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Tee Higgins to Tennessee Titans? 17 free agents who make sense for new coach Brian Callahan
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- Tee Higgins to Tennessee Titans? 17 free agents who make sense for new coach Brian Callahan
Brian Callahan will be the Tennessee Titans next coach . Now the attention can turn to how Callahan can recast the Titans in the image he likes.
The Titans intend to hire Callahan , the Cincinnati Bengals ' offensive coordinator, as their replacement for Mike Vrabel. Callahan inherits a roster ready to be rebuilt. Twelve of the 26 Titans who started eight or more games last season are pending free agents. Combine all the lapsed contracts with key players like quarterback Will Levis , running back Tyjae Spears and receiver DeAndre Hopkins being on short-term or rookie contracts, and the Titans will have more than $70 million in salary cap space this offseason.
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Here are 17 free agents who would make sense for Callahan's Titans to pursue.
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Tee Higgins , Tyler Boyd , and raiding the Bengals offense
Two of the most notable free agent receivers on the market come from the Bengals. The real question is how "on the market" they actually are.
Tee Higginswould be a dream signing for the Titans. The 6-foot-4, 25-year-old Tennessee native is a perennial 1,000-yard receiver despite mostly being the No. 2 receiver behind Ja'Marr Chase. Callahan is the only offensive coordinator he's ever played for. Familiarity, fit and home-state nostalgia are all there. But Higgins, who attended Oak Ridge High School, is franchise-tag eligible and the Bengals have more than enough money to keep Higgins around on the expensive one-year contract.
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Tyler Boydisn't exactly a consolation prize. He's a high-volume receiver who's one of just 10 players to be targeted 80 or more times each of the last six seasons. He hasn't put up 1,000 yards since Higgins and Chase got to Cincinnati, and he's turning 30 next season and coming off the worst season of his career by yards per catch and yards per target. But he's as consistent a No. 2 or No. 3 receiver as the Titans could pair with Hopkins if Callahan wants to entice Boyd into the fold.
There are plenty of other Bengals offensive contributors who'll be free agents the Titans can consider: running back Trayveon Williams ,right tackle Jonah Williams ,tight end Drew Sample and quarterbacks Jake Browning and A.J. McCarron .
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Some other receivers the Titans can consider
Callahan's Bengals offenses favored bigger receivers who could make plays over the middle and stretch the field vertically. If Higgins can't come to the Titans, there are two other local products who could fill that role in Falcons receiver Van Jefferson and 49ers receiver Jauan Jennings .Panthers receiver D.J. Charkis a renowned field-stretcher who can help the Titans with speed on the perimeter and, if the Titans want to take a risk on a player with a ton of talent who's bounced around three teams in the last two years, Dolphins receiver Chase Claypool is on the market.
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A bigger-bodied running back
Spears figures to be the Titans' feature back, but most of Callahan's Bengals offenses have consisted of a shiftier back like Spears and a bigger back to share the load. Obviously, Derrick Henry could fill that role in a big way, but Callahan's power backs don't tend to amass the same number of carries as Henry is accustomed to.
There's no shortage of bigger backs the Titans could pursue to play alongside Spears, ranging from Ravens standout Gus Edwards on the pricier end to Packers back A.J. Dillonand former Titans standout D'Onta Foremanon the cheaper end. Another name to pay attention to would be Broncos back Samaje Perine , who played in Callahan's offense from 2019-22 and has developed into one of the NFL's most reliable pass-catching big backs. He's under contract for one more year, but the Broncos have an out in his deal they can exercise that would make him a free agent this spring.
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Some familial bonds up front
If Callahan brings his dad, Cleveland Browns offensive line coach Bill Callahan, along with him, the Titans would have more than a few depth pieces available to rebuild the offensive line. One is Titans free agent Chris Hubbard , who played for the elder Callahan in Cleveland before coming to Nashville in 2023. But other experienced backup options from Cleveland include: Michael Dunn, Nick Harris and Geron Christian .
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com . Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: 17 free agents for Titans' Brian Callahan, including Tee Higgins
