The Tennessee Titans have made some significant changes to both sides of the ball during this offseason, looking to improve under the leadership of new head coach Robert Saleh. Defensively, they loaded up in all three levels, and should have a much-improved unit headed into 2026.
Gilberto Manzano of Sports Illustrated broke down each team’s triplets- a pass rusher, an inside linebacker, and one defensive back to form each team’s defensive trio, and here is what he came up with for the Titans.
No. 24. Tennessee TitansTriplets: Jeffery Simmons, Cody Barton, Alontae Taylor
Simmons finally got help in Tennessee after the team hired defensive mastermind Robert Saleh and added defensive linemen John Franklin-Myers, Jermaine Johnson II and rookie Keldric Faulk.
With that many pass rushers, Simmons could deliver one of his best seasons in Year 8 of his decorated career. The Titans also added talent to the secondary, with the signing of Taylor, the versatile cornerback from New Orleans. Saleh has the players to quickly turn this defense into a top-12 unit.
While Simmons and Alontae Taylor were logical selections, the linebacker choice in the article is debatable at best. With the interchangeable pieces in the linebacker corps, it is somewhat of a surprise that Manzano chose Barton over Cedric Gray for the inside linebacker role in his triplets. Gray completely outperformed Barton in 2025 and will likely have an even bigger role in 2026.
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As presented in the article, this ranking seems somewhat commonplace this offseason. By all accounts, it appears that analysts are waiting until the new-look Titans take to the field before making any changes to their opinions.
This article originally appeared on Titans Wire: Tennessee Titans: How do defensive triplets compare to rest of NFL?
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