Outside linebacker Harold Landry is arguably the most important pending free agent the Tennessee Titans have to make a decision on this offseason.
Landry is coming off a career year with 12 sacks, and he played a vital role in Tennessee’s defensive revival during the 2021 campaign.
After clearing some cap space, the Titans could choose to sign Landry to a long-term deal, something the Boston College product would certainly be open to after making it clear he wants to return to Nashville.
Tennessee also has the option of slapping the franchise tag on Landry, in which case they could either lock him in for one more year to prove last season wasn’t a fluke, or to buy more time to get a long-term deal done.
One way or the other, we expect Landry to be back in 2022, but the same can’t be said for Pro Football Focus’ Arjun Menon, who has the outside linebacker flying the coop for the Atlanta Falcons in free agency.
“In this scenario, Landry reunites with his former defensive coordinator Dean Pees in Atlanta and replaces Dante Fowler Jr.
“Landry, by stats alone, had himself quite a year — 68 pressures, 12 sacks and 13 QB hits. It is still important to note that 42 of Landry’s pressures were of the cleanup or unblocked variety. Thus, his value may not be as high as the statistics say it should be.
“On the flip side, Landry is an ascending player who is only 25 years old. With that age and production, he’ll have plenty of suitors in free agency. He’s also very durable, playing over 1,000 regular season and postseason snaps in three consecutive years.”
Menon projects that Landry will receive a four-year, $60 million contract ($15 million annually) from the Falcons, which is below the estimated market value projected by Spotrac of $17.1 million annually.
If Landry would accept such a deal from the Titans and they don’t re-sign him, it would be a massive failure. We ultimately believe Landry will command more than Menon’s projection, though.
While Menon has Landry leaving, he believes center Ben Jones will stay with a three-year deal worth $20 million.
“Jones has been a very reliable starting center over the past three years. In fact, he’s finished the season ranked fifth in WAR in each of those seasons as well. That kind of consistency is tough to let walk into free agency, so I think the Titans bring Jones back.”
Of all their free agents, Landry and Jones are the ones Tennessee must bring back, otherwise there will be massive holes to fill at center and/or outside linebacker.
