans, Hopkins also spent three seasons with the Arizona Cardinals before coming to Nashville. It would appear that he is also open to sticking around beyond the upcoming NFL season, as he alluded to after Day 2 of training camp on Thursday.

“I love Tennessee,” Hopkins said via ESPN’s Turron Davenport. “I love what (Amy Adams Strunk) is doing. I think this is the happiest that I’ve been in any organization, so let that speak for itself.”

Why is he so happy to be here, exactly?

“How (Amy Adams Strunk) runs things. It’s a great place to be. She’s putting pieces together to try to win.”

We’ll see if the Titans and Hopkins can strike up a contract extension prior to the season, but there is undoubtedly a strong connection between the wide receiver and quarterback Will Levis.

Hopkins became a favorite target during Levis’s rookie campaign, and the two have continued to develop their chemistry this offseason. Levis paid for several of his teammates (including Hopkins) to work out in Cabo, Mexico.

At this stage of his career, Hopkins serves as a valued mentor for the young wideouts and tight ends on the roster, so keeping him around is certainly beneficial.

Titans sign veteran linebacker Shane Ray

Titans are signing a former Denver first-round pick.

On the second day of training camp, the Tennessee Titans continued to make roster moves. First, Tennessee brought back center Corey Levin for his third stint with the team.

Now, the Titans are signing veteran linebacker Shane Ray.

Ray, 31, was a 2015 first-round pick of the Denver Broncos. After four seasons in Denver, the Broncos declined his fifth-year option, making him a free agent in 2019. He signed with the Baltimore Ravens but was released during final cuts.

In 2021, Ray signed with the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts, where he spent two seasons.

Ray finally returned to the NFL in 2023 with the Buffalo Bills but suffered an injury and was released before the season. During his time away from the NFL, Ray has received tryouts with the Falcons, Colts, Jets and Bears, among others.

In 49 career games, Ray has 15 starts and recorded 94 tackles and 14 sacks. He hasn’t appeared in an NFL game since the 2018 season.

Titans bring back center Corey Levin, sign LB Shane Ray

The Titans are bringing back Corey Levin for his third stint with the team, and they have also signed linebacker Shane Ray.

The Tennessee Titans are bringing back a familiar face.

According to Justin Melo of The Draft Network, the Titans signed Levin on Thursday morning and have him on the practice field.

Levin, 29, was originally drafted by the Titans in the sixth round of the 2017 NFL draft out of Chattanooga. Tennessee waived Levin after two seasons during final cuts in 2019. He played in 16 games, with one start in 2018.

The Denver Broncos claimed Levin off waivers and cut him two weeks later, re-signing him to the practice squad. In November, the Chicago Bears signed Levin away from Denver’s practice squad to their 53-man roster. He was waived the following September.

Levin had brief stints with the New England Patriots and New York Jets in 2020 and 2021 but never appeared in a game. The Titans brought him back on Sept. 1, 2021, claiming him off waivers.

Over the next three seasons, Levin appeared in 45 games with three starts.

In addition to Levin, the Titans have also signed linebacker Shane Ray, reports Titan insider Terry McCormick.

The 31-year-old Ray was a first-round pick of the Denver Broncos in the 2015 NFL draft. After four seasons in the mountains, he spent the 2019 offseason with the Baltimore Ravens and then two seasons with the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL.

In 2023, Ray was signed to the Buffalo Bills practice squad but landed on injured reserve (IR) in August and was released with an injury settlement two days later.

Ray has appeared in 49 career games (15 starts), recording 94 tackles (15 for a loss), 33 QB hits, 14.0 sacks, two passes defensed, and one defensive touchdown.

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Netflix series ‘Untold’ will examine murder of Steve McNair

Netflix will release a new episode of “Untold” on Aug. 20 examining the murder of Tennessee Titans/Houston Oilers legend Steve McNair.

Earlier this week, Netflix revealed that its sports documentary series “Untold” will return in August with three new episodes that “go well beyond the headlines.”

Among those will be the murder of Titans/Oilers Ring of Honor member Steve McNair, who was found shot to death on July 4, 2009, alongside 20-year-old Sahel “Jenni” Kazemi in a Nashville condominium.

Nashville police declared McNair’s death a murder-suicide with Kazemi named the perpetrator.

Over the years, there have been some wild conspiracy theories associated with McNair’s murder, and it’s possible “Untold” will explore those.

McNair was a first-round pick (No. 3 overall) of the Houston Oilers in the 1995 NFL draft. He spent the first 11 seasons of his career with the Oilers/Titans before closing things out with the rival Baltimore Ravens (2006-2007).

McNair earned co-MVP honors with Peyton Manning in 2003, when he also was named a second-team All-Pro. In his 13-year career, he voted to the Pro Bowl three times. In 2019, the Titans retired McNair’s No. 9 jersey.

The episode on McNair will premiere on Tuesday, Aug. 20.

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Titans’ T’Vondre Sweat on missing spring sessions: ‘Ask the head coach’

When asked why he was sidelined throughout the spring, Tennessee Titans second-round pick T’Vondre Sweat snapped back: “Ask the head coach.”

The Tennessee Titans kept rookie defensive tackle T’Vondre Sweat sidelined for a large portion of organized team activities (OTAs) and all of minicamp, but the second-round pick returned on Wednesday as training camp kicked off.

Sweat took the field alongside his teammates and performed about as well as could be expected.

“My first day, it was great really,” he told reporters after practice, via The Tennessean. “Just coming out here and doing what I love, really. It’s great just being out here and having another opportunity.”

But why did he miss so much time throughout the spring? Sweat wasn’t keen on offering up any details.

“Ask the head coach,” he said.

Brian Callahan wasn’t available to members of the media on Wednesday, so that question will have to wait. For now, Sweat insists he’s a full go even though he appeared gassed at times, which drew some ribbing from his offensive teammates, reports Jim Wyatt of TennesseeTitans.com.

All eyes were on defensive lineman T’Vondre Sweat at the start, considering we didn’t see much of him in the offseason. The team’s second-round pick showed some pretty good footwork on the bags, and he said afterward he felt good. Some of Sweat’s offensive teammates razzed him a little bit at one point later in practice about being tired, but there were several guys feeling it on the first day back.

Sweat and the Titans will return to the field on Thursday for their second training camp practice and perhaps the team’s beat writers will get a little more information out of Callahan.

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