Former GM reveals ‘dark-horse’ pick for Titans in Round 1
There are a few different directions the Tennessee Titans could go with the No. 7 overall pick in next week’s draft.
The team has been linked to Notre Dame offensive tackle Joe Alt in most mock drafts, while others believe Tennessee could trade back, acquire more picks and still land a pretty good offensive tackle like Penn State’s Olu Fashanu, Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga, Alabama’s JC Latham or Georgia’s Amarius Mims.
However, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Mark Dominik believes there’s a player the Titans could value above any offensive tackle or wide receiver.
For what it’s worth, Bowers named the Titans as a team he’d want to get drafted by.
Although the Titans had high expectations for 2022 fourth-round pick Chigoziem Okonkwo, the tight end failed to live up to them last season. Sure, he finished as the team’s second-leading receiver, but he also averaged fewer than 10 yards per reception and scored just one touchdown.
Bowers’ big-play potential — he led the NCAA in receiving yards by a tight end in 2022, per Pro Football Focus, and ranked third in the country in yards (664) by a TE in 2023 — could be an instant upgrade over what Okonkwo offers right now.
“I think that’s a piece that (the Titans) need badly,” Dominik added. “…I think he is going to go easily in the top 10 in my opinion.”
The Titans have emphasized upgrading the talent around second-year quarterback Will Levis this offseason. They signed Lloyd Cushenberry, the top center on the free-agent market, and guard Saahdiq Charles plus added 1,000-yard rusher Tony Pollard and 1,000-yard receiver Calvin Ridley.
Adding Bowers, who’s considered one of the top tight end prospects of all time, to the mix would give Levis two stud receivers on the outside plus a star-in-the-making at tight end.
Bowers had 50 or more receptions, 700 or more yards and six or more touchdowns in each of his three seasons with the Bulldogs, and he averaged 14.6 yards per reception and nine yards after the catch per reception with a drop rate of just 5%, per PFF.
The 21-year-old became the first two-time John Mackey Award winner and finished his college career with the most receptions (175), receiving yards (2,538) and touchdowns catches (26) by a TE in SEC history.
