The Tennessee Titans, after hiring a new coaching staff, have dramatically reshaped their offensive personnel. They added a new running back via free agency in Tony Pollard, as well as a new center in Lloyd Cushenberry. They drafted a tackle in J.C. Latham. But the biggest changes have come in the wide receiver room, where they surprisingly landed Calvin Ridley on a monster contract, and they plan to add former Bengals wideout Tyler Boyd as well.
On the surface, it looks like former first-round pick Treylon Burks -- who was drafted by the previous regime after it traded A.J. Brown to the Eagles -- is the odd man out. But new head coach Brian Callahan maintains that he has a plan for Burks.
"As far as Treylon's role, he's gonna play everything," Callahan said, via the Nashville Post. " We've told him that from the beginning. He's gonna play inside, he's gonna play outside, and he's gonna carve out a role for himself."
Callahan also noted that Burks has been "really impressive" during offseason practices and that he hit a team-leading top speed of 22.6 miles per hour on the GPS tracking during Tuesday's practice, which Callahan described as the hardest one of the week.
While the plan is for Burks to move around the formation, the same is not true of Boyd, once he officially signs his deal with Tennessee. There is a narrower role in mind for him.
"Tyler is a slot receiver. That's what he does. That's where he's made his money. That's where his production has come from," Callahan said. "He's a fantastic slot receiver on top of, most importantly, I think he's an awesome addition to the locker room. He's a great human being, great worker, and everything about him is what we want to be about. So, to add him is an impactful add for us."
Callahan was the offensive coordinator for the Bengals under head coach Zac Taylor over the last few years, and Boyd indeed played almost exclusively in the slot in Cincinnati. He's almost surely going to be inside whenever he's on the field, and DeAndre Hopkins is almost certain to be lined up outside. That makes Burks and Ridley the two players who will move around more often, and that could allow the Titans to get some different looks out there, based on which players they have in the lineup at any given time.
