Former Bengals right guard Cordell Volson has a fresh start in Tennessee, but it comes with a built-in warning label.
After Cincinnati moved on from Volson over the offseason, the former fourth-round pick landed with the Titans and now has a shot at their starting right guard job. Shot is the key word. He is not walking into Nashville with the position secured, and this summer could decide whether he sticks or slides down the depth chart.
Justin Melo of Titan Sized recently called Volson a “polarizing veteran” on the Titans’ roster and said the lineman has “everything to prove.” Melo also laid out why the Titans would be taking a real gamble if they hand Volson the job right away:
“Naming Volson the starter would come with significant risk... Volson will head into training camp having not played football in over a year.
His results as a Bengals starter were also extremely lackluster... Perhaps working with Titans offensive line coach Carmen Bricillo will reinvigorate Volson.
The Bengals haven't exactly been known for developing offensive linemen throughout the Joe Burrow tenure.”
That’s a harsh read, but not an unfair one.
Volson’s time in Cincinnati came on a line that struggled to keep Joe Burrow clean, and the Bengals let him go after he missed the entire 2025 season because of a shoulder injury he suffered before the year began. Now he’s trying to reset with a new team and a new coach, but he’ll have to earn every bit of it.
The competition in Tennessee is real. Melo pointed to second-year lineman Jackson Slater, a fifth-round pick in last year’s draft, as the main challenger. Slater played in 12 games last season and did not make a start, but his year of learning from the sideline gives Volson an edge for now.
Even so, Volson’s path is hardly smooth. He has not played a regular-season snap since 2024, and in football terms that is a long layoff.
Add in the fact that he was never dominant as Cincinnati’s starter, and Tennessee has every reason to keep the battle open. If Slater looks better in camp and preseason, the Titans could absolutely go younger at right guard.
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