Titans 53-Man Roster 2025: The most concerning story nobody is giving enough attention, and glaring proof for OL optimism
Before you decide that offensive line talk is boring and click away, what if I told you the most important questions for the Tennessee Titans in 2025 pertain to just a handful of these big boys?
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This is the interior offensive line portion of an ongoing article series, breaking down the Titans projected 53-man roster one position at a time. So far we've covered quarterbacks, Kalel Mullings' role, Tyjae Spears' most important season ever, and Tony Pollard's potential ceiling.
In this installment, we have to ask the question that most are ignoring about Lloyd Cushenberry. Then, I want to explain why you should be higher on the Titans OL depth, a very important thing, than you are. Let's dive in:
Offensive Tackles
JC Latham
Dan Moore
John Ojukwu
Cut: Jaelyn Duncan, Olisaemeka Udoh, Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson
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Guards
Peter Skoronski
Kevin Zeitler
Jackson Slater
Blake Hance
Cut: Andrew Rupcich, Chandler Brewer
Centers
Lloyd Cushenberry
Corey Levin
Cut: Sam Mustipher, Brenden Jaimes
The Cushenberry Question
We may look back in a couple of months on C Lloyd Cushenberry as the most under-discussed story of the offseason. The highly-paid 2024 free agent acquisition went down in Week 9 against the Patriots with a torn Achilles. That ended his season on November 3rd.
Week 1 of the 2025 season is September 7th in Denver, which will be just over 10 months post-injury. And while that's within the predictive range for return to play, an Achilles injury is amongst the most finicky. So much of the concern we used to have for major injuries has been minimized or erased completely by the miracles of modern sports medicine. When a guy tore his ACL 40 years ago, there was a decent chance it could end his career. Today, we say 'see ya next season'.
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But the Achilles is one we still haven't quite mastered. Some studies indicate as few as 1/3 of athletes return to the level of play they achieved before tearing an Achilles. And as many as 1/3 end up retiring. Those aren't great odds!
So is it time to panic over Cushenberry? Well, there's some important context here to consider. Achilles injuries are most common in older players, so a good number of those who end up retiring are sometimes nearing the twilight of their career already. Cushenberry is a spritely 27 years old, so he's a bit of a different case than, say, 40 year old Aaron Rodgers tearing his. He is also, by all accounts, progressing well on schedule to try to play in Week 1. So maybe he'll be one of the success stories!
I just think everybody needs to brace themselves for a couple of uncomfortable outcomes. There's a decent chance he's not ready for Week 1, and perhaps beyond. There's also a decent chance that whenever he does come back, he takes time to return to a high level of play. Perhaps it's a couple weeks. But it could easily be a couple months. How often do we point to 'the year after the year' with injuries, especially in hindsight?
Depth… A Sneaky Bright Spot?
So what happens if Cushenberry can't be your guy for a while? What happens if any of these starters on the line go down, for that matter? Well, it's not great news. But in the NFL these days, it never is.
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The Titans have legitimately serviceable interior OL depth if Cushenberry needs time, or 35 year old Kevin Zeitler gets banged up, or even if Peter Skoronski suffers an untimely injury. They have the bodies to weather the storm. C Corey Levin is the change I made in this depth chart projection, and it's because of the way his coaches talked about him. Listen to this from Coach Callahan at the podium:
'The guy that I really think deserves some public praise is, Corey Levin, with Lloyd (Cushenberry III) being out, we brought Corey back to be able to run the show and Corey's a veteran player. He is a savvy, scrappy, intelligent interior guy that's really helped us run our offense over the course of the offseason without Lloyd. Really, really pleased with what he's done for us. Really happy that we have him because he's very capable and he started games for us at the end of the year last year and he started the games in his past. I've been very pleased with his performance. Again, if that guy is a depth piece, then that's fantastic for us.'
Well, that's about as clear cut as it gets. Hand up, I was an idiot for leaving him off my initial projection. Should've known better.
