Tag: julius chestnut

Julius Chestnut talks 2023 injury, future with Titans

Titans RB Julius Chestnut recently talked about his season-ending injury in 2023 and what the future holds.

Tennessee Titans 2022 undrafted free agent and running back Julius Chestnut has been one of the bigger surprises to make the initial 53-man roster out of training camp the past two years.

After a stellar preseason showing in 2023, Chestnut made the cut once again and appeared in each of the Titans’ first three games, playing mostly on special teams.

Unfortunately, Chestnut suffered a season-ending hamstring injury in Week 3 against the Cleveland Browns.

“It was hard, an adjustment definitely,” Chestnut said, per Jim Wyatt. “But I had people around me helping me out, and I tried to use the time to get better.”

Chestnut isn’t under contract for 2024, but he is an exclusive rights free agent, so the Titans have control over him if they want to bring him back, something we suggested they should do, as he would be a solid option to compete for a depth/special teams role.

But if Chestnut wants to be anything more than a backup, he’s going to have to improve multiple aspects of his game, something he has been working on after rehabbing from his injury.

“I really just spent the time trying to get better at my weaknesses, trying to be better in the passing game, trying to catch more, do things like that, and focus on my conditioning,” he said.

“When you get to the NFL, you really don’t know how to condition well, or how it was going to be,” Chestnut added. “So, once I learned it’s a different kind of style than college football, I had to adjust. So really, just learning.”

As far as his goals for 2024 go, Chestnut is just hoping to make the team and carve out a role for himself.

“I’ve been through (injuries) before, and I just put my faith in God and my family to get through it,” he said. “(My plan) is to just keep working and try to find my spot on this team. Whatever I need to do to be here, just try to play hard and practice as best I can. I want to come back stronger than ever, better than I was before.”

As things stand now, the Titans only have one running back locked in for 2024 in Tyjae Spears, so there will be ample opportunity for Chestnut to make the cut for the third straight year.

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Titans promote Justin Murray to active roster among 5 moves

The Titans announced five roster moves on Tuesday, including the promotion of OL Justin Murray to the active roster.

The Tennessee Titans announced five roster moves on Tuesday, one of which included the promotion of offensive lineman Justin Murray from the practice squad to the active roster.

Murray, who has experience playing guard and tackle, was with the Titans during the offseason but didn’t make the team after final cuts. After being released, Murray was brought back on the practice squad and has been elevated twice this year.

Along with the promotion of Murray to the active roster from the practice squad, the Titans also placed two players on injured reserve and signed two players to the practice squad.

Here’s a look at the other four moves, along with some information on each player.

Two Titans fined by NFL for Week 1 infractions

Titans LB Azeez Al-Shaair and RB Julius Chestnut were both fined by the league for Week 1 infractions.

After losing their season debut a week ago to the New Orleans Saints, the Tennessee Titans will aim to bounce back on Sunday afternoon when they host the Los Angeles Chargers.

The loss was obviously a gut punch, but for two players on the Titans, the game ended up hurting their wallets, as well.

Titans running back Julius Chestnut was fined $4,681 for an unnecessary roughness violation in the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair ended up being fined a whopping $13,934 for his hit to the head of Saints quarterback Derek Carr in the third quarter.

The latter moment was caught by NFL Films.

Al-Shaair could be heard immediately admitting to Carr that he knew he messed up, but Carr was cool about it and even laughed as the contrite Tennessee linebacker checked to see if he was OK.

Hopefully, this ends up being a learning lesson for Al-Shaair and Chestnut because Tennessee doesn’t need anymore unnecessary penalties, as they can be costly in more ways than one.

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Who are the Titans’ returners going into Week 1?

The Titans have yet to officially announce their returners for Week 1 but we have a pretty good idea who they could be.

While the Tennessee Titans have just about every starting spot spoken for ahead of Week 1 this Sunday, both return jobs remain up in the air.

We saw a slew of players try their hand at both jobs during the offseason, but some of those players either aren’t on the team anymore or are on the practice squad. Adding to that, the projected punt returner, wide receiver Kyle Philips, is on injured reserve.

Fellow wide receiver, Kearis Jackson, saw several opportunities in the return game — both punts and kickoffs — in the preseason finale and should be considered the favorite for at least one of those roles.

