NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Jackson Slater might be the best test case yet of the Titans’ draft-and-develop approach.
For Mike Borgonzi’s front office, the strategy isn’t really measured by the first overall pick. Cam Ward is expected to play right away. The real evaluation comes from players like Slater — Day Three picks who they hope develop into starters.
Guys like Femi Oladejo and Kevin Winston may be fairer gauges. And patience is required for them and All-Pro Chim Dike, Gunnar Helm and the rest of the 2025 draft class.
That’s Borgonzi’s first batch of drafted players.
Now they’ll be developed by a different coaching staff and plugged into a different system.
Failed drafts by his predecessors left Borgonzi and his staff with a roster so thin they had to spend aggressively in free agency -- a path that runs counter to their draft-and-develop philosophy. But when a team has so many empty slots on its depth chart, it’s got a volume issue that the draft can’t address.