He's not the only guy that elicits confidence, though. The other change I made on this projection was moving Blake Hance to the list of guards. It's hard to say what Hance will be for Tennessee yet. I thought he was being brought in to compete for the primary swing tackle position. But the last time he played significant tackle snaps was a while ago. When we asked his coaches about him, they indicated they're working him in at every position on the line. So maybe he'll just be their 6th lineman, no matter the position? August will clarify that for us. But they're happy to have him in the fold too.
Then there's rookie Jackson Slater, who I'm high on to develop into a starting guard in 2026. If he needs to be tapped before then in a backup role, I think he'll be able to handle that.
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At tackle, the picture is much murkier. Hance could be that guy. So could John Ojukwu, who I wrote more about in the tackle edition of this series. And then there's rookie Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, who I'm intrigued to see in pads. He ran the SEC gauntlet of pass rushers pretty cleanly last year, that's all I'm saying!
All told, I'm pretty pleased with where the depth of this unit is as compared to last year. I remember when we were discussing guys like Ojukwu and Duncan as OL6/7. Now, we're talking about them as fringe roster guys at OL9/10. That just about sums up the progress I think they've made here.
Related: By playing less, the Titans' best offensive player last season could unlock an even higher gear with Cam Ward in 2025
Related: Boom or bust season for Titans running back in 2025 who has one last shot to insert himself into Tennessee's future plans
Related: Titans rookie looks to be the successful version of a Mike Vrabel Era failed experiment as a roster lock in 2025
View the original article to see embedded media.
This story was originally reported by A to Z Sports on Jun 26, 2025, where it first appeared.
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CBS News
33 minutes ago
- CBS News
Brandon Woodruff helps Milwaukee Brewers to 3-1 win over Miami Marlins in his first start since 2023
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New York Times
35 minutes ago
- New York Times
How I'd size up the West
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Steph Chambers / Getty Images For Deandre Ayton, who turns 27 at the end of July, the opportunity to re-establish himself couldn't be more clear. While his contract with the Lakers has a second-year player option, no one involved wants him to exercise it — the hope being that he far outplays that $8 million valuation and commands way more next summer. Team sources believe the Lakers have the right coaching staff to make that happen. In JJ Redick, they have a deadly serious head coach who also understands how to relate to players. Assistant Scott Brooks worked with Ayton in Portland two years ago, and Nate McMillan has either played or coached with or against virtually every personality type the NBA's ever concocted. And if not, the Lakers have maintained their flexibility for next summer and beyond. The Lakers weren't going to do better this summer than Deandre Ayton, not with what was on the market, not with the little they had to offer. If you polled 29 other general managers about whether they'd rather trade a first-round pick for Nic Claxton or if they'd rather pay Ayton $8 million, we can be pretty confident in the answer. And if there was hesitation, it wouldn't be because of the stuff on the court. It would be concerns about the culture, the fit, the commitment, the understanding about the required sacrifices that need to be made in order to win at the highest level. Read more of my column on the Ayton signing here. GO FURTHER Deandre Ayton fits with LeBron, Luka and the Lakers on the court. Will that be enough? Michael Reaves / Getty Images While things are slow ... I don't think the Knicks' tax apron situation has received enough attention. By adding Guershon Yaubsele via the taxpayer midlevel exception, the Knicks will trigger the second apron. It is going to take some serious limbo to stay beneath it. After agreeing to a minimum deal with Jordan Clarkson, New York has two open roster spots left. At the moment, they cannot sign a veteran to either one. The only players they could fit into those spots are ones they drafted — 2024 second-round Kevin McCullar (for $2,048,914) into one spot, and either 2025 second-rounder Mohamed Diawara, 2023 second-rounder James Nnaji or 2021 second-rounder Rokas Jokubaitis (for $1,272,870) into the other. Any other combination of salaries signed this summer would put the Knicks over the second apron. There are two possibilities to get around this. The most likely one is that Yabusele takes slightly less than the full nontaxpayer midlevel exception. If he takes just $36,641 below that number, the Knicks can put a veteran into McCullar's spot and fill the other with any of the second-rounders besides McCullar. The second possibility is that the Knicks sign non-McCullar second-rounders into both spots, but waive Ariel Hukporti's non-guaranteed deal and put a veteran into his place instead. In the meantime, one can see why New York picked up Hukporti's team option. Right now the difference between his $1.955 million salary and the $2.3 million veteran minimum is the glue holding New York's entire salary cap Jenga structure together. Page 2
