The Titans may be mired in another ugly start, but Robert Saleh isn’t buying the panic button just yet. After Tennessee’s Week 5 loss to the Houston Texans, the head coach made clear this is still early in the reset for the current regime - and the roster, as rough as the results have been, already has some pieces worth building around.
That reset began before the 2025 season, when the Titans hired Mike Borgonzi and drafted Cam Ward. Then came another one before 2026, when they brought in Saleh.
So while the pain has been real since 2022, the current evaluation is only just getting underway. In Saleh’s view, this is Week 6 of the rebuild, not the finish line.
And there are 13 players who could form the backbone of what comes next, spread across four different tiers.
At the top sits DT Jeffery Simmons, the lone elite piece on the roster. Given everything this organization has been through with past personnel decisions, the Titans need to keep their best player of this generation in Nashville as long as possible. The expectation here is bigger than a contract or a few strong seasons - Simmons is the kind of player the franchise should be building its identity around until the day he retires.
The next group is smaller, but still important: young, proven talent in LG Peter Skoronski and RT JC Latham. Both linemen are trending toward honors and recognition this year and beyond, and both look like players who should remain part of the Titans’ core for the next 5+ years.
Heading into the season, Cedric Gray looked like he might join them, but he still hasn’t found his niche in this defense. That could change before the year is over, but right now he doesn’t belong in that tier.
Then comes the biggest bucket, the young but unproven group that still deserves real runway. That list includes WR Carnell Tate, WR Elic Ayomanor, RG Fernando Carmona, TE Gunnar Helm, EDGE Keldric Faulk, LB Anthony Hill, S Kevin Winston, and CB Marcus Harris.
None of them is ready to be stamped as a future Pro Bowler, but they all look like starters at this stage. Tate and Hill stand out because of the smaller sample size they’ve already given the Titans, and all of them should get every chance to grow through 2026.
At the same time, the door is open for upgrades if a truly special talent becomes available.
The final group is made up of veteran floor raisers, and that’s where WR Wan'Dale Robinson and DT John Franklin-Myers come in. Robinson may never be a star, but he is one of the better slot receivers in the league, and at 25, there’s still plenty left ahead of him.
Tennessee’s offense still hasn’t settled on an identity, which makes things harder on everyone in the passing game. Even so, when the Titans need a play, it has often been Robinson or Tate who helps get them out of trouble.
Franklin-Myers is a different kind of piece. The Titans haven’t been putting him in many pass-rush situations because they rarely play with the lead, but he’s still taking advantage of what he gets and showing up against the run too. He may be older, but he still looks like a player with more left in the tank, and he can help set the tone on defense alongside Simmons.
In Other News...
Colts Can Push Cam Ward Toward An Ugly NFL First
Cam Wards first month-plus as the Titans quarterback has already put him in a difficult spot, and Week 6 brings another one. Tennessee is 0-5 to start the 2026 season, and a loss to the Indianapolis Colts would move Ward closer to an unwanted place in league history as he continues to sort through the early growing pains of being a franchise quarterback.
The stakes are bigger than one divisional game, even if the result wont settle his long-term outlook by itself. Still, the possibility of opening his career by dropping his first eight games against division opponents is the kind of marker that can hang around a young quarterback, especially when a rebuilding team is searching for any sign that its most important player is turning the corner. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Have A Real Shot In A Matchup Few Fans Trust
Week 6 brings the Titans into a divisional matchup that has plenty of skepticism around it, and for good reason. Indianapolis comes in as a seven-point favorite, while Tennessees record and overall performance metrics have not inspired much confidence. Still, this is the kind of AFC South game that tends to look a little different once the teams get on the field, especially when the spread is this sizable.
Iain MacMillans read on the matchup points to a scenario where Tennessee could be more competitive than the public expects, even if the standings say otherwise. The Titans do not need a clean, pretty performance to matter here, only enough resistance to stay within the number and make the Colts work for everything. For a team that has spent much of the season fighting perception as much as opponents, that is a real opening worth watching. [Read more 🡒]
Titans Now Have One More Colts Receiving Threat To Worry About
The Colts head into Week 6 at 2-3, still trying to find a steadier rhythm after a mixed start to the season, and the Titans now have one more pass-catching name to account for. Indianapolis has not gotten consistent play from Daniel Jones since his return from injury, but the offense did get a small boost this week when tight end Will Mallory was activated off injured reserve ahead of the matchup.
Mallory missed the first five games because of a thumb injury, and his return gives the Colts another receiving option at a time when they have been searching for answers on offense. For Tennessee, it means a little more to sort through in coverage, especially against a team that is still looking for ways to make its passing game click. [Read more 🡒]