The Tennessee Titans’ defense improved greatly in 2021 from where it was in 2020, and the defensive line played a big part in that resurgence.
Both Jeffery Simmons and Denico Autry had career years and combined for 17.5 of Tennessee’s 43 sacks, a total that ranked tied for ninth in the league. The pass-rush was just one part of the story upfront, though, as the Titans sported the No. 2 run defense in the NFL, also.
Tennessee once again managed to find a diamond in the rough in undrafted free agent signing Naquan Jones, who is the second good defensive lineman general manager Jon Robinson has found following a draft since 2020, with starting nose tackle Teair Tart being the other.
With all four of those players returning in 2022, there isn’t much room for the rest of the defensive linemen on the team to secure a spot on the 53-man roster.
Let’s take a look at the players who are roster locks, on the bubble, and then we’ll talk about the competitions set to take place and share our prediction for how things will shake out on the 53-man roster.