The SoBros Mailbag 324: John’s NFL Draft Bonanza

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Let’s face it – every day we are routinely bombarded with questions. When you’re an emerging media company in Nashville, people just want to know what your opinions are on everything. It’s only natural. And, since our duty is to serve the people, well, we have no choice but to be present. That’s the SoBro Way. Also, aren’t mailbags just a barrel of laughs anyway? Welcome to the newest weekly recurring feature up in this bitch: The SoBros Mailbag. As always, hit us with those mailbag questions @SoBrosNetwork on Twitter, email ’em to me anonymously at thesobrosnetwork@gmail.com. And, holy shit, I need to update this terrible intro paragraph that I’ve been using literally ever since I started writing this column…

Question:

Answer:

That’s a tough one. I would probably say yeah. I’m high on Graham, and the thought of him playing next to T’Vondre Sweat for the next few seasons is tantalizing. I’m all for acquiring draft capital, too.

Question:

Answer:

Wait, I didn’t know there were 11 Hulks. I’m too far behind the lore. This is the best I can do:

  1. Green
  2. Red

Question:

Answer:

It’s way too good, and that makes me think it’s complete and utter bullshit. I’d do it in a heartbeat. If 6 or 7 want to come up, I still want a haul. An extra first in addition to the pick swap, two 2nds, and a third. Something like that.

Question, via text from Joe:

If Tennessee trades down twice or trades way down and comes out of the first round with Ty Warren or Malachi Starks and a pile of pics, can that be the right move?

Answer:

It absolutely could be. The good thing about having so many holes and needing so many draft picks is that there are multiple ways to skin a cat here. There are very few paths they could go that wouldn’t make some sort of sense from a team-building standpoint. I would actually be quite intrigued to see how they could come away with Malaki Starks in this draft.

Question, from John in the DMs, regarding this tweet:

Which bridge QB and which rookie would you say would benefit from a pendulum swing of this nature? (I wholeheartedly agree this occurs across levels of football, as Heupel’s reliance on RPO makes me personally invested in seeing how he counters “Flyover” coverage and 2-high alignments to give run looks with nickel, safeties flying in the box once they read run).

Answer:

Rookie quarterback is easy – that’s Shedeur. I know he played mostly shotgun at Colorado, but hell, who isn’t playing mostly shotgun in college anymore!?!? It’s more about the decisiveness it takes to excel in the quick game. Receiver routes are shorter, but the quarterback HAS to hit that third step and rock it. If the first read isn’t open, he has to move quickly through his progressions in order for the offense to move the chains. That’s Shedeur to me! As for the bridge option, I don’t know if it counts since we technically don’t know if he’d be available or not, but Matthew Stafford could be the pioneer for this movement with his experience and facilitation skills.

Seems like I was just reading an article about how Ben Johnson and the Lions offense were beginning to revive the quick game, but I can’t recall off the top of my head, and I’m too tired to Google it right now. But, what’s wild is that the Titans could be at the forefront of this pendulum swing! We’ve already heard Brian Callahan talk about wanting to get the quick game going more. I don’t think it’s necessarily a strength of Will Levis’ game, and his plan might’ve been stifled because of that or else we might’ve seen more of this last season with elevated quarterback play.

And, just as a side note, I’d be quite interested in seeing that Vols offense with a little more quick game added to it. Feels like defenses are already conditioned to defend wide and expect the run as a swerve. Showing run looks only to hit that three step drop and rock it would be a nice little wrinkle.

Questions, also from John in the DMS:

1. Ranking OT options at 35 (Ersery seems most obvious, didn’t know if you felt anyone else deserved consideration there as Campbell, Banks, Membou are early locks + Simmons and Conerly won’t fall to 35, otherwise any of those would be mf EZ button picks imo) With Zabel likely moving inside don’t know that he’s available or best fit

2. Ranking 3R OL options if we were to get a pick in the round via trade back (D Jackson > Cam Williams/Belton > Milum/Trapilo > Savaiinaea/Mbow/Grant is my completely uneducated rough tiers in that range) .

3. Am I hung up on name recognition/one hit that just seems like a Dennard Wilson attitude type statement from S. Simmons at ASU? I just think he could provide some nice CB/S/Ni versatility w/ physicality if he falls to that late (any likeness to Chiefs late rd DB picks or other prospects that might fit that mold?)

4. Is Cobee Bryant too obvious a pick for this (or other bump & run/man-heavy) defense that there’s no chance he actually makes it to ~101-103? If we miss on Bryant who are other stylistic fit DBs that make some sense to you to draft near their current composite value? (Think this would be the earliest they’d spend on CB, and I’d like to see Hooker & Diggs back at least 1 more year to let a young S get their feet underneath them completely)

5. Are we likely in wait and see in Indy for Emmanwori to cement he won’t fall to late 2nd (I’m guessing at worst he doesn’t run elite, but smashes the jumps/drills)? If he doesn’t, who are your safety targets aside from my non-Kyle Hamilton-build personal favorite Mkuba (early thoughts on either of these guys welcome, but know you’ll have full reports in the guide, I’m just bullish as hell on these 2 and the Titans getting ahead of a dire need at S)

6. a. Is there any semblance of a timeline when Landry or Radunz trades would be most likely to unfold and current chances either materializes? b. While I’m less keen on making these happen bc it would be folding too early in the hand for me, but same question regarding Sneed/Chido?

