Tag: Ben Jones

9 pending free agents Titans should re-sign in 2022

A look at nine pending free agents the Tennessee Titans should re-sign in 2022.

The Tennessee Titans will have some difficult decisions to make during the 2022 offseason, and those decisions begin with the team’s own free agents.

Titans general manager Jon Robinson will have a hill to climb this offseason, as Tennessee is projected to be about $7 million over the cap to begin with, according to Over the Cap.

With Tennessee having 31 of their own free agents to deal with and needing to make some additions in free agency, Robinson will no doubt have to cut and/or restructure contracts to free up more money.

When taking a look at the list of Titans players who are set to be free agents, there are nine who jump off the page as players Tennessee should bring back.

Thankfully, only two of them will be expensive for the Titans to retain. Let’s take a look at who the nine are and why the Titans should bring them back.

Titans’ Ben Jones shows gymnastics skills after Ryan Tannehill TD

Big men shouldn’t be able to move as well as Titans center Ben Jones can.

It takes a special kind of athleticism to be in the NFL, and Tennessee Titans center Ben Jones showed his during the 20-0 Week 14 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

After quarterback Ryan Tannehill found pay dirt from five yards out in the third quarter, extending the Titans’ lead to 17-0, Jones celebrated the score by busting out a round-off so good it would make even the best gymnast blush.

For us mere mortals, a move like the one Jones pulled would cause an injury, but not for the big man, who moves far better than someone standing at 6-foot-3 and weighing 308 pounds should.

The Titans center had himself a great game in Week 14, earning the highest overall Pro Football Focus grade of any player on offense with an 80.6.

As far as the round-off is concerned, Jones gets a perfect score from us, as not only was his execution on point, but he stuck the landing, also.

[lawrence-related id=78996,78962,78956]

[listicle id=78966]

Titans activate Ben Jones, Nate Davis off COVID-19 list

The Titans have just two players remaining on the COVID-19 list.

The Tennessee Titans announced the activation of right guard Nate Davis and center Ben Jones off the Reserve/COVID-19 list on Wednesday.

With their activation, the Titans’ 53-man roster is now full.

The only players remaining on the list are 2021 undrafted free agent,  offensive lineman Cole Banwart,  and 2021 sixth-round pick, safety Brady Breeze.

The Titans will open their season on Sunday, Sept. 12 against the Arizona Cardinals at Nissan Stadium.

Titans not ready to name starter at right tackle

The Titans have less than one week to make their decision.

One of the biggest questions the Tennessee Titans still have to answer ahead of the 2021 campaign is: who will be the starter at right tackle?

The last we heard from head coach Mike Vrabel, he revealed that it was a three-man race between David Quessenberry, Kendall Lamm and Ty Sambrailo.

When Vrabel had his latest presser with the media on Monday, he said he wasn’t ready to name the starter just yet, which likely means this week of practices will determine who gets the nod.

Of course, it’s also possible the Titans have figured out who the starter will be, or at least have an idea and are just playing coy, but Vrabel’s comments are all we have to go on right now.

As far as the rest of the offensive line is concerned, Vrabel said he hopes to have both right guard Nate Davis and center Ben Jones back soon. The two starters are currently on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.

In the preseason finale against the Chicago Bears, it was Quessenberry who started at right tackle, with Lamm and Sambrailo coming in later on. Lamm played at right tackle, while Sambrailo was deployed on the left side.

The Titans have less than one week to make their decision, as the regular-season opener will take place on Sept. 12 at Nissan Stadium against the Arizona Cardinals.

[listicle id=70883]

Titans part ways with five players among seven roster moves

The Titans have begun trimming their roster down to 53 players.

The Tennessee Titans made a total of seven moves on Sunday afternoon with the deadline for final cuts just a few days away on Tuesday, Aug. 31.

The team announced that it has placed running back Brian Hill on Injured Reserve and center Ben Jones on the Reserve/COVID-19 list. Jones is the eighth player on the COVID-19 list, and the ninth placed there this week.

In addition, Tennessee parted ways with five players, including releasing outside linebacker John Simon and safety Clayton Geathers, and waiving defensive back Nate Brooks, linebacker Cassh Maluia, and defensive lineman Freedom Akinmoladun.

With these moves, the Titans are now down to 72 players on their current roster. They must be down to 53 by Tuesday at 3 p.m. CDT.

The biggest surprise of the moves made was the waiving of Simon. Granted, it wasn’t an earth-shattering kind of surprise, but a surprise nonetheless, as Simon worked fairly high in the outside linebacker rotation.

His departure is a great sign for fellow outside linebackers Ola Adeniyi and Derick Roberson.

Hill’s injury, which happened during Saturday night’s preseason finale versus the Chicago Bears, fully opens the door for running back Mekhi Sargent to make the cut if the Titans carry a fourth back.

[lawrence-related id=70321,70290,70288]

[vertical-gallery id=70296]

Several key Titans players not spotted at Day 9 of training camp

The Titans are missing some key players on both sides of the ball on Saturday.

The Tennessee Titans are hitting the field for Day 9 of 2021 training camp practice and several key players were not spotted during team stretches.

Among those key players are wide receivers Julio Jones and A.J. Brown, center Ben Jones, outside linebacker Harold Landry, defensive linemen Denico Autry and Jeffery Simmons, tight end Geoff Swaim and right guard Nate Davis. Wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine is also absent.

