Fantasy Football 2024 projections: Projecting the Titans offensive players from Will Levis to Calvin Ridley and more
SportsLine's Jacob Gibbs projects the Colts offense for 2024
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Before diving into Fantasy analysis for each team, I'll present a brief overview containing their offensive ranks in my baseline team projections as well as any notable coaching or offensive line changes.
Projected Offensive Plays – (31st)
Projected Passing TDs – 24.1 (21st)
Projected Rushing TDs – 16.4 (27th)
Notable coaching changes:
Holtz was the passing game coordinator for the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2023, so he worked with Calvin Ridley last season. Wilson spent 2023 with the Baltimore Ravens as defensive backs coach.
Callahan has served as Joe Burrow's offensive coordinator for each of the past four seasons. He also was part of Zac Taylor's inaugural season for a 2-14 Andy Dalton-led Cincinnati Bengals season before Burrow arrived.
That 2019 season provides us with some very valuable information -- even though it came in extreme circumstances with a team that only won two games -- it's our only look at a Callahan offense that wasn't catering to what Burrow wants. I dug into the micro-level trends, and a lot of the same tendencies from the Burrow era showed up. The Bengals operated out of the shotgun on over two-thirds of plays, whether the game was close or not. In neutral situations (score within six points), the 2019 Cincy team dropped back to pass 62.9% of the time. That would have ranked third behind only the Commanders and Chiefs in 2023. The 2019 Bengals also did not use much pre-snap motion. I had wondered if that was just a product of Burrow's preferences, but that's how the offense worked before Burrow got there. Of course, Callahan could adapt now that he's a head coach and has five more years of experience.
Everything from Callahan's tenure in Cincinnati suggests that the Titans will pass a ton in all situations and use a ton of three-receiver sets. I'd guess that Tennessee's pre-snap motion usage will rank below the league average, and we likely won't see nearly as much under center snaps or play action reps as Levis used as a rookie.
Levis ranked 18th among 33 qualified passers with a 100.8 passer rating on play action dropbacks, compared to 28th with a 77.6 rating without play action. He was also better on non-shotgun dropbacks. I'm not sure how well he'll adapt if Callahan installs a straight dropback playbook that operates out of the gun almost 80% of the time. At Kentucky, Levis was pronouncedly better when not using shotgun. He was also much better on play action dropbacks. On non-play action Kentucky dropbacks, Levis produced just a 24-17 touchdown-interception ratio.
Notable offensive line changes
Cushenberry presents an upgrade at the center spot, and he joins an offensive line that has two top-12 overall selections from the past two drafts on the left side. The right side of the line presents serious question marks, though. Dillon Radunz was a second-round selection by the Titans in 2021 who struggled to find the field in his first two seasons and spent time at every spot but center during the 2023 season. He locked down the right tackle spot from Week 12 on and was Tennessee's best PFF-graded pass blocker from that point on. Given his impressive work to close the season and the number of dropbacks that the Titans seem intent on calling in 2024, I'd expect Radunz's pass-blocking to earn him the starting tackle gig, leaving Daniel Brunskill or Saahdiq Charles to start at right guard. Brunskill is a former UDFA who made a career for himself as a competent pass blocker and passable run blocker, starting multiple seasons in San Francisco. Charles earned a PFF grade of 55.5 in 2023 and has topped out with just a 67.6 grade as his single-season high through four years as a pro.
Overall, this line should be much improved from the 2023 version. There are question marks, though. Latham did not start on the left side in college, so his transition to primary pass-protecting duties for Levis could make or break things for this offense. Tennessee's 2022 Round 1 investment, Peter Skoronski earned a PFF grade of just 61.6 as a rookie. The Titans will need much more from him in Year 2.
I think this line might be effective. The Titans emphasized pass blocking, which is much needed with Levis' propensity for holding the ball as long as possible. Tennessee replaced a run-blocking specialist at center with a pass-blocker. Latham was one of the nation's best pass-blocking tackles over his final two seasons at Alabama. Skoronski struggled in 2023 but was graded as the single-best pass blocker in the nation during his final season at Northwestern.
Which Titans players will be worth targeting and avoiding in 2024 Fantasy drafts? ... Join SportsLine right now to see Jacob Gibbs' Do Not Draft list, all from one of the nation's most-accurate rankers!
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