Tennessee Titans: Grading every pick in 2020 NFL Draft
By John Laird
Round 5, Pick 174: Larrell Murchison, DL, NC State
Grade: B
The Tennessee Titans were desperate for depth along the defensive line coming into the draft. A huge reason why the Titans needed players on the defensive line was trading away franchise stalwart Jurrell Casey to the Denver Broncos in a pure salary dump move.
Robinson drafted Murchison to help fill that void left by Casey and there’s some shocking physical similarities between the two players.
Everything from height (Casey 6-1, Murchison 6-2), weight (both at 300 pounds), and arm length (Casey 32 inches, Murchison 32.5 inches) are almost exactly the same. It gets even more surprising when their combined numbers are just as close in the 40-yard dash (both at 5.06 seconds), bench press (Casey 26, Murchison 29), and the vertical (Casey 27.5 inches, Murchison 29 inches).
If the front office came into the draft looking for a Casey replacement, they couldn’t have come much closer, at least physically speaking.
In his final year for the Wolfpack, Murchison led the team in tackles for loss with 12 and racked up seven sacks. He was named second-team All-ACC in the process.
Murchison comes off at first glance as a strong, disruptive defensive lineman who has a nonstop motor. What I liked the most was the counter spin move he has to complement his bull rush as well as the ability to keep his pad level low on a consistent basis. He’s another solid addition to a position group that desperately needed an influx of young, cheap talent.