The Tennessee Titans enter the 2026 offseason in an interesting position after hiring Robert Saleh as Brian Callahan’s full-time replacement. Saleh enters his second head coaching opportunity with moderately high expectations and a plan to develop former No. 1 pick Cam Ward. The Titans have a lot to work with in the coming months, with robust draft capital and the most cap space in the league.
The Titans’ cap situation made their head coaching vacancy a desirable job opening, even with the team going just 19-49 in its last four seasons. After a quiet 2025 free agency period, Tennessee is expected to make a lot of noise in March.
While building around Ward is the team’s ultimate goal, Saleh brings a defensive mindset that the Titans have not had in years. Saleh filled out his staff by hiring former New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll as his offensive coordinator and bringing Gus Bradley with him from the San Francisco 49ers as his defensive coordinator.
The Titans do not need more cap space, but they do need to clean house. Before general manager Mike Borgonzi and Saleh can truly get to work, they need to give the head coach a clean slate and cleanse their roster of a few aging veterans.
Trade or release RB Tony Pollard
Steve Roberts-Imagn Images
Running backs have notoriously short life spans in the NFL, and Tony Pollard might already be on the downside. If the Titans are ever going to capitalize on his value, it has to be in the 2026 offseason, before Pollard enters his contract year.
Tennessee could release Pollard, which would save $7.2 million in cap space, per Over The Cap. None of the $6.74 million base salary he is owed is guaranteed.
But with Pollard coming off four consecutive 1,000-yard seasons, the Titans could still maximize his value in the trade market. If Borgonzi can find a running back-needy team willing to take on Pollard on an expiring contract in exchange for draft capital, that would be the team’s best-case scenario.
Pollard has been serviceable for the Titans, but at 28, his timeline does not align with Cam Ward’s. Tennessee has five picks between Round 2 and Round 5, which it could use to find the perfect complementary running back to Ward in Brian Daboll’s offense.
Trade WR Calvin Ridley
Denny Simmons / The Tennessean / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Coming off a 1,000-yard season in 2024, the Titans envisioned Calvin Ridley being the veteran No. 1 receiver Cam Ward needed in his rookie season. Ridley was anything but that, tallying just 303 scoreless receiving yards in seven games before suffering a season-ending broken leg.
The devastating injury put a bow on the worst year of Ridley’s career. Ridley has always been a boom-or-bust-type player, but he is clearly not part of the Titans’ future plans, despite his contract. The 31-year-old has no chemistry with Ward, which would only further strain his return to a new offense once his leg recovers.
While Tennessee could release Ridley outright, he is only halfway through the four-year, $94 million deal he signed in 2024. Only $50 million of that deal is guaranteed, but the Titans might find more value in trading the veteran receiver than cutting him in the offseason.
No team should view an aging Ridley as its leading receiver anymore, particularly coming off a detrimental injury. He is still a high-quality starter who would immediately boost nearly any contender’s receiving corps.
The Titans need to look to trade Ridley before the draft to free up the most cap space, but releasing him would also benefit their long-term plans.
Trade or release CB L’Jarius Sneed
Denny Simmons / The Tennessean
Like Calvin Ridley, the Titans gave L’Jarius Sneed a massive contract in the 2024 offseason, hoping he would change their entire defense. Two years into the deal, Tennessee can only be feeling buyer’s remorse, with Sneed only appearing in 12 of the team’s 34 games since putting pen to paper.
Sneed has not even come close to being the player the Titans paid for when he has been on the field. He has arguably been the team’s worst coverage cornerback, allowing 22 catches on 42 targets for 331 receiving yards and four touchdowns since 2024, according to Pro Football Focus.
With Sneed turning 29 in January, there is little hope the results will improve any time soon. He still has enough name value for Borgonzi to potentially take advantage of in the trade market. If not, the Titans have to seriously consider releasing Sneed in the 2026 offseason, which would save them up to $15.5 million in cap space with a post-June 1 designation, per Over The Cap.
The Titans’ defense needed Sneed two years ago, but they are in a different situation in 2026. Saleh has a different vision for the team, one that Sneed might not fit into at this point in his career.
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