Amani Hooker has been one of the few steady faces in Tennessee through all the turnover, but the respect from around the league didn’t follow him into the 2026 season.
The Titans safety, now entering his seventh year with the team after Tennessee took him in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft, was left off ESPN’s top-10 safety list after the network surveyed NFL coaches, executives and scouts. Hooker didn’t land in the honorable mention group either, though he did pick up some votes.
That omission gives the 28-year-old plenty to carry into the year. Hooker has been a fixture for the Titans and one of the longest-tenured players on the roster alongside Jeffery Simmons, and he’s logged 67 starts with 12 interceptions and 39 pass breakups over his career. He’s also an important veteran presence in Robert Saleh’s defense.
Still, last season didn’t do him many favors. Hooker went through an uneven 2025 campaign, finishing without an interception and having some rough stretches in coverage. At the same time, it wasn’t a total step back: he played a career-high 16 games, held up well against the run and was flagged just once.
The path back to wider recognition is pretty clear. Hooker has to create more turnovers and remind people of the playmaker he was in 2024, when he grabbed five interceptions. He’s already shown that kind of ball production is in him.
So 2026 arrives with something to prove. If Hooker rebounds and Kevin Winston Jr. takes a jump in his second season, Tennessee could end up with one of the league’s better safety pairings.
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Now the early buzz around Tate is only adding to the pressure and the promise. Sayre Bedinger has already slotted him near the top of the 2026 Offensive Rookie of the Year conversation, and the bigger idea is easy to see: if Tate becomes Wards go-to target quickly, the Titans may have found the kind of pairing that can speed up Wards rise and change the shape of the offense sooner than expected. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Camp Battle For One Backfield Job Just Got Real
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Julius Chestnut, Kalel Mullings and Michael Carter are the names to watch in that fight, and each brings a different case to the table. Chestnut has the longest track record in Tennessee and the kind of special teams familiarity that tends to matter in roster decisions, Mullings is trying to build on a quiet rookie year, and Carter arrives as the lone newcomer with a profile that could make him a natural fit behind Spears if the Titans decide they want another back who can add a little burst. [Read more 🡒]