{"id":744838,"date":"2026-02-11T13:37:20","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T13:37:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/744838\/"},"modified":"2026-02-11T13:37:20","modified_gmt":"2026-02-11T13:37:20","slug":"who-are-the-building-blocks-for-robert-salehs-titans-defense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/744838\/","title":{"rendered":"Who are the building blocks for Robert Saleh\u2019s Titans defense?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Tennessee Titans<\/a> made the decision to appoint a defensive minded head coach in Robert Saleh. Saleh hired Gus Bradley to be his defensive coordinator. Together, they\u2019ll apply the teachings the head coach plans to install on that side of the ball.<\/p>\n

Saleh will be the defensive play-caller. His history as the former New York Jets<\/a> head coach and San Francisco 49ers<\/a> defensive coordinator has taught us about his preferred philosophies. Linebackers are dynamic assets in his defense, he appreciates a pass-rushing interior lineman, and values speed\/athleticism at EDGE.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

The Titans\u2019 roster desperately requires improving this offseason. As it stands, who are the defensive chess-pieces Saleh could build his defensive scheme around? We\u2019ve identified a small handful.<\/p>\n

Jeffery Simmons<\/p>\n

Saleh has coached some phenomenal defensive players throughout his career, but Jeffery Simmons will rank near the top. Don\u2019t expect Simmons\u2019 role to change much under Saleh. He\u2019s coming off an All-Pro and Bowl year as a dominant pass rusher who registered a career-high 11.0 sacks.<\/p>\n

Simmons has established himself as an elite pass-rushing three-technique. Saleh\u2019s defense will be built around how Simmons wrecks opposing offenses. He is the core foundational star moving forward.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Cedric Gray<\/p>\n

Saleh has developed several linebackers throughout his coaching career, including Fred Warner, Jamien Sherwood, and Quincy Williams. That\u2019s terrific news for third-year linebacker Cedric Gray. Gray is coming off a breakout season in which he accumulated 164 tackles.<\/p>\n

Saleh will ask Gray to play an aggressive brand of football. The former North Carolina standout will be tasked with shedding blocks as a run defender. Gray could improve in zone coverage, as Saleh\u2019s defense demands his linebackers to be instinctual around the middle of the field.<\/p>\n

Kevin Winston Jr.<\/p>\n

Sophomore safety Kevin Winston Jr. is a potential breakout star. Winston was excellent when healthy for the Titans in 2026, coming up with 34 tackles and a sack in 10 appearances. He should be thrilled about Saleh\u2019s arrival.<\/p>\n

Advertisement<\/p>\n

Saleh wants physicality and instincts at safety. Winston (and Amani Hooker) check multiple boxes.<\/p>\n

Notably absent are defensive tackle T\u2019Vondre Sweat, and any cornerback\/EDGE on the roster. Sweat\u2019s fit in Saleh\u2019s defense is questionable and to be determined based on previous history. Elsewhere, the Titans desperately need upgrades at cornerback and EDGE for Saleh to legitimize the defense.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Tennessee Titans made the decision to appoint a defensive minded head coach in Robert Saleh. Saleh hired…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":744839,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2061],"tags":[9089,9198,2792,7,592,23807,10563,255,6,14741,6043,252,526,394,2411,4045,527],"class_list":["post-744838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tennessee-titans","tag-amani-hooker","tag-cedric-gray","tag-defensive-coordinator","tag-football","tag-fred-warner","tag-jamien-sherwood","tag-jeffery-simmons","tag-new-york-jets","tag-nfl","tag-quincy-williams","tag-robert-saleh","tag-san-francisco-49ers","tag-tennessee","tag-tennessee-titans","tag-tennesseetitans","tag-the-titans","tag-titans"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116052272441262004","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/744838","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=744838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/744838\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/744839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=744838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=744838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=744838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}