During his pre-draft press conference on Monday, Tennessee Titans general manager Ran Carthon confirmed an offseason rumor surrounding his star safety, Kevin Byard.
While Carthon admitted that the team did indeed ask Byard to take a pay cut, the other part of the rumor that the veteran safety requested to be traded or released was not true, per ESPN’s Turron Davenport.
This is the second time Carthon has shot down the rumor that Byard asked to be moved, with him calling it “blatantly false” late last month.
Byard is set to account for a whopping $19.6 million cap hit in 2023, which is no doubt a tough number to absorb for the cash-strapped Titans who need every penny.
However, Byard is one of few Titans who should not be expected to take a pay cut, as he’s still playing at a high level.
Not to mention, that large cap hit is a result of multiple restructures over the years rather than the ballooning of the five-year, $70.5 million deal Byard signed in 2019.
#Titans GM Ran Carthon said they haven't received any calls about trading Derrick Henry. He also admitted they asked Kevin Byard to take a paycut but once again confirmed that Byard hasn't asked to be released or traded.
— TURRON DAVENPORT (@TDavenport_NFL) April 24, 2023
It remains to be seen where the two sides go from here, as Byard and the Titans were reportedly “at a crossroads” after the pay cut request.
Take this for what it’s worth, but Byard was not in attendance during the first week of the team’s offseason program. Granted, it’s voluntary and Byard isn’t required to be there, but he was in attendance on Day 1 in 2022.
