Tag: Ben Jones

Titans’ Ryan Tannehill posts heartfelt message about Ben Jones after release

Ryan Tannehill took to social media to post a heartfelt message about Ben Jones after his release from the Titans.

One of the people who could be most directly impacted by the Tennessee Titans releasing center Ben Jones is quarterback Ryan Tannehill.

If he returns to Nashville in 2023, Tannehill won’t have the same center he’s had since coming aboard in 2019, something that will no doubt be a tough pill to swallow.

Upon learning of the news of Jones’ release, Tannehill posted this heartfelt message on social media about his now-former teammate.

“One of my favorite teammates of all time,” Tannehill wrote. “You always set the tone for us up front… tough as they come and always kept things light in the locker room. So thankful I got to call you a teammate for the last 4 years. Even more, thankful you’ll be a friend for life.”

The thought was that Jones would return to the Titans if he didn’t retire, but it appears that wasn’t in the cards for Tennessee, as the team gave the veteran an ultimatum that didn’t involve staying: retire or be released.

Assuming the plan isn’t to bring center/guard Aaron Brewer back and play him at left guard or center, the Titans are facing a situation in which they have to replace at least three starters from last year’s offensive line, and possibly four depending on what happens with right guard Nate Davis.

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Grade for Titans releasing center Ben Jones

Shaun Calderon slaps a grade on the Titans’ decision to release Ben Jones.

Over the past couple of weeks, the Tennessee Titans have slowly started to create some significant cap space to work with ahead of free agency.

Unfortunately, to do so, Tennessee had to move on from a couple of players who have been franchise pillars for the better part of the last decade, specifically Taylor Lewan, and now Ben Jones.

Following the recent release of the Titans’ legendary center, the team saved $3.7 million and is now expected to hover around $26 million once free agency officially begins next week.

Truthfully, as hard as this was on the emotional side, this was the move that had to be made for the franchise to move forward. Jones suffered at least two concussions last season alone, and it’s possible one more could cause him to hang it up forever.

Tennessee could not enter the 2023 season with that type of risk considering what it just experienced a season ago with all of its injuries.

On top of the fact that the Titans are parting ways with a beloved player, the other hard part about this move is it creates another hole for the team to fill.

Nonetheless, this is a move for the Titans to further themselves away from arguably the worst offensive line in team history, while also creating some much-needed cap space in the process.

I can’t give this move an A because of the hole it creates, but Tennessee made the right call to think about the future instead of being nostalgic and risk being in the same situation they were a season ago.

Final grade: B-

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Titans’ Mike Vrabel releases statement on cutting Ben Jones

Titans head coach Mike Vrabel shared his thoughts after the team released Ben Jones.

The Tennessee Titans have made it official by announcing that center Ben Jones has been released with a failed physical designation that figures to be more procedural than anything else.

While it was thought Jones’ options were Tennessee or retirement, that turned out not to be the case, as the Titans reportedly gave him the option to retire or be let go.

Jones clearly chose the latter, which means he plans to play in 2023. And, per Titans beat writer Paul Kuharsky, retirement is not currently in the cards for the 33-year-old, who wasn’t ruling it out earlier this offseason.

Upon announcing the move of Jones’ release, the Titans included a statement from Mike Vrabel that read as follows:

“I want to thank Ben for his time here with the Titans,” Vrabel said, per Jim Wyatt of Titans Online. “He embodied a lot of the qualities we talk about when we describe a Titans player. He was a great teammate; his toughness was off the charts, and he had a leadership quality that was earned through the relationships he built and the dedication to the game he showed to his teammates.”

Jones was a very good, dependable player who meant a lot to the team and the fan base over his six seasons, and there’s no question Vrabel had no shortage of love for everything about him.

He will no doubt be missed by the fans and his teammate and coaches, but his time in Nashville will always be fondly remembered.

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Breaking down Titans’ options to replace Ben Jones at center

A look at the avenues the Titans have to replace Ben Jones and how likely they are to utilize each.

The Tennessee Titans have a new need to address this offseason as of Friday morning after news broke that the Tennessee Titans were planning to release long-time center, Ben Jones.

The move was surprising to say the least, as it was thought the only way Jones wouldn’t be back in Nashville was if he retired, which was always possible after the veteran suffered a pair of concussions in 2022.

