The prognosis for every Tennessee Titans rookie draft pick in 2026
· Yahoo Sports
It's time to put this Tennessee Titans rookie class to the test.
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Titans rookies played a combined total of 5,397 snaps in 2025. Only the Browns, Jets and Patriots devoted a higher percentage of their total snaps to rookies than the Titans did. Sure, quarterback Cam Ward being on the field pretty much every offensive down for the entire season boosted that number. But the Titans have been fairly insistent under GM Mike Borgonzi that the best way to get young players up to speed is to throw them into live action as soon as they're deemed ready.
With that in mind, let's take one last look through the Titans' Class of 2026 rookies and project how much they'll be used as the Titans prepare for the start the season on Sept. 13 against the New York Jets at Nissan Stadium (noon CT, CBS).
Titans rookies in 2026: How much will they play?
WR Carnell Tate
Tate projects as a starter and has a real chance to be the Titans' No. 1 pass catcher by season's end. He went through stretches during the offseason when he looked like he already was that guy, but he also carries with him the burden of going three preseason games without catching a pass.
"All that preseason doesn't count," receiver Calvin Ridley said. "It doesn't matter if he had 50 catches or a million yards or whatever. It doesn't count. He doesn't look at that. He's taking it a day at a time to get himself ready for the first game."
DE Keldric Faulk
Faulk is coming off a minor injury that limited him in the last couple weeks of training camp, but he's practicing without limitation this week. There haven't been many moments when the entire Titans defensive front was healthy at the same time, but when that's the been the case, Faulk has been used as a rotational edge defender who usually receives the third-highest share of snaps behind Jermaine Johnson II and Jacob Martin.
LB Anthony Hill Jr.
Hill's spent most of the summer behind more established linebackers Cedric Gray, Cody Barton and James Williams Sr., in the pecking order. With Gray progressing his way through the concussion protocol, there's a chance Hill could be thrust into a bigger role in Week 1, especially when the Titans opt for three-linebacker base sets.
"He's done a good job," defensive coordinator Gus Bradley says of Hill. "He's been very impressive as training camps going on, you know, understanding the defense. It's one thing to understand your position, understand what you need to do in your particular role, but also, you know take charge of the defense, so I think he's really done a good job with that of late."
OL Fernando Carmona Jr.
Carmona has been named the Titans' starting right guard for Week 1, and the staff has enough faith in him that the front office was willing to part ways with veteran Cordell Volson during roster cuts. Carmona graded out as the best run-blocking rookie offensive lineman in the NFL this preseason, according to Pro Football Focus, and ranked second best among rookie guard in pass blocking grade.
RB Nick Singleton
Don't expect Singleton to challenge Tony Pollard and Tyjae Spears for significant playing time early on, but Singleton consistently impressed throughout training camp running behind the No. 2 and No. 3 offensive lines, no small feat. He makes sense as the Titans' best big-body option in short distance.
DL Jackie Marshall
The good news for Marshall is the Titans rotate a bunch up front. It's hard to imagine Marshall stealing early reps from Jeffery Simmons, John Franklin-Myers, Solomon Thomas or Jordan Elliott. But Saleh rosters six interior D-linemen at a time for a reason.
OL Pat Coogan
Barring an injury to starting center Austin Schlottmann, there isn't a real path to early playing time for Coogan. Maybe he's active as an extra body for field goals, but it's also possible the Titans rely on second-year guard Jackson Slater as the No. 2 center on game days.
TE Jaren Kanak
Kanak is on injured reserve and will not play this season.
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at [email protected]. Follow Nick on X @nicksuss. Subscribe to the Talkin’ Titans newsletter for updates sent directly to your inbox.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: The prognosis for every Tennessee Titans rookie draft pick in 2026