Yahoo
35 minutes ago
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'F1' movie review: Brad Pitt's crowd-pleaser is 'Top Gun' on wheels
Brad Pitt moseys into 'F1: The Movie' like a cowboy, rocking jeans, smirk and devil-may-care attitude. This dude, however, is more into horsepower than actual horses. As an aging wheelman-for-hire on an underdog racing team, Pitt brings plenty of personality – and vroom-vroom steeliness – to the on-the-track thrills of the crowd-pleasing if mildly predictable 'F1' (★★★ out of four; rated PG-13; in theaters June 27). Director Joseph Kosinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer, the brain trust of 'Top Gun: Maverick,' harness that same need for speed here as the immersive world of Formula 1 races into view in blistering fashion. Hairpin turns and stressful pit stops go a long way toward entertaining F1 fans and neophytes alike, though melodrama and a bloated run time put the brakes on what should be a film that zips. Join our Watch Party! Sign up to receive USA TODAY's movie and TV recommendations right in your inbox After pulling the midnight shift on a 24-hour race and winning at Daytona, Sonny Hayes (Pitt) rolls out to the next driving gig in his minibus – as long as it's got an engine and a steering column, he's game. At a random laundromat, he's tracked down and recruited by his old teammate Ruben (Javier Bardem), whose Apex racing team is one of the worst in F1 and hasn't won a point in 2 ½ years. That and the fact Ruben is $350 million in the hole spells pink slips for him, drivers and crew alike, barring a miracle. Sonny is a guy needing some serious redemption: Known as 'the greatest that never was,' he spun out professionally and personally in the 1990s, and getting a spot on Ruben's team gives him a second chance. Immediately, he chafes with hotshot rookie Joshua Pearce (Damson Idris) and is seen as less than serious by technical director/engineering whiz Kate (Kerry Condon). While character development could use an upgrade overall, Idris and Condon are fun foils for Pitt. Sonny and Joshua butt heads like a couple of alpha dogs, the new guy flirts hard with Kate (who puts Sonny in his place), and everybody, even the people swapping out tires, need to be a team player with only nine races to go. If this sounds like 'Top Gun' with cars, well, that's pretty much 'F1.' Not that that's a bad thing. The movie isn't shy about lapping many a trope, yet the white-knuckle action sequences are where 'F1' lives and breathes. Kosinski wants audiences to feel the danger of essentially sitting in a rocket that can go 200 mph, and the euphoria of passing a foe in a Ferrari or having a straight line to the checkered flag. Those go a long way in forgiving the multitude of subplots and the toolbox of car cliches. (And will have you binging "Drive to Survive" soon enough.) Like Cruise in the cockpit of a fighter jet, Pitt feels like he belongs in the driver's seat, which goes a long way in appreciating Sonny for the entertaining mess of a man that he is. Most of us wish we looked at 31 like he does at 61, but Pitt is weathered enough to be the perfect fit for his older guy's guy roles in 'Wolfs,' 'Babylon,' and 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.' Sonny is an analog, slightly peculiar fellow who doesn't jibe with a modern F1 landscape – while Joshua runs with a gazillion high-tech gadgets hooked up to him, the veteran is off jogging around a Grand Prix track. And watching Sonny throw his team, important races and everything else into chaos ('Plan C,' he calls it) before figuring his own issues out is delightful stuff. 'F1' leans extremely rousing, though it intrigues when it mines the strategic idiosyncrasies of the motorsport and the psychological and physical toll it takes to be a champion. There's a mental health angle touched on that, if explored more, would have led to a great albeit bleaker movie. Not that this thing deserves a participation trophy. Watching Pitt burn this much rubber, and with macho panache, puts "F1" in the winners' circle. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'F1' movie review: Brad Pitt brings champion steeliness to racing
