Titans' Taylor Lewan doesn't sound like he's willing to play right tackle
Lewan was Tennessee's first round pick just two years ago, and in the wake of the Jack Conklin selection, wants to make sure he stays on the blind side.
By
Jared Dubin
•
3 min read
The 2015 Tennessee Titans played badly enough to secure the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft. The expectation for weeks was that they'd use that pick on former Ole Miss tackle Laremy Tunsil, securing a left tackle of the future to protect Marcus Mariota's blind side. Mariota was sacked 38 times as a rookie, gettng dropped on 9.3 percent of his dropbacks. Taking into account the four-plus games Mariota sat out, the Titans offensive line allowed a 9.6 percent adjusted sack rate, per Football Outsiders, the worst figure in the league. So yeah, a tackle at the top of the draft made a good deal of sense.
The Titans traded the No. 1 pick, though, sliding down to No. 15 and snagging a bunch of future picks as well, courtesy of the Rams. That's more of a draft range where, if you pick a tackle, it might be a guy that plays on the right side of the line rather than the left. One catch: The Titans dealt away a third-round pick this year and a second-rounder next year to move back up to No. 8, where they took Michigan State tackle Jack Conklin.
When you take a tackle in or around the top 10, the expectation is usually that he'll played on the left side, sooner or later. Mostly sooner. That's exactly what happened with Tennessee's 2014 first round pick, former Michigan tackle Taylor Lewan. He played 11 games as a rookie, netting six starts, all at left tackle. He then started 15 games at left tackle last season.
In the wake of the Conklin selection, Lewan has made it clear that he does not want to be the one that moves to the right side. Here are his thoughts on the subject, per the Tennessean.
“To me, honestly, I never thought anything of it because I know I’m not a right tackle. I’m a left tackle. I knew I was the left tackle for this team and I knew once I had the opportunity to talk to Mr. [Jon] Robinson and Coach [Mike] Mularkey that they would hear my piece and where I was from. And I respect them to the Nth degree. They’re unbelievable. An unbelievable G.M., an unbelievable coach, and I would do a lot for this team. But I know I came in here, I know my worth as a player, and I know that I’m a left tackle. So I think it’s my job now to prove that I can be more consistent this year and do those things. But as far as worrying about it and stuff like that, I never did, because I know the kind of player that I am.”
It's certainly possible Lewan stays at left tackle and Conklin comes in and plays on the right side. It's not unheard of for a team to pick a tackle that high in the draft with the expectation that he'll be a right tackle. The Giants did it last year when they took Ereck Flowers with the No. 9 overall pick. (Flowers wound up playing left tackle due to multiple injuries along New York's offensive line during training camp. That experiment was not very successful.)
What's interesting to me here is that Lewan made the discussion at least partially about his value. "But I know I came in here, I know my worth as a player, and I know that I’m a left tackle." Left tackles traditionally get paid more than right tackles because they protect the quarterback's "blind side," which is typically where most teams have stationed their best pass rushers. But that's not an exclusive thing anymore.
Players like Justin Houston, Khalil Mack, and Von Miller rush almost exclusively from the left side of the formation, against right tackles. Miller took over the Super Bowl by dominating Panthers right tackle Mike Remmers. It shouldn't be seen as some sort of slight to move a tackle to the right, but when you take a look at the money involved -- especially for a player that will be coming off his rookie contract in a couple years -- it does make a bit of sense that he'd be against the move.
