Titans — 2026 Draft Recap

Welcome back to Muffed. Mike Borgonzi walked out of this weekend with eight picks, two in the top 31, and one clear thesis: rebuild the passing game on both sides of the ball. The headliner is Carnell Tate, the Ohio State receiver at fourth overall — but the more interesting story is what Tennessee did at picks 31 and 60. Offense at the top, defense at the edges of round one and two, then a Day 3 grind on the trenches and the back end. Let's get into it.

The passing game got the marquee picks because it had to. Tennessee's 2025 passing offense generated minus 137.54 expected points added across 17 games — minus 0.22 per dropback, just 15 passing touchdowns, 56 sacks absorbed. That unit needed a real number one. Enter Tate at four: 51 catches, 875 yards, 9 touchdowns in the Big Ten, with a per-play predicted points added of plus 1.04 and a season total of plus 67.76. Those 9 scores ranked 6th in the Big Ten and 31st nationally. He's 21, he was the engine of a championship-level passing game, and he steps into a room starved for a target who finishes drives. Then late in round seven at 225, Jaren Kanak — the Oklahoma tight end, former linebacker who picked up the position late, bounced to H-back and fullback, and tested at an 8.62 Relative Athletic Score. That's the top 14 percent of tight ends measured since 1987. He caught 44 balls for 533 yards in the SEC, and Borgonzi said straight up: special teams contributor, day one.

The defensive front got the other premium capital, and the case writes itself. Tennessee's defense allowed plus 93.39 passing expected points added in 2025 — plus 0.17 per dropback — surrendered 30 passing touchdowns, and generated only 42 sacks. At pick 31, Keldric Faulk, the Auburn edge: 21 years old, 27 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 4 pass breakups in the SEC, and a Relative Athletic Score of 9.10 — top 9 percent of edge players ever tested. The production line is modest for a first-rounder; the athletic profile and the age are not. In round six at 184, Jackie Marshall out of Baylor: 30 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, and a Relative Athletic Score of 8.77, top 13 percent at defensive tackle. Borgonzi was explicit — 5-technique, 3-technique, twitchy and explosive on contact, with the flex to kick out. Coach Aaron Whitecotton coached him at the East-West game and ran his pro day workout. They know exactly what they're getting.

Run defense wasn't a screaming need — Tennessee allowed just plus 6.13 rushing expected points added in 2025, league-average per carry — but they spent a second on it anyway, and the player justifies it. Anthony Hill Jr., Texas linebacker, pick 60: 21 years old, 70 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks in the SEC, and a Relative Athletic Score of 9.81. That's the top 2 percent of linebackers measured since 1987 — a rare profile at an off-ball spot, paired with real production against elite offenses.

The ground game got one swing. Tennessee finished 2025 at minus 21.32 rushing expected points added on 372 carries — minus 0.06 per carry, 9 rushing touchdowns. At pick 165, Nicholas Singleton from Penn State: 549 yards and 13 touchdowns on 123 carries, 24 catches for 219 yards, those 13 scores 5th in the Big Ten. Borgonzi's comp was Isiah Pacheco from his Kansas City days — runs angry, catches it out of the backfield. There's a noted injury without a timetable, but Singleton's in the building this spring.

The offensive line got two Day 3 picks, both stamped tough-smart-dependable. Fernando Carmona Jr. at 142 brings a Relative Athletic Score of 8.42 at guard — top 16 percent. He's 24, played left tackle at San Jose State, kicked to guard at Arkansas, and Borgonzi said he can play center too. Pat Coogan at 194, the Indiana center, tests middle-of-the-pack at 6.83. The selling point isn't athleticism — it's that he was the Rose Bowl MVP as an offensive lineman, something Borgonzi said he'd never seen before. Both can compete physically right now.

Pick of the draft. You can argue Tate at four. You can argue Hill at 60 on athletic rarity alone. The answer is Keldric Faulk at 31. Tate is a great prospect taken where great prospects are supposed to come from. Hill is an elite athlete in a round where you can find starters. Faulk is a 21-year-old SEC edge with a top-10-percent athletic profile falling to the last pick of round one — and he addresses the single biggest hole on the roster: a pass rush that mustered 42 sacks while the secondary bled 30 touchdowns. Edges with this age-and-testing combination don't usually make it to 31. Tennessee got one.

The big question for 2026 is whether Borgonzi did enough on the back end. He addressed it at the podium — Tennessee added Cor'Dale Flott, Alontae Taylor, brought back Marcus Harris, signed Tony Adams, and decided that was enough to skip a defensive back entirely. With 30 passing touchdowns allowed and 248 passing yards a game given up last year, that's the bet the season turns on. If Faulk and Marshall get the rush home and Hill closes throwing lanes underneath, the free-agent corners hold up. If the rush doesn't show, the secondary is where it bleeds.