I believe the Titans offseason is to blame for their 0-4 start.

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The Titans will be looking to move up in the draft to take a franchise QB.

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http://www.newschannel5.com/Global/story.asp?S=10643962

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http://www.godlikeproductions.com/forum1/message831453/pg1


I received a call saying that Steve McNair had been murdered.  I immediately checked the internet and found the above link confirming this.  The site states that it has been on twitter about his murder.  Hope this isn't true but the call I got was from somebody who knows Steve and his family.

This is a sad day for the Tennessee Titans and all of Nashville

My thoughts and prayers go out to Steve's family and friends

The Lions should have come out of day one of this draft with the following players:

QB - Matthew Stafford

OT - Michael Oher

LB - James Laurinatus

This would have given the Lions a franchise QB, a bookend Left Tackle and a defensive leader.  TE is just a luxury the Lions could not afford and he will probably have to stay in and block anyway to help incumbent Left Tackle Jeff Backus.  I'm not as upset with Delmas over Laurinatus because he will be the leader of the defense, but I think the Lions will pay for years to come by not jumping on the franchise Left Tackle when they had a chance.

Here are my draft predictions for all 10 Titan's draft picks.  I did not take trades into consideration.

1.  Hakeem Nicks - WR - North Carolina - Nicks actually compares to Cardinals Anquan Boldin, he has above average size and great hands and should be a #1 receiver in the NFL.

2.  Ron Brace - DT - Boston College - Brace is the huge DT that the Titans are lacking since Albert Haynesworth left.  He is over 330 lbs and should only get better working with Defensive Line Coach Jim Washburn.

3.  DeAngelo Smith - CB - Cincinnati - Smith is tough, physical, and agressive and is just the type of CB the Titans like.  He should play in nickel and dime situations his rookie year and take over for Nick Harper in 2010.

4.  Gerald McRath - LB - Southern Miss - McRath has tons of potential and should be a beast on special teams.  He can play inside or outside and should be a future starter.

4.  Kyle Moore - DE - USC - Moore has good size and is athletic.  He should provide depth and will be a good run stuffing end in the d-line rotation.

5.  Gerald Cadogan - OT - Penn State - Cadogan has great footwork and is smart.  He needs work on his technique but the Titans have the best O-line coach in the game.  He should end up being the backup at both Takcle positions.

6.  Jamie Thomas - G - Maryland - Thomas is big and has great footwork.  He should provide depth for the interior of the offensive line.

6.  Anthony Scirrotto - S - Penn State - Scirrotto is smart and is tough against the run.  He should provide depth at Safety and should be a special teams ace.  He also has experience as a Punt Returner.

7.  Tripp Chandler - TE - Georgia - Chandler has good size and decent athleticism and will provide depth.

7.  Mike Wallace - WR/KR -  Mississippi -  Wallace has good speed and good footwork and should have a chance to be the new Titan's punt and kick returner.  He should also provide depth at receiver.

It appears that the effort for the Titans to re-sign Albert Haynesworth will fall short and he will sign with another team.  So here is a contingency plan for if that were to happen:

First re-sign QB Kerry Collins.

Next go after a top of the line CB like Ronald Bartell or Bryant McFadden.  This will cost 7-8 million a year but will take pressure off the draft, as we will not have to pick an eventual replacement for Nick Harper, and allow the Titans to move Harper to nickel packages and allow the Titans to let Vincent Fuller go if necessary.

Then sign a veteran free agent to a contract around 4-6 million per year.  Candidates are TJ Housmandzadah (if he will sign for that low), Marvin Harrison, Joey Galloway or Torry Holt if he is released.

I would bring in a couple of DTs at a value price (sorry, there are no DTs even half of what Albert is).  Two intriguing guys are Colin Cole, who has great size and is a run stuffer; and Ron Fields who was miscast in SanFran's 3-4 defense.  These are 2 guys that maybe Jim Washburn can work some magic on.

At the draft, I truly think this is the year that the Titans take a WR with the number 1 pick.  I like Darrius Heywood-Bey or Hakeem Nicks.  Then definitley go DT in the second round like Fili Moala or Evander Hood.

So our starting DTs would be Jason Jones and Tony Brown.  Our rotation would include our 2nd round pick and one or two of the following: Kevin Vickerson, Colin Cole and Ron Fields. 

Just thought I would let everybody know what I thought would be a good offseason for the Lions:

Free Agency:

My philosophy would be to keep in mind that we are re-building, therefore I would not sign anybody over 30.  The Lions have money under the cap to spend but I would only sign one high priced free agent and several mid level free agents.

