Tennessee Titans go offense in Todd McShay's new mock draft
ESPN NFL Draft analyst Todd McShay released his latest 2023 mock draft on Wednesday, and he had the Tennessee Titans going offense.
McShay slotted Ohio State offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr. for the Titans at No. 11 overall in his post-Super Bowl mock.
Johnson, listed at 6-foot-6 and 310 pounds in college last year, started 13 games at right guard in 2021 then flipped to left tackle last season, where he earned Consensus All-America honors. Johnson could play at either left or right tackle in the NFL, though a potential fit with the Titans would be down to whether or not the team retains Taylor Lewan.
His 2022 film shows an athletic mover at tackle who could still add strength but projects as a natural pass-blocking tackle in the pros.
"Johnson would help keep Ryan Tannehill - or whoever ends up being the quarterback over the next few seasons - upright while also opening up lanes for Derrick Henry and the run game," McShay said in his analysis of the pick on ESPN.com. "And Johnson could perhaps eventually line up opposite Nicholas Petit-Frere, his former teammate at Ohio State whom he replaced at left tackle this past season."
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Three players have consistently stood out among recent mock drafts at offensive tackle — Johnson, Northwestern's Peter Skoronski and Georgia's Broderick Jones. Skoronski was the first offensive tackle picked in McShay's mock, at No. 8 overall to Atlanta.
McShay had the Colts moving up from No. 4 to No. 1 to select Alabama QB Bryce Young and had the Texans selecting Ohio State QB C.J. Stroud at No. 2 overall. That would leave the Titans as the only AFC South team to not pick a QB in the first round over the last three seasons.
The NFL Draft begins on April 27 in Kansas City.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans go offense in Todd McShay's new mock draft