Julio Jones hasn’t practiced since suffering what was deemed a minor injury on Monday. Head coach Mike Vrabel said Jones was fine, but that the team planned on limiting his practice reps anyway. Ben Jones is another player to keep an eye on moving forward; he sat out on Friday, too.

Swaim’s extended absence continues to be a concern, as the veteran tight end hasn’t practiced since Thursday of last week. Landry, who left practice early on Tuesday, sat out Wednesday’s session before returning on Friday.

Brown, Autry, Simmons, Davis and Westbrook-Ikhine haven’t been noted as players who have appeared to suffer injuries during camp, so it’s likely this is just a rest day for them.

And, really, that could be the case with some of these other players as well, so there’s no reason to worry about most of them right now, with the exception of Swaim because of his extended absence.

[lawrence-related id=68739,68714,68666]

[listicle id=68570]

Titans injury update: Julio, Reynolds, Swaim, Landry absent from Day 7

Jones, Reynolds and Swaim have now missed multiple practices in a row.

The Tennessee Titans continue to be without two of their key wide receivers in training camp, as Julio Jones and Josh Reynolds were both absent from training camp once again on Wednesday.

Adding to the list of missing, outside linebacker Harold Landry and tight end Geoff Swaim were not spotted, also.

Jones landed awkwardly while trying to secure a catch during Monday’s session, leading to his missing the last two. Beat writers noted that it didn’t seem serious, so the Titans are likely just being cautious.

This is the fifth straight practice Reynolds and Swaim have missed. Both were on the field for last Thursday’s session, but Reynolds left early. Landry left Tuesday’s practice early, so his absence certainly isn’t surprising.

Unfortunately, there are no details about what any of these players are dealing with, which is pretty normal for a Titans team that likes to keep things close to the vest when it comes to injuries.

On a brighter note, outside linebacker Derick Roberson is present after having to exit early on Saturday. We’re still awaiting word on center Ben Jones, who got shaken up during the team’s first padded practice yesterday. We’ll update this page when more information becomes available on him.

[lawrence-related id=68490,68483,68473]

[listicle id=68451]

Titans injury updates: Ben Jones shaken up, Harold Landry leaves early

Ben Jones appeared to suffer a knee injury, although it doesn’t seem serious.

The Tennessee Titans had their first padded practice of training camp on Tuesday, but the team did not come out of it unscathed.

According to Titans beat writer Paul Kuharsky, center Ben Jones appeared to injure his left knee on one play. He tried to stay in but was pulled. Jones was able to run and celebrate a touchdown after, so it doesn’t appear to be serious.

Another situation to watch is with outside linebacker Harold Landry, who, according to John Glennon of Broadway Sports Media, left practice early. There isn’t anymore information on him at this time.

Backup quarterback DeShone Kizer is another player who appeared to suffer an injury, as Glennon noted it looked like he injured his throwing hand at the end of practice. Kizer is competing against fellow signal-call Logan Woodside for the backup quarterback job.

As we told you earlier in the day, wide receivers Julio Jones and Josh Reynolds, tight end Geoff Swaim, outside linebacker Derick Roberson, offensive tackle Paul Adams and center Spencer Pulley were all absent.

Jones suffered what was deemed a minor injury on Monday, while Reynolds and Swaim have not been spotted at practice since last Thursday. Roberson last participated on Saturday before leaving that session early.

[lawrence-related id=68394,68389,68384]

[listicle id=68150]

Tennessee Titans’ biggest salary-cap bargains on the 2021 roster

These Titans are set to produce a lot for a reasonable price in 2021.

The Tennessee Titans have spent a pretty penny this offseason in order to improve their defense, and the team has also spared no expense on offense after acquiring star wide receiver Julio Jones.

Make no mistake about it: the Titans are all-in.

But for all of the high-priced players on Tennessee’s 2021 roster, the team will enjoy some steals this coming season in terms of salary-cap bargains, or players who are making less than what their performance would dictate.

With that in mind, we’re taking a look at the Titans’ biggest salary-cap bargains going into 2021. Of course, guys on rookie deals are featured on this list, but there are some veterans on regular contracts who also made the cut.

We did not include rookies or other new additions to the team, as we simply don’t know how valuable they’ll be yet relative to their contract values. Here’s what we came up with:

Note: all cap hit figures are courtesy of Over the Cap.

Titans’ Ben Jones makes top 10 of PFF’s center rankings

An argument can be made for Jones to be higher on this list.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqbyh7crnrcs3ypf player_id=none image=https://titanswire.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

Tennessee Titans center Ben Jones has been a steady hand for the team at center during his tenure in Nashville, as not only has he missed just one game over five seasons, he has also provided elite-level play at the position.

And that has been reflected in Pro Football Focus’ recent center rankings ahead of the 2021 season after the outlet’s Ben Linsey ranked Jones as the No. 7 center in the NFL.

Jones served as a steady option on the interior for both the Texans and Titans from 2012 through 2018, his first seven NFL seasons. The former Georgia Bulldog graded between 69.4 and 74.7 in each of those years. But his last two seasons for Tennessee have been the best of his career from a PFF grading standpoint. Jones was a big part of Derrick Henry’s 2,000-yard season in 2020, as no center in the league had a higher percentage of their run blocks grade positively than Jones last year.

While that is a solid ranking, the argument can be made that Jones should be higher based on PFF’s own metrics.

Jones’ 78.6 overall PFF grade from last year was better than three other players ahead of him on this list, including the man owning the No. 1 spot, Arizona Cardinals center Rodney Hudson.

[lawrence-related id=64275,64268,64258]

[vertical-gallery id=64199]