The Tennessee Titans have a chance to be the next team to make the jump from the bottom of the AFC South all the way to the top, but they've got to pull all the right strings in the 2026 offseason.
General manager Mike Borgonzi and the Titans' ownership are already off to a great start, hiring Robert Saleh as the team's new head coach after a really great (albeit short) second stint with the San Francisco 49ers. And Saleh himself is off to a great start, hiring Brian Daboll to be his offensive coordinator and the top man in charge of the development of last year's #1 overall pick Cam Ward.
How do the Titans properly support Ward through the NFL Draft? What picks could realistically help the team vault back into the playoffs after having one of the worst records in the league the past couple of seasons?
Titans 2026 mock draft: Ideal top 3 picks after hiring Robert Saleh as head coach
1. 4th overall: Carnell Tate, WR, Ohio State
It's been a long time since we've had anything other than defense with this pick, or anyone other than Miami pass rusher Rueben Bain, for that matter. But what is going to happen if Bain is already off the board by the time the 4th overall pick comes around?
It might actually put the Titans in a position where they are able to snag another weapon for Cam Ward, and perhaps the best in this year's draft.
Carnell Tate might not have the same combination of size, athleticism, and production you typically see from top-5 picks at the position, but he's going to be a fantastic pro. And what we're seeing almost every year in the NFL is that teams are not valuing these receivers properly, anyway.
2. 35th overall: Akheem Mesidor, EDGE, Miami
If the Titans can't get Rueben Bain, then what about his Hurricanes teammate? Akheem Mesidor isn't getting nearly the amount of attention Bain is getting, understandably so, but he's coming off of an outstanding season himself with 12.5 sacks and four forced fumbles.
The one non-negotiable for the Titans this offseason is figuring out a way to get pressure off the edge. Outside of the 11 sacks from Jeffery Simmons this past season, only Jihad Ward was able to reach 10 sacks. The scheme being implemented by Saleh should help with that, but even Saleh can only work so much magic.
Nobody had fewer sacks (20) than Saleh's 49ers this past season. He needs pressure players, and Mesidor can be exactly that.
3. 66th overall: Jake Golday, LB, Cincinnati
One common theme you will see at every single one of Robert Saleh's stops in the NFL is a priority placed on the linebacker position. That should be an emphasis once again for Saleh with the Titans, and it doesn't always have to be the highest draft picks.
We've seen Saleh make stars out of Day 2 and Day 3 draft picks like Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw, and with the Jets we saw him do wonders with Jamien Sherwood and Quincy Williams.
Here, the ideal solution might be someone like Cincinnati's Jake Golday. He's another tackling machine whose instinctive style of play will go perfectly in the Robert Saleh defensive scheme, giving him a quarterback on that side of the ball.