Tennessee Titans NFL Draft plans hinted? Reading between the lines on Ran Carthon's strategy

Every NFL general manager has tendencies that can be picked up on when it comes to the NFL Draft process. Some almost never end up drafting the players they have in on official visits and interviews. Others almost always select multiple players that the team met with several times leading up to the draft. Reading between the lines, we can already get an idea of Ran Carthon's draft strategy for this year given his history of not hiding his prospect interests ahead of the NFL Draft.

Dating back to Carthon's time with the Rams and 49ers as Director of Player Personnel he didn't hide his interests. Both teams would quite often select players that they met with, especially the ones who they brought in for private workouts and Top-30 visits when Carthon was there.

Carthon's first draft with the Titans last year featured two players that the team officially met with three times ahead of the draft: Will Levis and Tyjae Spears. They also had a confirmed private meeting with OL Jaelyn Duncan, and a rumored pre-draft visit with Peter Skoronski. That's four of their six picks last year with private pre-draft meetings. So, which prospects have Carthon and the Titans met with already this year that they may be selecting in the 2024 NFL Draft? Let's dive in.

First Round Prospect Visits for Pick 7

• Joe Alt, OT Notre Dame
• Olumuyiwa Fashanu, OT Penn State
• Malik Nabers, WR LSU
• Rome Odunze, WR Washington
• Brock Bowers, TE Georgia

It's no secret that the Titans have been looking at either offensive tackle or wide receiver with their first round pick. Joe Alt (OT, Notre Dame) has become the fan favorite and most commonly mock drafted prospect to the Titans just this week. The team has already logged a formal NFL Combine interview and a private visit with Alt.

Malik Nabers (WR, LSU) seems like the first priority at wide receiver as the team has logged two visits with him as well, one at the NFL Combine, one at his pro day.

Olu Fashanu and Rome Odunze would be more than nice consolation prizes at either position as both profile like elite talents. Both players have a slightly higher probability of being available at pick seven, but it seems the first priorities are Alt and Nabers.

Brock Bowers is the wild card option the Titans still may consider. They met with him at the NFL Combine and it reportedly went well. Bowers does have perhaps the best tight end prospect resume of all time and Chig Okonkwo hasn't been a huge difference maker for the team. Still, Bowers feels unlikely at this point.

Second Round Prospect Visits for Pick 38

• Jordan Morgan, OT Arizona
• Patrick Paul, OT Houston
• Darius Robinson, DL Missouri
• Roman Wilson, WR Michigan
• Bo Nix, QB Oregon

All five of the players listed above have (for the majority of NFL Draft season) been going between picks 28 and 60 in mock drafts and could certainly be available at the Titans' 38th overall pick.

Jordan Morgan and Patrick Paul were both priority formal interviews at the NFL Combine. Morgan was perhaps the most improved tackle in all of college football from his freshman to final season. Paul is a mauler who would fit the current culture well. Both would likely go earlier in a class without so much offensive tackle depth pushing them down the board.

Darius Robinson has become a trendy pick to the Titans given their need at edge and defensive line because he played both at Missouri. His reported meeting with the Titans was a virtual interview. There's a chance he's gone by pick 38, so if Carthon really wants him we may see a small trade upwards.

Roman Wilson and Bo Nix are the odd interests projected to go in this draft range. Wilson would be perceived as a fairly significant reach at 38, but almost definitely will not make it to pick 106. Bo Nix is the only reported quarterback the Titans have met with, but his style is quite different than the current franchise quarterback, Will Levis. Both players are not likely real targets.

Fourth Round Prospect Visits for Pick 106

• MarShawn Lloyd, RB USC
• Jarvis Brownlee Jr., CB Louisville
• Kris Abrams-Draine, CB Missouri

The Titans already brought in Tony Pollard to pair with Tyjae Spears, so it may feel odd for the team to be looking at adding another running back, but new head coach Brian Callahan has made it clear he values a split workload at the position. He has discussed this numerous times this spring talking about the "division of labor" at running back.

Plus, MarShawn Lloyd could seriously come in an be better than both Pollard and Spears. He was the most efficient running back in the country last year with over eight yards per touch!

If the Titans don't go running back here (still admittedly unlikely), Carthon is not hiding what position he's considering in round four. It's cornerback. Yes, the Titans just brought in Chidobe Awuzie and L'Jarius Sneed, but the team's depth beyond those two and Roger McCreary is a bit light.

Both Jarvis Brownlee and Kris Abrams-Draine are extremely physical cornerbacks who have no problem fighting and covering above their weight class. I spoke to Abrams-Draine about his technique that allows him to consistently beat bigger wide receivers at the NFL Combine: