Tag: Treylon Burks

Titans OC Nick Holz: Treylon Burks will ‘get what he earns’

Titans OC Nick Holz says WR Treylon Burks is going to have to earn opportunities in 2024.

The biggest question mark in the Tennessee Titans’ wide receivers room, 2022 first-round pick Treylon Burks is facing a crucial season in 2024.

Burks has been a major disappointment over his first two seasons in the NFL, with the Arkansas product not only battling injury, but also a lack of production when he’s been on the field.

That fact is a major reason why the Titans had such a dire need at receiver going into the offseason, and it’s why they still may spend an early-round pick on the position in the 2024 NFL draft in order to bolster the unit.

During his presser on Wednesday, offensive coordinator Nick Holz made it clear he is high on Burks but isn’t just going to hand him opportunities.

“Treylon’s potential is very high. First-round pick, we see all the talent. But he’s going to get what he earns,” Holz said, per ESPN’s Turron Davenport. “My two days with him, he’s been a great guy. He seems like he’s learning a lot, he’s really taking and processing all the information and then when he gets on the field, it’s what he can translate.  He’s got a skill set that he’s a big guy who can run and he can make contested catches. If he can find a way to do that for us, that’d be a pretty big addition.”

There was a thought process that Burks could factor in as a big slot receiver in head coach Brian Callahan’s offense, but Callahan did not mention Burks when talking about potential in-house options for the role.

If Burks can stay healthy and the Titans can get more out of him in 2024, it would be a welcomed surprise. If not, it’s basically what we expected, anyway.

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Titans plan to use Calvin Ridley all over formation

Titans head coach Brian Callahan loves the flexibility his WR group offers, and specifically when it comes to Calvin Ridley.

The Tennessee Titans have long been a run-first offense. Before the arrival of A.J. Brown and subsequently DeAndre Hopkins, Titans fans rarely saw elite receivers suit up for their favorite team.

Now, the Titans are in the fortunate position of having two highly-touted playmakers at wide receiver: The aforementioned Hopkins, who had a 1,000-yard season in 2023, will be joined by Calvin Ridley in 2024.

Ridley signed a massive four-year, $92 million deal and gives the Titans a speedster who will complement Hopkins perfectly. The team also brought back Nick Westbrook-Ikhine to provide depth. Treylon Burks and Kyle Philips are other notable receivers on the roster.

Head coach Brian Callahan is thrilled to have these weapons at his disposal, especially guys like Hopkins, Ridley and Burks, all of whom can play all over the formation, something Callahan plans to utilize.

“Being able to move Calvin around is going to be exciting,” Callahan said, per Jim Wyatt. “But I think the other guys, being able to move those guys around, too, will be helpful. Moving Hop around, trying to get him some matchups, put his skill set in good position against lesser players. We’ll see what Treylon (Burks) can do as we move him around.

“I just think it’s a good group that has some flexibility, particularly with Calvin. I think he has played all over the formation, so that part to me is exciting.”

One of the beliefs when it comes to Ridley’s inconsistent play in 2023 has to do with the fact that the Jacksonville Jaguars didn’t move him around the formation much.

Based on Callahan’s comments, that won’t be an issue in Tennessee.

“You’re looking at a very similar role that Ja’Marr [Chase] played, in terms of his ability to move around the formation, use him in motion,” Callahan said on the This is Football show. “He’s got such a unique skill set. He’s got great quickness, he’s got great speed, he can run all the different routes.”

It’s notable that Callahan mentioned Burks. Many have wondered if Burks’ days in Nashvillle could be numbered after a pair of disappointing seasons. However, the coach clearly envisions the former first-rounder playing a role.

The Titans hope the new-look room will help improve on the league’s 29th-ranked passing offense from a season ago.

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PFF lists Titans among NFL’s worst with 1st-round picks since 2014

Unsurprisingly, the Titans were listed as one of the worst teams in the NFL when it comes to their first-round picks since 2014.

