Now that the Tennessee Titans have completed three weeks of training camp with one preseason game played, let's take another swing at projecting the 53-man roster.
Here's how we do things here. We divide the roster into five groups: The locks, the guys who ought to be feeling pretty good, the players on the right side of the bubble, the players on the wrong side of the bubble, and the players who've got a lot of work to do.
Unfortunately, for the first time all camp, we've had to take two names off the board entirely. Defensive end Jaylen Harrell and tight end Jaren Kanak have been ruled out for the season with injuries sustained in the win against the San Francisco 49ers on Aug. 13. They'll likely land on injured reserve, precluding them from this exercise.
We have, however, left cornerback Nazeeh Johnson on the board despite his PED suspension since it's still possible the Titans could carry him into the end of camp and find a way to stash him down roster.
Following practice on Aug. 15, here's our projection:
Tennessee Titans depth chart projection: Our latest intel for 53-man roster
The locks (38 players)
Cam Ward, Mitchell Trubisky, Tony Pollard, Tyjae Spears, Nick Singleton, Carnell Tate, Wan'Dale Robinson, Calvin Ridley, Elic Ayomanor, Chimere Dike, Gunnar Helm, Daniel Bellinger, Dan Moore Jr., Peter Skoronski, Austin Schlottmann, JC Latham, Pat Coogan, Fernando Carmona Jr., Jeffery Simmons, John Franklin-Myers, Jordan Elliott, Solomon Thomas, Jermaine Johnson II, Keldric Faulk, Jacob Martin, Femi Oladejo, Cody Barton, Cedric Gray, Anthony Hill Jr., Alontae Taylor, Cor'Dale Flott, Marcus Harris, Amani Hooker, Kevin Winston Jr., Tony Adams, Joey Slye, Tommy Townsend, Morgan Cox
Welcome back to the land of the locks, Joey Slye. A good week gets him back in good graces.
Guys who ought to be feeling good (8 players)
David Martin-Robinson, Austin Deculus, Jackson Slater, James Williams Sr., Malik Herring, Dorian Mausi, Joshua Williams, Micah Robinson
Kanak's injury raises David Martin-Robinson up a bit, as does Harrell's injury for Malik Herring. It'd be awfully surprising to see the Titans carry fewer than three tight ends and fewer than five edge defenders.
The right side of the bubble (7 players)
Kalel Mullings, Xavier Restrepo, Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson, Cordell Volson, Jackie Marshall, Mohamoud Diabate, Kendell Brooks
Cordell Volson slides after a rough week and a vote of confidence for Fernando Carmona Jr. taking the edge at right guard. But for now, the Titans carry 10 offensive linemen in the projected 53 with Volson staying above the cut line and Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson putting stress on Austin Deculus for the swing tackle job.
The wrong side of the bubble (12 players)
Will Levis, Michael Carter, Julius Chestnut, Bryce Oliver, K.J. Osborn, Kylen Granson,Timmy Horne, Jalyn Holmes,Earnest Brown IV, Truman Jones, Keydrain Calligan, Jerrick Reed II
It's starting to look more and more like the Titans are leaning toward being a two-quarterback team. Will Levis isn't doing all too much to prove they need to think otherwise. Don't ignore players like Truman Jones and Earnest Brown IV pushing for depth spots over the bubble line at defensive end too.
A lot of work to do (24 players)
Hendon Hooker, Mason Kinsey, Hank Beatty, Tyren Montgomery, Courtney Jackson, Lance McCutcheon, Joel Wilson, Andre James, Rasheed Miller, Drew Moss, Aamil Wagner, Garrett Dellinger, Zachary Thomas, Dominique Hampton, Sean Brown, Mani Powell, Mario Goodrich, Nazeeh Johnson, Jalen McMurray, Bishop Fitzgerald, Erick Hallett II, Derrick Canteen, Khalen Saunders, Laki Tasi
No knock on these players, but it's not exactly as if the bottom of the Titans' bench looked great in the preseason opener. No one's really banging the door down proving they deserve a roster spot at the moment.
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. 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: Projecting Tennessee Titans' 53-man roster 3.0: Does Will Levis make the team?