When asked specifically about punt returner last week, head coach Mike Vrabel didn’t have an answer. I tried my best to find if anyone asked him about kickoff returns, but couldn’t.

Running back Julius Chestnut is listed in the top spot at kickoff returns on the team’s unofficial depth chart, but that has not been updated since final cuts.

Along with Jackson and Chestnut, rookie running back Tyjae Spears, who returned a kickoff in the preseason opener against the Chicago Bears and was mentioned as a candidate by special teams coach Craig Aukerman during the offseason, is likely also in the mix for one of those jobs.

The Titans should be releasing an updated depth chart at some point before the Week 1 game against the New Orleans Saints, so we should know for sure who the returners are ahead of Sunday.

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Watch: Titans’ Julius Chestnut was mic’d up for preseason Week 2

Titans RB Julius Chestnut was mic’d up for his impressive performance in preseason Week 2.

Tennessee Titans running back Julius Chestnut was mic’d up for preseason Week 2, and it came on what was a career night for the talented young back.

Chestnut went off against the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday night, with the running back tallying a team-high 98 yards while also adding two scores, one of which came through the air.

The highlight of Chestnut’s evening came when he exploded for a 55-yard run that set the Titans up for an eventual field goal.

After two preseason games, Chestnut has been one of the biggest standouts and has gone from someone who was thought to be on the outside looking in for a roster spot when training camp began, to a favorite to land one of the depth spots behind Derrick Henry.

Check out the sights and sounds of preseason Week 2 from Chestnut’s perspective.

Chestnut (4.45), who is second among all running backs this preseason in yards per carry after contact, trailing only teammate Tyjae Spears (5.62), will have a chance to further solidify his spot on the initial 53-man roster when the Titans meet the New England Patriots in the preseason finale on Friday.

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Derrick Henry on Tyjae Spears hurdle: ‘I can’t do nothing like that’

Titans RB Derrick Henry shared his thoughts on the preseason Week 2 performances of Tyjae Spears and Julius Chestnut.

Tennessee Titans running backs Tyjae Spears and Julius Chestnut have done a good job this offseason of positioning themselves to have a role on the football team this upcoming season.

In fact, you could honestly make a strong argument that Tennessee’s two young running backs have been the two best players — regardless of position — throughout the preseason.

Spears and Chestnut have combined for 233 rushing yards and two touchdowns, each averaging well over six yards per carry (Chestnut 7.2 yards per carry, Spears 6.8 yards per carry).

The leader in the running backs room, Derrick Henry, has certainly taken notice of the work the two of them have been putting in.

When asked about Spears’ incredible 33-yard touchdown run against the Minnesota Vikings, a play that saw him hurdle a defender, The King admitted that’s something not even he can do.

“I thought he did a great job,” Henry said after practice on Tuesday, per Easton Freeze of Broadway Sports. “I know I can’t do nothing like that, but it’s great to have a change up and have a back that can be explosive. I know when he hit the ground, he took off, so that was great to see. [I’m] happy that he was able to find the end zone and I think he played great on Saturday.”

Henry also discussed the impact and growth that Chestnut has displayed as of late.

“I mean, he practices how he plays,” said Henry, per Kayla Anderson of 104.5 The Zone. “He’s full go all the time, always running to the ball, always hustling, always showing up on film, and I think it showed last Saturday against Minnesota. I’m happy for him because he works hard and I told him eventually it’s going to happen for him (a big performance) and I’m glad It did last Saturday.”

Both Spears and Chestnut will have the chance to cap off an impressive preseason and solidify their spots on the team with another strong performance against the New England Patriots on Friday.

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Titans RBs are top 2 in YPC after contact this preseason

Titans RBs Tyjae Spears and Julius Chestnut have thrived after contact this preseason.

To the surprise of absolutely nobody, the Tennessee Titans have done a fantastic job of running the football throughout the preseason.

It’s no secret that the Titans’ entire identity is built around being a physical team that wants to beat opponents up for four quarters on both sides of the ball.

While we haven’t seen Derrick Henry play this preseason, his backups are certainly doing their part in keeping the team’s identity alive.

Last week alone, Tennessee produced a whooping 281 rushing yards, with Julius Chestnut (98 yards), Malik Willis (91 yards), and Tyjae Spears (57 yards) leading the way.