But, at 33 years old, Jones is clearly intent on playing again in 2023 after he chose to be released rather than retire. The Georgia product now heads to free agency, where he figures to have plenty of suitors.

As Jones is cut loose, the Titans now have a huge hole to fill at center, but they’ll have multiple avenues to go about replacing him, whether it be free agency, trade, the draft, or some combination of those three.

Here’s a breakdown of all the avenues Tennessee has, and how likely they are to take each.

Titans add to Bengals’ free-agency options with release of Ben Jones

Another OL for the Bengals to consider in free agency.

The Cincinnati Bengals enter free agency with a need along the offensive line and the Tennessee Titans might have just thrown the team an assist.

Tennessee gave veteran center Ben Jones the option to retire or get cut and Jones chose the open market, meaning he’ll be there when free agency opens next week.

Jones, 33, suffered multiple concussions last season and only appeared in 12 games, his first stretch of significant time missed.

But the other side of the coin with Jones is that even while failing to reach the 700-snap mark last year, he graded well as a pass protector and run blocker and ultimately finished with a 72.6 PFF grade.

Jones is one of many interesting line options for the Bengals in free agency, though his combination of age and experience might suggest a desire to sign with a contender.

If that’s the case, Jones might be a viable option as a left guard upgrade over Cordell Volson, with the sophomore guard becoming something of a top-tier backup for at least one year.

It’s just one option for the Bengals to consider, though quite an intriguing one given the limited amount of spending they want to do while also managing to upgrade the depth of the line.

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Potential landing spots for Ben Jones in free agency after release from Titans

A look at some potential landing spots for Ben Jones, some of which he has strong Titans connections with.

The first “what the hell” moment of the offseason occurred on Friday when it was reported that the Tennessee Titans were set to release center Ben Jones, a move that wasn’t really expected.

Now, that’s not to say Jones’ future wasn’t in limbo going into the offseason, but that was because many thought he could retire. The thought was that if Jones did return, it would be to Nashville.

Clearly that was not the case, and interestingly enough it doesn’t even seem like keeping Jones was on the table. According to AtoZ Sports Nashville’s Buck Reising, Jones had the option of retirement or release, nothing else.

Putting all that aside for now, Jones is looking for a new home and he figures to garner plenty of attention as one of the best centers on the open market.

It’s always tough to predict where a player will land in free agency, and that’s true with Jones, as we don’t know how much he’ll weigh the chance to win a Super Bowl, which will limit his options.

There are some teams around the league that Jones has strong connections to that make sense, and one of those teams might give him the best chance to win out of the group.

We’ve included squads Jones has a connection with that need a center, as well as those he doesn’t have any significant ties to that need an upgrade at the position.

Titans’ updated cap space after release of Ben Jones

The Titans will free up $3.7 million in cap space by releasing Ben Jones.

The Tennessee Titans continue to free up more cap space as the start of free agency approaches, with their latest move coming in the form of releasing center Ben Jones.

While the team hasn’t confirmed it yet, AtoZ Sports Nashville’s Buck Reising is reporting the move is happening, and it appears it’ll come pre-June 1, which means Tennessee will save $3.7 million.

According to Over the Cap, the Titans currently sit with $13.2 million in cap space, but that figure doesn’t include the money saved from cutting both Jones and outside linebacker Bud Dupree.

When you include the $3.7 million from Jones and the $9.35 million from Dupree, Tennessee is now sitting with around $26 million in cap space, the 10th-most in the NFL.

Of course, the move to release Jones now opens up a massive hole at center, as the veteran was by far the team’s best player upfront in 2022, and really for most of his time in Nashville.

It’s possible Tennessee goes the cheap route, which would make this move make more sense. It would make no sense for the Titans to let go of a sure thing in Jones and then pay a different veteran free-agent center on top of having to shell out the $4.5 million for Jones’ dead-cap hit.

One candidate who fits the bill for that approach is Aaron Brewer, who the Titans like. Granted, he was not good at left guard in 2022, but perhaps the team thinks he can be better at center and without Dennis Daley next to him.

Brewer is set to hit free agency next week, but he’s a restricted free agent, which means the Titans have control in bringing him back.

As far as Jones is concerned, he immediately becomes one of the best center options on the open market and he should have no shortage of suitors, enabling him to pick where he wants to go in 2023.

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Brett Kern, Titans fans and media react to release of Ben Jones

Titans great Brett Kern was one of many to take to Twitter to react to the news of Ben Jones’ impending release.

