The Titans may have stumbled into an answer for one of their most awkward roster problems, and it came in a way nobody wanted.
Alontae Taylor, who had been benched in consecutive Weeks 6 and 7 after falling short of expectations, got his chance again in Sunday’s Week 8 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals when Marcus Harris left with an injury. Taylor stepped in at nickelback and suddenly looked like the player Tennessee had been trying to find a role for all season.
That’s notable because the Titans had spent the early part of the year insisting Taylor could handle boundary cornerback after signing him to a three-year, $58 million contract in free agency. After five weeks, Robert Saleh and his staff changed course. Saleh had been saying Taylor was being prepared for nickel corner, his most familiar NFL spot, but Harris had been playing well enough that there was no obvious path to get Taylor on the field there.
Then Harris went down, and Taylor got 41 snaps inside - his first action of the season at inside corner for Tennessee. He made the most of it.
Taylor helped force a Chase Brown fumble on a play where Brown never had a clean grip on the ball, setting up a key turnover at midfield that the Titans recovered after a lengthy replay review. He also broke up a Joe Burrow two-point conversion pass in the end zone.
The day wasn’t spotless. Taylor gave up six catches for 82 yards, and the Bengals made life difficult by moving Ja’Marr Chase into the slot often enough to create a tough assignment. Even so, Taylor flashed in coverage and added value as a blitzing run defender.
Now the real question is whether Harris will be available after the bye week. Saleh said in his Monday virtual presser that injury reports and updates aren’t provided during the off-week, so a clearer picture likely won’t come until next week.
Harris walked off gingerly and appeared to be genuinely hurt. If that injury keeps him out for any stretch, the Titans may have found an unexpected fix for Taylor’s role. If not, Saleh and the staff are back to sorting through a problem they still haven’t fully solved.
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