QB - I would try to re-sign Dan Orlovsky (1.5 million per year) and let him compete to start with Duante Culpepper.

RB - Kevin Smith is our workhorse and I would bring in a veteran presence but nobody expensive or that is going to take carries away from Smith.  I would go after somebody like a DeShaun Foster (1 million per year)

Offensive Line - I would go after a guy like G Elton Brown (4 million per year) who was a top backup for Arizona last year and started several games.  I would also take a chance on OT Daniel Loper (2 million per year) who was a top backup for the Titans.  He has been in the league 4 years and can play any spot on the line except Center, and many think he would be a good starter.

Wide Receiver - I would go after Reggie Williams of the Jaguars (2 million per year).  Yes he was a first round bust but has size, a good attitude and is not afraid to go over the middle.  He would make a good possession guy opposite Charles Johnson.

Defensive Line - I believe that Schwartz is going to do like the Titans and play a D Line rotation.  Therefore we need to build depth here.  I would go after DE Michael Montgomery of the Packers (4 million per year) and DT Ronald Fields of the 49ers (1 million per year).  Montgomery is stout against the run and Fields has a high ceiling as he was miscast in San Fran's 3-4 defense.

Linebacker - Ernie Sims is solid and we have got to give Jordan Dizon a chance.  Both of those guys are 3 down Linebackers.  That leaves the middle open.  The Lions should draft a 2 down run stuffing Middle Linebacker in the late rounds to develop.  In the meantime I would go after former Titan Linebacker Brad Kassell (1 million per year) who the Lions coveted at one time;  hi was solid for the Titans but miscast in the Jets 3-4 defense the last 2 years. 

Cornerback - This is where I would spend my money for a large contract.  I would go after a starting CB.  There are three guys I like:  Ron Bartell of the Rams, Bryant McFadden of the Steelers and former Lion Leigh Bodden.  My preference would be Ron Bartell (7-8 million per year), he is a sure tackler and solid cover guy.  I would also go after the Titans Chris Carr (3 million per year), who was the 4th corner in Tennessee but wants a shot at a nickel role.  He can compete for us and he is also one of the best kick and punt returners in the league, so he would solidify 3 spots.

The Draft

I am only going to predict the first 3 rounds as the draft is hard to predict and the later rounds are for depth and a crap shoot.

1 - Matthew Stafford QB - The Lions will finally have their franchise QB.  I would sit him the first year and begin the Stafford era right after the last game of 2009.

1 - William Beatty OT - This draft is full of talented OTs and this guy is one of the most athletic.  He has size and good feet and has as high a ceiling as any offensive lineman in this draft.  I would give him a year to develop if needed and start him by the beginning of 2009 protecting Stafford's blind side.

2 - Evander Hood DT - This guy is good against the pass and run, has a high motor and is a good character guy and team leader.  I would immediately put him in the DT rotation.

3 - Mike Mickens CB - This is a good all around CB who played in a small school but has true shutdown corner potential.  I would bring him along at his own pace, but would not hold him back if he is ready to start in year 1.  By year 2 he would definatley be starting opposit Bartell.

3 - Louis Murphy WR - This guy has size and speed and is not afraid to go over the middle and would play as the 3rd receiver in 08 and be starting opposite Charles Johnson in 09.

The later rounds I would draft:  MLB, TE, RB and any upper level prospects that may have slipped

Let me know what you think.

Two weeks ago I posted that I thought the perfect contract for Haynesworth would be 6 years 78 million with 36 million in gaurantees.

Now this from rotoworld:

The Titans have reportedly been offering free agent Albert Haynesworth a deal in the $36 million range over four years during negotiations.  Hahahaha. Haynesworth wants a six-year deal worth at least $72M. While we can't fault Tennessee for hesitating to pay a player league-record money when he's only met expectations in contract years, they can't be serious with this offer. Haynesworth is going to break the bank two Fridays from now.

This from rotoworld:

Titans promoted secondary coach Chuck Cecil to defensive coordinator.

A former onetime Pro Bowl strong safety and vicious hitter, Cecil was fined several times for helmet-first hits during his playing days. Coach Jeff Fisher is defensive minded and the scheme won't change, but Cecil will bring nastiness to the position formerly held by new Lions coach Jim Schwartz. Its seems he will be more like Gregg Williams than Jim Schwartz what do you think?

[UPDATE from Jimmy]- Here is the story on the official site.  Press conference at 3.