The Tennessee Titans hope that general manager Ran Carthon can change the narrative surrounding the team’s inability to hit on first-round draft picks, which was a glaring issue during the Jon Robinson era.

Over the last decade, the team has had mixed results from its first-round selections, and things have been particularly bad since Tennessee hit on Jeffery Simmons in 2019.

Pro Football Focus‘ Sam Monson included the Titans among the worst franchises at using their first-round picks. Here was part of his analysis:

Tennessee’s recent run of first-round selections includes all-time busts for a variety of reasons. Isaiah Wilson played three snaps for the team before off-field concerns led to his departure. Caleb Farley was immediately struck by serious injury and has played only 164 snaps over his three-year NFL career.

Treylon Burks was put in the unenviable position of needing to replace what the team traded away in A.J. Brown, and he has been completely unable to do so thus far. Jack Conklin was a good player for the team but left in free agency, as did Corey Davis. Marcus Mariota started for a while but was ultimately benched for performance reasons.

Monson rightly notes that Simmons has developed into one of the best interior defenders in the National Football League. Still, he has been the outlier in the Titans’ first-round picks since 2014.

Coming out of Georgia, Wilson had all the makings and the skill set to be a ten-year starter in the NFL. In his final season with the Bulldogs, he played in 11 games and was responsible for just one sack allowed, per PFF.

The Titans were hopeful he could be a pillar when they drafted him 29th overall in the first round of the 2020 NFL draft. However, his tenure in Nashville was short, to say the least.

Wilson continued to have issues in short stints with the Miami Dolphins and New York Giants before being out of the league entirely.

The red flags were there for Farley. The defensive back suffered a torn ACL and missed the 2017 season at Virginia Tech. He also missed time in 2019 with a back injury.

Injuries have plagued his NFL career, with Farley suffering a torn ACL in Week 6 of his rookie campaign. The following season, Farley was shut down in November after undergoing surgery to repair a herniated disc.

He missed all of last season with lingering a nerve issue while recovering from back surgery and has played only 12 games. Even when he’s been on the field, Farley hasn’t been good.

Of the Titans’ eight first-round picks from 2014-20, only four had their fifth-year option picked up, including Adoree’ Jackson, Marcus Mariota, Taylor Lewan and Simmons — and Jackson was released before playing on it.

Of those four, only two received a second contract (Simmons and Lewan). Farley and wide receiver Treylon Burks are currently both on pace to not have their options picked up or stick around for another contract.

Carthon hopes to reverse the fortunes of Tennessee’s first-round selections, with his first attempt coming in the form of left guard Peter Skoronski, who had a promising first season in the NFL after being drafted in 2023.

The Titans hold the No. 7 overall pick in April’s draft and if Carthon can hit on it, and Skoronski continues to improve, he’ll be off to one heck of a start.

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Projecting Titans’ WR depth chart after Calvin Ridley signing

Bryce Lazenby takes a look at the Titans’ current WR depth chart, and how it might look after final cuts.

The Tennessee Titans have a new coaching staff, and with a new coaching staff comes a new identity.

For years, the Titans have been a run-first offense that has only had one or two reliable options to throw the ball to. In 2023, DeAndre Hopkins led the Titans with 75 catches for 1,057 yards and seven touchdowns. No other wide receiver on the roster even caught 30 passes.

Thus, new head coach Brian Callahan and general manager Ran Carthon saw the position as a pressing need this offseason.

The Titans were aggressive in free agency and dished out a whopping $50 million in guaranteed money to Calvin Ridley. Ridley and Hopkins should give the Titans an enviable one-two punch at the position.

The team also retained Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, who is a solid depth piece after tallying at least 25 catches and 370 yards in each of the last three seasons.

The team will likely add another receiver in the 2024 NFL draft, but before that happens let’s go ahead and take a look at the wide receiver depth chart as it stands today.

