The Titans traded A.J. Brown to the Eagles, then two minutes later drafted his replacement in Treylon Burks, a stylistically similar receiver. How about that.
I'll admit -- when the trade first flashed across the screen, I hated it for the Titans. To move their superstar wideout, who's such a unique talent and fits today's power YAC mold at one of the game's most vital positions, felt backwards for a perennially contending club that's only a few months removed from being the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs.
And to get a third-round pick in return for him felt minuscule. However, not having to move off No. 23 overall was a nice luxury. Eventually moving off that selection in a trade down with the Jets was shrewd too.
Then the Burks pick was announced. And I didn't hate it nearly as much.
It's understandable to dislike the trade because everyone knows what the Titans had in Brown, who'll only turn 25 in July. But Burks can provide comparable elements to the Titans offense as a gadget-y YAC monster who's a horse to corral in the open field. Brown was rounding into a complete receiver who could get open with explosiveness, route nuance, and change-of-pace skill.
Burks is not there yet. He needs to be fed the football on high-percentage throws and one-cut routes that will allow his size/speed/power combination to be accentuated as he learns the intricacies of how to separate at the next level. Fortunately for him, too, he'll have Robert Woods from which to learn.
And the Titans not only get, let's say an A.J. Brown Lite in Burks, but they are also free from paying Brown a contract around $25 million per year. Now, at his age, with his special abilities, Brown feels worth $25 million per year to me, especially considering how the receiver market boomed this offseason.
Apparently the Titans didn't agree with that line of thinking, and they got a third-rounder, cap wiggle room and a Brown-esque player in Burks to help keep the offense afloat for at least one more season of Derrick Henry and Ryan Tannehill running the show.
