You can’t tell the story of the Tennessee Titans’ defensive revival during the 2021 season without mentioning former second-round pick, cornerback Kristian Fulton.
After an injury-plagued 2020 campaign, Fulton made huge strides in 2021 and cemented himself as not only Tennessee’s best cornerback, but one of the better young cornerbacks in the NFL.
The LSU product allowed a completion rate of 51.4 percent and a passer rating of 71.3 when targeted, while also nabbing a pair of interceptions and 14 passes defended.
Fulton’s impressive sophomore campaign isn’t lost on players around the NFL, as evidenced by Kansas City Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu heaping praise on the 23-year-old, per Jim Wyatt of Titans Online.
“He’s grown so much, from watching him at LSU and obviously coming to Tennessee,” Mathieu said. “I thought he was a big part of those guy’s success defensively this season, obviously along with Kevin Byard, he had a great year. But I thought Kristian stepped up, I thought he played well and I’m just looking forward to seeing him continue to grow in this league.”
“I think he has a good feel for routes; he’s been playing cornerback a long time and I think he’s comfortable,” Mathieu continued. “You could play him off, obviously he could press, and then his play-making skills as well. He can stick his foot in the ground and get his hand on a ball or two.”
After seeing what Fulton was able to accomplish in his second year after an injury-shortened first season, the Titans can only hope 2021 first-round pick and cornerback Caleb Farley follows the same path.
If so, a trio of Fulton, Farley and Molden will leave the Titans in great shape at the cornerback position for years to come.
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