Tennessee Titans practice notes, including Carnell Tate injury update

[ASFN Admin]

Tennessee Titans first-round pick Carnell Tate wasn't on the practice field for the team's OTA session on June 9 because of an undisclosed injury, a source told The Tennessean, but the expectation is he won't be out a long stretch, and there's no belief he'll have to miss mandatory minicamp next week starting on June 16.

Tate has been one of the brightest stars and the biggest talking point of Titans offseason activities since being drafted, emerging as quarterback Cam Ward's favorite target. He has caught three touchdown passes in the three OTA sessions open to the media, not to mention a viral one-handed catch. On June 8, before exiting in the middle of practice, Tate caught a 50-yard touchdown over the back of a defender.

On June 9, he briefly came out to the practice field and was walking fine with no visible limp or brace and didn't need any assistance moving around.

Without Tate on June 9, the Titans' offense was a little bit up-and-down again, but caught fire in a red zone period at the end of the day. Ward finished 12-for-22 with two touchdowns and an interception between a team period, a 7-on-7 period, two third-down periods and two red zone periods.

Both of his touchdowns came in the red zone session. One came on a well-lofted corner route to his old college teammate Xavier Restrepo, and the other was a deep fade to receiver Elic Ayomanor over the back of cornerback Keydrain Calligan.


The Ayomanor touchdown was a bit of an exorcism for Ward and Ayomanor against Calligan. Twice previously in the third-down session, Ward targeted Ayomanor manned up against Calligan, and both times Calligan was able to bat the ball away without ever turning his head, expertly reading Ayomanor's eyes and hand movements to predict when the ball would be coming his way in coverage.

On the third play, Ward got enough air under the throw and Ayomanor was patient enough to put his hands out at the last second, ending the final rep of practice with a win for the offense.

Quarterbacks Mitchell Trubisky and Will Levis had good days of their own, both finishing red zone drills in the end zone as well. Levis looked particularly in command after a shaky couple of practices, ending his day without any turnovers and a deep touchdown pass thrown roughly 50 yards in the air to receiver Chimere Dike in a 7-on-7 period.

Here are some other stray observations from Titans OTAs on June 9.

Tennessee Titans practice observations, June 9​

• Defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons was in attendance for practice but didn't participate, at least proving that he's in the building. OTA practices aren't mandatory, unlike next week's minicamp sessions. Simmons spent a good chunk of the third-down period chatting on the sideline with Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi.
• With so much focus on Tate, the Titans' other first-round pick doesn't get much discussion. But defensive end Keldric Faulk is also coming along nicely. He has gotten in the rhythm of coming out to practice early to get specialized pass rush technique work with assistant defensive line coach Tanzel Smart and he's showing off his strength in rush situations against offensive linemen, albeit without pads on. It'll be interesting to see where he factors into the rotation when players like Simmons, John Franklin-Myers, Jermaine Johnson II and Femi Oladejo start practicing regularly.
• Titans coach Robert Saleh's philosophy on defensive line play revolves around intensity in short bursts, and the good and the bad of that is already on display. Defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton's drills are brimming with energy, with sled drills looking more like basketball three-man weaves than conventional line work. The way Whitecotton simulates snap counts and prepares players for their get-off is particularly notable, with multiple drills organized to get players out of their stance as quickly as possible and from as many difference configurations as possible. But the practices have also been fairly short for the D-linemen. They get on the field last. They take a lot of breaks. It's all short-burst intensity, as preferred, rather than long-term endurance.
• Calligan wasn't the only defensive back to make plays. Micah Robinson, who Tate has victimized several times during camp, made the most of his nemesis' absence by intercepting Ward in the first team period. This was the second straight day Ward threw an interception; on June 8, he threw an interception into the hands of safety Kevin Winston Jr.

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: Carnell Tate injury update, and other Titans practice observations

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