The Tennessee Titans have put together what seems to be a winning team that can be a regular playoff contender — if it can maintain consistency.
There’s a lot that went into building the product we see on the field now, between multiple staff changes, trades, signings and draft selections.
One class that factored into it all was the 2017 NFL Draft class, which saw the Titans select wide receiver Corey Davis, cornerback Adoree’ Jackson, wide receiver Taywan Taylor, tight end Jonnu Smith, linebacker Jayon Brown, offensive guard Corey Levin, linebacker Josh Carraway, offensive tackle Brad Seaton and running back Khalfani Muhammad.
Obviously, some of those players are no longer on the team, and some have made a much more significant impact than others.
The Athletic’s Dane Brugler ranked Tennessee’s 2017 draft haul at No. 17 compared to rest of the NFL, behind the New York Jets, and ahead of the Green Bay Packers.
He listed Jackson as the team’s best overall player, and Brown as the best value pick.
“While I don’t know that Jackson has necessarily lived up to being a top-20 pick, he deserves credit for consistently improving in coverage,” he wrote of Jackson. “He has only two career interceptions but has become more of a cornerback than just an athlete playing the position. Still only 24, Jackson has yet to reach his ceiling.”
Brugler consider Davis to be the Titans’ biggest miss from that year.
“Davis has been productive, averaging 47 catches for 622 yards and two touchdowns per season as a pro,”he wrote. “But as a top-five pick, there come certain expectations (fair or unfair) that he has been unable to reach. While he has the talent to carve out a decade-long career, it seems unlikely Davis will ever live up to his draft spot.”
Davis will have a chance to prove whether or not Brugler is right or wrong about that last bit when the Titans return to the field this fall.