The Tennessee Titans are set to make a pretty surprising move, as the team is reportedly expected to release center Ben Jones this offseason.

The news came from AtoZ Sports Nashville’s Buck Reising, who also notes that the Titans gave Jones the option to either retire or be released, which points to the Titans having no intention of keeping Jones.

That’s the most surprising aspect in of all this. Granted, the Titans were set to make major changes upfront in 2023, but Jones was thought to be the one safe entity as long as he decided to not to retire.

Letting Jones go will no doubt make fixing the offensive line more difficult.

The Titans have at least three starters to replace (assuming Aaron Brewer isn’t in line to return to left guard or take over for Jones), and that number will increase to four if Nate Davis leaves in free agency.

Titans fans and media were understandably sad to see Jones let go, and his release left some believing this is a sign the team is indeed rebuilding.

Report: Titans releasing former Georgia star center Ben Jones

The Tennessee Titans appear to be moving on from Ben Jones

Former Georgia Bulldog star center Ben Jones is looking for a new NFL home. The Tennessee Titans are releasing Jones ahead of NFL free agency. Jones has been a critical element of Tennessee’s powerful rushing attack.

Jones started 12 games for the Titans last season and has 151 starts over his 11 season NFL career. Tennessee had the No. 13 rushing offense in the NFL during the 2022 season.

Jones and the Tennessee offensive line help set the point of attack for star running back Derrick Henry for many great seasons.

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Ben Jones should be expected to start wherever he elects to go. Jones made the first Pro Bowl of his lengthy NFL career in 2022.

Jones signed a two-year, $14 million contract with the Titans last offseason. The former Georgia Bulldogs has earned over $28 million in his NFL career, per Spotrac.

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Titans gave Ben Jones the option to retire or be released

The Titans reportedly gave Ben Jones the option to retire or be released.

Once the Tennessee Titans’ season came to an end and we started looking ahead to the 2023 offseason, one of the bigger question marks was center Ben Jones, who many thought could retire.

The 33-year-old suffered multiple concussions in 2022, leading to the veteran missing five games, marking the first time in his career he missed more than one contest in a season.

The overwhelming thought was that if Jones did return for another season, it would certainly be to Nashville, whether on his current deal or on an extended or restructured one.

Tennessee was heading for a rebuild of the offensive line no matter what, but Jones was one of the few retainable players from the 2022 group, a unit that was arguably the NFL’s worst.

And that was really the case with Jones for his Titans tenure. He was as consistent as they come, and Jones always played at a high level, even with everything and everyone going down around him with injuries and whatnot.

Sure, the age was a concern with Jones, but he didn’t display any signs of slowing down last season when not sidelined by the concussion, and he only had one more year left on his deal.

While all the signs were there that Jones would be someone the franchise would want to hang on to amidst an offensive line rebuild, it appears the Titans didn’t have that intention.

According to AtoZ Sports Nashville’s Buck Reising, who broke the news of Jones’ impending release, the Titans gave Jones the option to either retire or be released, and obviously Jones chose to be released.

“Jones was given the option to retire or be released by Tennessee and chose the latter option,” Reising wrote.

With so many question marks upfront, it’s hard to fathom the Titans parting ways with the one certainty and a player that embodied everything head coach Mike Vrabel wants his team to be.

And it’s not like cutting Jones is saving a boatload of money, either. Granted, the $3.7 million savings is notable with Tennessee’s cap situation, but not enough to fully get behind the move.

While this might look like a move a rebuilding team would make, it’s important to note that the Titans are cutting Jones pre-June 1, which saves less money but enables them to use the funds saved right away, an ideal scenario for a retooling team.

Maybe the pre-June 1 decision is the Titans doing Jones a favor by letting him out of a rebuild and giving him a chance to sign with a team quicker, something he’s earned.

It’s also possible this is simply a cost-cutting measure and a move the Titans are making with a cheaper replacement in mind, like Aaron Brewer, who the Titans may think will be better at center than left guard, where he struggled in 2022.

I don’t think anyone can say definitively what this move signifies, but it does muddy the rebuild/retool waters at least a bit after I made the argument prior to the unexpected release of Jones that cutting Bud Dupree pre-June 1 was a sign the team isn’t rebuilding.

Whatever the case may be, with Jones gone, an already daunting task of fixing the offensive line just became even more difficult.

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