After two exhibition games, the Titans have the two best running backs in terms of yards per carry (YPC) after contact (minimum 14 rushes), per Sumer Sports’ Eric Eager. Spears leads the league with 5.62 YPC after contact while Chestnut is right behind him at 4.45 YPC after contact.

The Tulane product, in particular, shined against the Vikings, producing an eye-popping 7.57 yards per after contact.

The closer we get to the start of the regular season, the more it has become glaringly obvious that Spears and Chestnut are the best running backs on the team not named King Henry.

At this point, barring some type of unforeseen development, it would be a complete shock if those two aren’t the No. 2 and No. 3 running backs on the depth chart to start 2023.

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Titans’ Tyjae Spears, Julius Chestnut talk dominant preseason Week 2

Despite his dad always telling him “don’t jump off the ground,” Titans RB Tyjae Spears hurdled a defender in preseason Week 2.

The Tennessee Titans struggled to get anything going through the air in preseason Week 2, but the rushing attack was on the opposite side of the spectrum.

Thanks to some great blocking upfront, Titans running backs Tyjae Spears and Julius Chestnut shined, with the pair combining for 155 yards and two scores on the ground on Saturday night.

Quarterback Malik Willis chipped-in, also, tallying the second-most rushing yards with 91.

Spears finished with seven carries for 57 yards and ripped off a 33-yard run for a touchdown that saw him hurdle a defender in the process. He noted that’s something his dad tells him not to do.

“I don’t think (the hurdle) was planned because my dad always tells me ‘don’t jump off the ground,’ so it was more of a reaction,” Spears said, according to Jim Wyatt. “Everybody was congratulating me, but first thing I did was shoutout to the O-line.”

That’s definitely sound advice from Mr. Spears, as leaving the ground leaves players open for serious injury. However, sometimes you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do.

Chestnut, who also added a receiving touchdown, entered training camp in a very different spot than Spears, as the 2022 undrafted free agent was on the roster bubble coming in.

However, his 98-yard performance, which included an explosive 55-yard run, no doubt improved his chances of making the cut — and it may have cemented his spot entirely.

“Watching Tyjae run and hurdling the guy and then scoring, that was obviously a beautiful site to see from him,” Chestnut said. “We kept rolling after that, from everybody. Malik was running the ball and everybody was getting into it.”

“In the second half, we got to it,” he added. “Physical upfront, the O-line kept fighting and fighting, so we were able to come out there and compete in the second half.”

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What Titans said about preseason Week 2 win over Vikings

What Titans head coach Mike Vrabel and Co. said about the preseason Week 2 win over the Vikings.

The Tennessee Titans no doubt had their fair share of issues on offense but were able to emerge victorious over the Minnesota Vikings, 24-16, in their first preseason win of 2023.

Titans quarterback Malik Willis wasn’t as sharp through the air as he was in preseason Week 1, but his elite athleticism and escapability was on full display throughout the contest.

Tennessee really dominated on the ground with 281 yards in total. Running backs Tyjae Spears and Julius Chestnut shined in particular, with both breaking off long runs and scoring touchdowns.

On the defensive side of the ball, players such as cornerback Eric Garror and outside linebacker Caleb Murphy stood out, with Murphy notching a pair of sacks, giving him three through two exhibition games.

After the contest, head coach Mike Vrabel and several players met with the media to discuss what happened on Saturday night. Check out what they had to say below.

Watch: Titans’ Julius Chestnut explodes for 55-yard run

Titans RB Julius Chestnut might have just cemented himself as the RB3 after an explosive run on Saturday night.

Tennessee Titans running back Julius Chestnut ripped off an impressive run during the preseason Week 2 game against the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday night.

With the Titans’ offense desperately needing a spark, Chestnut provided it with an explosive run that set the Titans up inside the five-yard line.

Chestnut took the handoff from quarterback Malik Willis to the right side, where an enormous hole was waiting for him thanks to blocks from tight end Thomas Odukoya and wide receiver Reggie Roberson.

It was the second big run of the preseason for Chestnut thus far after he ripped off a 26-yard gain in preseason Week 1 against the Chicago Bears.

Check out Chestnut’s impressive run below.

Chestnut has done more than enough to cement himself as this team’s No. 3 back, and he was in the process of doing that even before both Hassan Haskins and Jonathan Ward got hurt. Both of those players didn’t suit up on Saturday.

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