Starter Second string Third string
DeAndre Hopkins Nick Westbrook-Ikhine Tre’Shaun Harrison
Calvin Ridley Colton Dowell Kearis Jackson
Treylon Burks Kyle Philips Mason Kinsey

Other than Ridley being added, the only notable difference from last season is Chris Moore, who signed with the Arizona Cardinals.

The hope is that Burks will flourish playing with Hopkins and Ridley. His career has been disappointing to this point, but there will be much less pressure on the former Arkansas Razorback now.

While Burks and NWI currently sit as WR3 and WR4, respectively, it’s likely the team will bring in a receiver in the 2024 NFL draft to compete with them for playing time.

Kinsey and Philips are slot-only options, and Jackson provides value as a return man. Kinsey, Philips, Harrison, Dowell, and Jackson could end up competing for one or two roster spots.

Ultimately, I believe the depth chart will look something like this after final cuts are made:

Starter Second string Third string
DeAndre Hopkins Nick Westbrook-Ikhine
Calvin Ridley Drafted WR Kearis Jackson
Treylon Burks Kyle Philips

I imagine Burks will work mostly from the slot in three-receiver sets, but the Titans have a slew of options on how to deploy their top three, as Ridley and Hopkins are capable of lining up inside and out.

Ridley has breakaway speed and is a crisp route-runner, while Hopkins is the possession receiver who catches everything.

Allowing Burks to work out of the slot could do wonders for his game. The wide receiver flourished out of the slot in college thanks to his YAC (yards after catch) ability and would likely do the same in the pros.

It helps to also have Philips, who has flashed as a slot receiver in the past.

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Titans 2024 offseason preview at WR: Pending free agents, biggest needs

In our latest offseason preview for the Titans, we take a look at the pending free agents and biggest needs at wide receiver.

One of the Tennessee Titans’ biggest needs going into the 2024 offseason is at the wide receiver position, where Tennessee will need to add at least two impact players.

Tennessee’s best wide receiver by far in 2023 was easily DeAndre Hopkins, who played a key role in the development of quarterback Will Levis as his trusted No. 1 target.

Despite doubts about his viability at 31 years old, Hopkins looked very much like the star receiver we’ve seen during his career.

DHop finished with a team-high 1,057 receiving yards and seven scores, which is made more impressive by the fact that he got off to a slow start, combined with Tennessee’s offensive line being abysmal.

On the flip side, second-year wide receiver Treylon Burks was a major disappointment. On top of injury issues, Burks didn’t do much when he was on the field, finishing with just 221 receiving yards and no scores.

Now, a look at who’s under contract, who’s a pending free agent and what the Titans’ specific needs are at the position going into the offseason.

Note: Contract information is courtesy of Over the Cap.

Titans’ biggest disappointments from the 2023 season

The Titans had no shortage of disappointments in 2023. Here are six players who fit the bill the most.

During what was a frustrating 6-11 campaign, the Tennessee Titans had no shortage of disappointments, from individual players to entire position groups.

That fact shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, as we always knew this past season was going to be a roll of the dice for the Titans.

After all, the team was strapped for cash during the offseason and had to bet on upside at several positions, both with players already on the roster and free-agent signings.

Sometimes that works out — and in the case of some players on this past year’s team, it did — but when it doesn’t, things can get ugly.

In what is our latest look back at the 2023 season, we’re going to go over the team’s six most disappointing players.

Titans’ Treylon Burks talks injuries, how he’ll work to prevent them

Titans WR Treylon Burks talked about his injury issues and how he’ll work to prevent them.

Tennessee Titans wide receiver Treylon Burks was pegged by many as someone who could have a breakout year in his second season. Unfortunately, that did not come to fruition.

Burks ended up playing in 11 games once again, but he tallied less than half the receiving yards he did in his rookie campaign (444 to 221), and he failed to find pay dirt after scoring twice in 2022.

Injuries have certainly played a role in Burks’ struggles, but the former No. 18 overall pick simply hasn’t produced even when he’s been on the field.

In fact, he had 25 receiving yards or less in all but two of the games he played. The Arkansas product failed to tally a single 100-yard game and he now has just one over 22 games in two seasons.

