Masuk Free Press

The NFL draft begins Thursday, April 24. There are loads of successful collegiate athletes that can be drafted to an NFL franchise. However, only one person can hear their name called as the number one overall pick. Shadeur Sanders and Cam Ward are the top two quarterbacks in this upcoming draft class, and they have different playing styles that teams may want, or need, to entertain when making their draft pick. Deion Sanders, the father and college coach of his son Shadeur, was a dominant NFL player in the 1990s. Maybe you recall his dominance, playing for a multitude of NFL teams like the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers, or you recall him having a short stint in the MLB. Deion Sanders’ nickname, “Primetime,” became a trademark. Every single game that Deion Sanders played was a spectacle.

The Hall of Fame defensive back has coached his two sons, Shilo and Shedeur, at the University of Colorado. Shadeur Sanders has been the more successful son in college, as he quarterbacked the Colorado Buffaloes to a 9-3 record this past college football season. He and popular dual threat athlete Travis Hunter were two of the top players in all of college football. Hunter even won the Heisman trophy award, one of the most prestigious honors a college football athlete can receive. Then there’s Cam Ward of the Miami Hurricanes. Ward came to the ‘Canes this past season as a transfer from Washington State, and led his squad to a 10-3 record throughout the year. Ward is known for his ability to calmly maneuver around the pocket. Some may call it lazy. Others call it poise and posture. What Ward was able to succeed at was staying in the pocket and managing the pressure around him. 

Continuing, these two quarterbacks are at the top of a lot of mock drafts (predictions of where prospects will go in the eventual draft process). Other players have made a name for themselves, however. College stars such as Abdul Carter of Penn State, Ashton Jeanty of Boise State and Travis Hunter of Colorado as mentioned above all have a case to be picked very high in the draft.

Now that we’ve introduced a lot of the top prospects, who’s the team that has the opportunity to take one of these young talents? After a disappointing NFL season, the team with the honors to the number one pick is the Tennessee Titans. With a necessity at nearly every position, what direction should the Titans go? Should they start fresh and grab a replacement at the quarterback position, or should they choose the Heisman winner, Hunter? Or, should they bring in the record breaking running back in Jeanty? There are so many directions, and the decision is not an easy one. 

The Titans were not expected to have too much success coming into the 2024 NFL season, and things proceeded to fall apart quickly. They started their season off 0-3, and never really recovered from that start. Ending their campaign at 3-14, they had the worst record in the league, thus earning the number one selection in the draft. Their quarterback, Will Levis, did not have the leap in production that he was thought to have. The offense as a whole struggled. They had the 26th best offense, out of 32 entire teams. Levis, in 12 games, went 2-10, and proceeded to only post 2091 yards, as well as 13 touchdowns to 12 interceptions. Concerning the defense, they were ranked number two as for yards allowed. The real problem was that they let up an astonishing 55 touchdowns, second to only the Carolina Panthers (61). Based off of these analytics, we can assume that the Titans would benefit more from adding some offensive pieces. Also, it also looks like they could use assistance in defending the red zone and not allowing any touchdowns. 

Based on these statistics, it is evident that Travis Hunter should hear his name get called as the number one pick in April. Hunter provides exactly what the Titans need. An offensive weapon along with a defensive back. Many may be asking, what about the quarterback throwing the ball? It has been proven that wide receivers will put up stats no matter who is throwing the ball. Think of rookies last year like Brock Bowers and Malik Nabers. Are Daniel Jones or Gardner Minchew exactly eye openers? There’s no reason that if Hunter is indeed this dual threat that he shouldn’t be able to have a successful rookie campaign. Quarterbacks win games. Stats don’t. Hunter won’t turn the Titans into Super Bowl contenders overnight, and the Titans may struggle in the win-loss column for another year, but they’ll eventually find an at least decent quarterback to sustain Hunter’s production and turn them into winners. 

In addition, people also wonder how Hunter can play both sides at the pro level. He played almost every single snap in college. Now, college football isn’t the same as the NFL, but it’s nonetheless impressive. Hunter is arguably a better defensive back than a wide receiver. One of his most memorable plays this season was forcing a game winning fumble in overtime. He also recorded four interceptions.

What about all of the other prospects though? What makes Hunter the clear choice? Why wouldn’t the Titans prefer a quarterback like Cam Ward or Shadeur Sanders? Or, why would they pass up on much-needed offensive line talent or necessary defensive playmakers? The first of these prospects is Abdul Carter. Carter has shot up draft boards, with many having him as a top end pick, rightfully so. Carter has shown great promise, as he dominated on the Penn State defensive line, showing a statline that included a whopping 12 sacks. His combine numbers included a production score of 95 (1st), an athleticism score of 83 (6th), and a total score of 90 (1st). He is projected to be pro bowl talent, and has way more strengths than weaknesses. Carter sounds too good to be true, right? Why wouldn’t the Titans take him? The Titans wouldn’t be in the wrong to do so, and there’s no glaring reason not to. Honestly, it would be a very respectable pick. The only proposition is that Hunter solves two problems in one, as he still has that dual threat trait on him. Also, the Titans still have Jeffery Simmons, who, although a little old and had a dip in production this past year, can still wreak havoc to opposing offenses. Finally, the Titans offense was way more of an issue than the defense, meaning the offense should be the main priority. 

Next, we have Cam Ward and Shadeur Sanders. It is surprising that although the quarterback is often considered the most important position on the field, those two were not chosen to be the number one pick as most think they should. Ward and Sanders are great. They both put up great stats, and I have no doubt that they can’t be successful in the league. The kicker is that quarterbacks today need strong supporting casts. Unless they are a generational talent, which Ward and Sanders, although very talented, are not generational, the quarterback is not a deciding factor, especially early on. Young quarterbacks who get drafted to bad teams are like glass. They are easily breakable. Think of Sam Darnold, or Geno Smith. They played absolutely horrid early in their NFL years, and now with a good supporting cast, they have each had career years. Even Bryce Young had a poor team around him his rookie year, and he turned things around slightly this season. The Titans do not have a good supporting cast to house a rookie. They would be better suited on grabbing a veteran quarterback that has seen the NFL, and waiting until the team is good enough to house a rookie quarterback is the best approach. 

The bottom line is that Travis Hunter kills two birds with one stone. Hunter will succeed at at least one of his two positions in the NFL, and based on his college success and the Titans’ needs, Hunter will definitely help the Titans ‘hunt’ some much needed wins.