7. Outside of Vegas who would potentially trade any capital for Levis that would make it worth not at least having him as a backup/trade value if an injury were to put a team in a bind next year? (I know it’s a fool’s errand, but best guess at % chance he’s traded vs. on Titans roster in ‘25?)

Answer:

  1. I’m with you on Zabel moving inside. This is a really wild offensive line class. I know we’ve orbited all the way around from “Will Campbell tackle” to “Will Campbell guard,” and now people are circling back to “Will Campbell tackle” again. But, how a team views him really could be the key domino that sets this whole thing off. If he’s viewed as a tackle, he’ll go in the top 10, and so every tackle after him will probably get bumped up in the order. But, if he slides because teams think he’ll be a guard, then I’m going to open the door for the possibility of a Simmons/Conerly sliding to 35. Membou seems to be picking up steam, or else he’d absolutely be on my radar. Some might say it’s a reach for Anthony Belton, but he’d be on my radar there as well given that the Titans don’t have a third round pick. If those are the guys, I’m going Simmons/Conerly > Membou > Ersery > Cam Williams > Belton.
  2. Belton would be king in this scenario. That would also be a great spot for Charles Grant – the talent is there. You could just get him to camp and figure out if he can play right tackle or right guard. The last one I’d mention here is Miles Frazier out of LSU…a solid right guard prospect that would probably push to start right away and offers some sneaky versatility to kick outside to right tackle. He got some reps outside at the Senior Bowl.
  3. You’ve stumped me on this one, John! I haven’t caught up on the Shrine Bowl yet and haven’t started my tape study on Shamari Simmons. So, I’m afraid I can’t give you a legit answer.
  4. Bryant could still be there, but to your point, corners with press man skills are incredibly valuable in the NFL because so few guys are actually playing it in college right now. If you can prove you can do it, that’s a huge plus on your resumé. If he’s not there, man, I love Quincy Riley – he’s long, fluid, and savvy. I would be ecstatic if he ends up with the Titans. I haven’t dug into his tape, but I was also intrigued by Bilhal Kone at the Senior Bowl. Upton Stout is another guy who may be below the size threshold, but plays like a Dennard Wilson kind of defensive back.
  5. Three safeties have popped to me this cycle as I’ve watched them and thought, “THAT is a Dennard Wilson pick.” That’s Lathan Ransom, Dan Jackson, and Jonas Sanker. All tough guys in their own right. I’m only one game in on Emmanwori and Mukuba, so I’ll refrain from sweeping judgment right now…but I’ll just say I think I’m gonna like ’em both. The ball knowers who I respect in this circle are super high on Emmanwori – I can’t see him not being a first round pick at this point.
  6. Well, Radunz is set to be a free agent, so teams won’t have to trade for him. If Landry is going to get moved, I would imagine it’ll happen sooner into the process than later because this team will be doing everything they can to get draft picks to help them now. I will be surprised if he’s moved after the draft. I actually brought up Sneed’s name as a potential bargaining chip if the Titans really wanted to pursue Matthew Stafford – the Rams could use a corner, and the Titans had to play the bulk of 2024 without him, so they’re already used to the adjustment. It’s hard to imagine that Chido will have much trade value since he’s just coming off an injury, but hey – whatever you can get at this point. Flip this roster if that’s what it takes. I’m also of the opinion that corner could be a sneaky need for this team and they should be looking to get younger at the position anyway!
  7. I’m going with the Los Angeles Rams because I think he could potentially be apart of a package deal to acquire Stafford. I haven’t heard too many people mention this, but I think it’d be fun to see Levis in that Mike McDaniel offense…a lot of timing-based stuff for sure, but the thought of him heaving deep balls to Tyreek Hill seems fun. I certainly don’t think they’d be trading much for him, but given their quarterback injury woes, I’d see them as a potential suitor to trade minimal capital to get him in the building in the draft-and-develop role.

Keep the questions coming – catch y’all next week!

Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network, third on Football & Other F Words, co-host of The Hot Read Podcast, analyst for Stacking The Inbox, and a Dogs Playing Poker on velvet connoisseur. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD, #BeBetter, and ‘Minds right, asses tight.’ “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, the NFL Draft, Nashville, Yankee Candle, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley.

Elsewhere on the SoBros Network: Check out Stacking The Inbox for premium coverage of the Tennessee Titans and NFL Draft. Subscribe to Nashville Movie Dispatch for all of our movie content. We get weird on Phone It In, the history podcast that explores legendary tales, important historical figures, and events.

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