Titans offseason preview for special teams: A question mark at kicker

In our final offseason preview ahead of free agency, we take a look at the Titans’ special teams.

In the very last of our offseason previews for the Tennessee Titans ahead of the start of free agency, we take a look at the special teams unit.

Tennessee went the young route at punter in 2022, with the team opting to keep undrafted free agent Ryan Stonehouse over franchise great and long-time punter, Brett Kern.

The move paid dividends, as Stonehouse posted a historic rookie season thanks to a monster leg that averaged an NFL record 53.1 gross yards per punt, smashing an 82-year-old mark.

At kicker, Randy Bullock provided stability once again, but his lack of elite leg strength prevented Tennessee from attempting longer field goals, which was likely at least part of the motivation to cut him recently.

With Bullock gone, the Titans are now in uncertain waters at the position, with the only kicker on the roster being 2022 UDFA, Caleb Shudak. That’s especially ominous for a team that had kicker issues in recent years.

As far as the return units were concerned, there was nothing much to write home about, whether it was returning kicks and punts, or defending them.

With all that in mind, here’s a look at what the team might do on special teams in 2023.