The Tennessee Titans have a plethora of young talent on their roster going into 2020, and one of those players is 2019 rookie standout, wide receiver A.J. Brown.
After the Titans drafted Brown in the second round of last year’s draft, he went on to have a historic rookie season for the Titans, finishing with 52 receptions for 1,051 yards and nine touchdowns (eight receiving).
He also should have won NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year after having a bigger impact than any first-year offensive player and performing as one of the best players at his position from Week 7 on based on PFF grade, but I digress…
For his efforts, Brown has been included in “The Athletic’s All-Under 25 squad” for the 2020 season, which was compiled by Lindsay Jones and Mike Sando.
There’s an emphasis on recent production in our choices at receiver, which explains why JuJu Smith-Schuster landed among the honorable mentions after a down season in 2019. He leads every current player in the league in receiving yards before age 25, and he won’t age out until Nov. 22, 2022. Godwin, Brown and Sutton were stronger producers last season, as were some other outstanding candidates. Brown became the fifth player of any age in the past 20 seasons to exceed 1,000 yards while averaging at least 20 per reception.
It’s important to note that The Athletic’s team here only includes players who will be 24 or younger on Week 1 of the 2020 season, so tight end Jonnu Smith did not qualify.
One notable omission from this team is cornerback Adoree’ Jackson, who will still be 24 years old when the Titans play their season-opener against the Denver Broncos on September 14 (his birthday is on September 18).
Jackson was passed over for the New Orleans Saints’ Marshon Lattimore and the Baltimore Ravens’ Marlon Humphrey, two players who finished with worse Pro Football Focus grades overall and in coverage in 2019.
Defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons is another player some Titans fans might consider for this list, however that position was particularly stacked and tough to crack. It also didn’t help that Simmons was unable to play a full season.
If the 22-year-old can make the leap we’re all expecting him in his sophomore campaign, Simmons should make an appearance on this squad in 2021.
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