AFC South 2016 NFL Draft Analysis: Rounds 2 & 3 – Part 1

By Joanne Kong

Twitter: @kongfu4u 

The AFC South had a bunch of picks in Rounds 2 and 3 of the 2016 NFL Draft, and not all of them went as expected.  In Part 1, we’ll take a look at the Tennessee Titans four picks in Rounds 2 and 3.

Tennessee Titans

Tennessee Titans

The Tennessee Titans were 17th in tackles, 12th in sacks and 22nd in interceptions in the 2015 season, so it’s not surprising that the Titans sought to build their defense during the draft.

With three second round picks – 33, 43 and 45 overall, here’s what the Titans did with it.

  • ROUND 2, PICK 2 (33 Overall) – Kevin Dodd – DE

For those of you who don’t know who Kevin Dodd is, here’s the 411.  At 6’5” height, 34” arm length, 277 lbs and with 10-inch hands, Dodd has the ideal size for an NFL defensive end.  Not only does Dodd have the size, Dodd has the athleticism and football intelligence that NFL teams like to see in draft prospects.

Dodd possesses good footwork and strength, good focus, quick reaction on the ball and is quick off the line.  He is instinctive and excellent in reading game play.  With all that said, Dodd has only one full season of game experience under his belt, producing 49 tackles and 8 sacks, and still needs work on hand and proper blocking techniques to prevent unnecessary on field penalties.  With a little bit of work, Dodd should fit into the Titans scheme to help improve pressure against opposing quarterback.

  • ROUND 2, PICK 12 (43 Overall) – Austin Johnson – DT

A nose tackle fitting the Titans’ 3-4 defense, which they have been running the past two seasons, might have been the reason for selecting Johnson instead of A’Shawn Robinson from Alabama, who’s been generally rated higher by draft analysts.  Even so, it’s still surprising since the Titans also re-signed NT Al Woods to a three-year deal.

However, Titans general manager Jon Robinson thinks Johnson’s versatility makes him a solid pick:

“We’ve targeted Austin for a while there. He can play nose, he can play five technique, he can play three technique.”

At 6’4” height and 314 lbs, Johnson has good size and is surprisingly agile for his size, showing good movement.  Johnson has excellent hustle and pursuit, having 75 tackles last season, and a good ability to hold his ground and manage the gap.  Johnson unfortunately often gets knocked off balance, generally needs to be quicker off the line and loses focus due to frustration.

  • ROUND 2, PICK 14 (45 Overall) – Derrick Henry – RB

A surprising selection by the Titans after signing DeMarco Murry during free agency.  Derrick Henry is generally thought to be the second highest rated running back in the 2016 draft in a shallow pool of pro-read prospects.  At 6’3” height and 247 lbs, Henry is a rarity of his kind.  One of the biggest running backs in height, Henry has a lot of power and long strides, but lacks initial speed and acceleration.  Although he needs work on reading the secondary and foot work, when Henry is able to break free, it will be hard for defenders to catch him.  Lacking hand skills, Henry will need a lot of work to be a potential passing running back (he only had 17 receptions throughout his entire college career).  A 2015 Heisman winner, Henry is a physical running back, but I don’t see DeMarco Murray losing his number one spot this upcoming season.

With the addition of Henry, the Titans have seven running backs on their depth chart.  It’s a little bit of a mystery what the front office was thinking when selecting a running back while there were more concerning needs to be addressed for the Titans.

  • ROUND 3, PICK 1 (64 Overall) – Kevin Byard – S

Outside of the offensive line, the Titans secondary is in dire need of repair.  In defending against the long pass (over 15 yards), The Titans ended the season 31st out of 32 teams.  So it’s no surprise that the Titans would eventually focus on building up their secondary.

With this need, it’s a mystery why the Titans would pass on cornerback Mackensie Alexander with their 45th pick (who was eventually drafted by, and a great value for, the Minnesota Vikings with the 54th pick) instead of drafting a running back and selecting Kevin Byard with their 3rd round pick.

At 5’11” height and 216 lbs, Byard doesn’t have the desired height for a typical NFL secondary.  But, the Titans clubhouse definitely saw something in this prospect.

Robinson explained that he thought that Byard had “Outstanding ball skills”:

“I think 19 interceptions speaks for itself, and he had 370-plus tackles as well. So he’s a really productive football player, and he’s a great guy. He is a captain, he is a (team-first guy). He embodies all the traits we are looking for. We think he can play free and strong, and he can play in the kicking game. He is really good with the ball in his hands when he picks it off.”

With that said, Byrad isn’t a physical player, has problems wrapping up and finishing the tackle, trouble mirroring and matching man coverage, often fails to read plays, misses opportunities to make plays and lacks downfield speed to catch receivers.  Fortunately, most of these concerns are technical and can be learned with coaching, time and experience.

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With four picks in the second and third round, the Titans should have used at least one of the picks to address their problems on the offensive front line.  After selecting offensive tackle, Conklin, in the first round, The Titans did little to improve quarterback Marcius Mariota situation behind center.  We’ll see what they do to address this in Rounds 4 through 7.

In Part 2, we’ll take a look at what the Jacksonville Jaguars, Houston Texans and Indianapolis Colts did in Rounds 2 and 3 of the 2016 NFL Draft.

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