Burks wasn’t asked about his lack of production when on the field while cleaning out his locker on Monday, but he did touch on his injury issues.

“With the injuries, you hate having injuries but I feel like that being able to finish the season strong with being healthy helped out a lot,” Burks said, according to Jim Wyatt.

In fairness to Burks, some of his injuries have been plain bad luck, with a pair of concussions being an example of that.

If there’s one bright spot you can take from Burks’ stretch run of the season, it’s the fact that he didn’t get hurt over the final three weeks. However, that does nothing to erase the fact that he did little to nothing while on the field.

When asked what his main goals are for the 2024 offseason, the 23-year-old said one of them was doing what he can to prevent injuries moving forward.

“Just to make sure that I’m doing everything to prevent injuries next season, so whatever it takes that my trainers will have me doing, I’ll do it,” he said. “You can’t prevent injuries but you can do the things like working on lower-body strength, recovery, things like that just to make sure that you can help prevent it.”

Ahead of the 2024 offseason, the Titans desperately need some help at the wide receiver position, as the team simply can’t rely on Burks for a major role given what we’ve seen the past two seasons.

Injury concerns certainly play a part in that, but his lack of production when healthy is definitely a reason, also.

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Biggest takeaways from Titans’ Week 17 loss to Texans

The biggest takeaways from the Titans’ Week 17 loss to the Texans.

The Tennessee Titans’ Week 17 loss to the Houston Texans gave us a taste of just about everything that has plagued the team during the 2023 campaign, which will thankfully come to an end next week.

There was horrendous pass protection and run-blocking, a quarterback got hurt as a result of the former, and the Titans managed to shoot themselves in the foot with bad penalties, a turnover and shoddy play-calling.

The defense was awful between the 20’s, but the unit did buckle down in the red zone, as it has all season long.

The only silver lining of Sunday’s result was the fact that the Titans helped their quest to get the highest draft pick possible. That, along with a lot of cap space, will greatly aid in the roster overhaul Tennessee needs.

We’ll talk about all of those topics and more as we take a look at the biggest takeaways from the Titans’ 11th loss of the season.

Quandre Diggs got fined by the NFL for this hit on Treylon Burks

There are certain things you just can’t do anymore.

It’s extraordinarily difficult to play defense in the modern NFL – especially if you’re on the back end where practically all the rules are set against you. From underthrown passes resulting in lazy pass interference calls to any bit of contact with a receiver drawing a flag, it’s never been harder to be a safety or a corner trying to break up a big pass play.

That said, there are certain things you just can’t do anymore. This hit by Seahawks free safety Quandre Diggs is a good example of one. Watch Diggs hit Titans wide receiver Treylon Burks, drawing a 15-yard penalty and also a fine from the NFL worth $16,391.

Kenny Easley probably doesn’t even get flagged for that hit, but it’s a new day and you can’t hit a defenseless receiver in the helmet – no matter how difficult it might be to avoid.

That fine was the only one for the Seahawks coming out of last week’s game.

More Seahawks Wire stories

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Biggest questions for Titans ahead of matchup vs. Texans

The six biggest questions for the Titans going into their Week 17 matchup against the Texans.

The Tennessee Titans are set to do battle with the Houston Texans in Week 17 for the second time this season, with the matchup coming at NRG Stadium.

These two teams last met a few weeks ago, when the Titans were upset by a C.J. Stroud-less Texans team that was led by veteran Case Keenum.

The Titans have been notoriously poor on the road this year, with the team sporting a 1-6 mark. Tennessee is 1-7 away from Nissan Stadium in total when you include the London game.

But that one win came a few weeks ago when the Titans pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the 2023 season by beating the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium.

On the flip side, Tennessee hasn’t won back-to-back road games since Weeks 4 and 5 of last season.

As we do every week, let’s take a look at the biggest questions the Titans are facing in advance of their Week 17 matchup against Houston.