Paul Kuharsky, ESPN Staff Writer 9y

Reserve safeties lead list of Titans getting extra snaps

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The best-case scenario is that everyone is on the field all the time.

It’s also an unrealistic scenario.

So while some high-ranking Tennessee Titans have sat out the high-speed 11-on-11 drills of organized team activities (OTAs), the guys behind them have gotten a good deal of valuable work.

A look at the guys who’ve been the big beneficiaries of someone else’s recovery time.

Safeties Marqueston Huff and Daimion Stafford: The duo has gotten a bunch of extra work higher in the pecking order because Michael Griffin has been held out of team work. Griffin’s shoulder is close to better. While he’d likely play this week if the Titans had a game, the team sees no need to press the issue. Huff and Stafford are both carrying themselves with confidence and the buzz is that things have clicked in for both of them. The Titans could be in good shape at safety with these two behind Da'Norris Searcy and Griffin and they could see action in certain nickel and dime packages.

Running back Bishop Sankey: He’d be at the head of the line anyway. But with draft pick David Cobb nursing a hamstring injury and Shonn Greene skipping OTAs, there are more snaps for Sankey, who missed OTAs last year while his class finished the school year.

Outside linebacker Deiontrez Mount and J.R. Tavai: The two rookies are getting action because Brian Orakpo (pec) and Jonathan Massaquoi (shoulder) are still recovering from injuries. Mount was a sixth-round pick out of Louisville. Tavai is an undrafted player out of USC. Mount’s draft status makes him next in line. But Tavai is working ahead of guys who’ve been around a while, such as Kaelin Burnett and Chaz Sutton. Coach Ken Whisenhunt said Tavai “doesn’t make a lot of mistakes and consistently shows up.”

Defensive tackle Al Woods: Sammie Hill hurt his knee early on in OTAs, which has created a need for a nose tackle. Woods has moved up to work between Jurrell Casey and DaQuan Jones on the defensive line in base. We didn’t see much from Woods in his first season with Tennessee. He was with the guy now running the Titans defense, Dick LeBeau, in Pittsburgh before he signed in Tennessee in 2014. He’s getting a good opportunity to show his game.

Running back Antonio Andrews: With big backs Cobb and Greene out, Andrews is the frontline guy among the bigger backs.

^ Back to Top ^