Every NFL Draft pick has the potential to be successful … until it isn't. The Tennessee Titans endured some tough drafts under the guidance of former general manager Job Robinson. Few selections from the 2020 and 2021 classes remained with the team before Tuesday's roster cut deadline. The Titans also severed ties with several 2022 draft picks.
On Tuesday, the Titans' three most recent draft picks were waived.
The Titans inherited a big risk when they selected Caleb Farley with the 22nd overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, and Robinson believed the player who looked like a top-10 prospect on video but had been plagued by back and knee injuries entering the pre-draft process was a valuable addition.
The Titans are waiving former 2021 first-round draft pick Caleb Farley, per a source. pic.twitter.com/gTMU5AiSdM
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 27, 2024
Unfortunately for the Titans, Farley continued to be plagued by recurring injuries to his back, knees and hamstrings. The former Virginia Tech star suffered a torn ACL during his rookie season, marking the second ACL tear of his career. In 2022, as a sophomore, Farley underwent a microdiscectomy surgery on his back.
As a result, Farley was limited to just 12 regular-season appearances over three seasons. After showing flashes of improvement during the most recent training camp, a hamstring injury kept him out of multiple practices and preseason games. The injury completely robbed Farley of his potential.
Tennessee Titans coach Brian Callahan was honest in his recent assessment of Hassan Haskins. Callahan admitted that Haskins was a worse runner than Jabari Small and Julius Chestnut, but was a standout on special teams. Many believed that special teams would save his job, but that wasn't the case.
In fact, in addition to Haskins, the Titans released several other special-teams-only players, including Anthony Kendall and Matthew Jackson, but kept Luke Gifford (for now).
Despite the Titans using their 2022 fourth-round pick to acquire Haskins, Haskins has never looked like an NFL-caliber running back as a pure rusher. Chestnut will be the RB3 behind Tyjay Spears and Tony Pollard. The previous regime backed Haskins for his alleged off-field incidents, but the current decision-makers are looking to bounce back from Robinson's failure.
Like Farley, Kyle Phillips is another “if only he hadn't been injured” player. Repeated hamstring injuries and shaky ball security prevented Phillips from reaching his potential in Tennessee, and while there were certainly upsides from a pass-catching perspective, the 2022 fifth-round pick never gained or sustained any momentum.
Phillips was limited to 13 regular-season appearances over two seasons. He suffered a hamstring injury during a key training camp that caused him to miss several training camp practices and preseason games, allowing players like JaQuan Jackson to surpass him on the roster. The Titans placed Phillips on injured reserve and released him, and his time in Nashville is likely over.
