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          NFL Nation

          Re-signing pass-rusher Harold Landry keeps Tennessee Titans' strongest unit intact

          • Turron Davenport, ESPNMar 9, 2022, 01:20 PM
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              Turron Davenport covers the Tennessee Titans for ESPN. Turron is a former collegiate football player at Cheyney University and is a native of Philadelphia, and he has authored/co-authored four books. You can catch Turron on ESPN Radio on his show "Talking with TD" and you can follow him on Twitter: @TDavenport_NFL.
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          NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel said they have to be great around quarterback Ryan Tannehill. That doesn't necessarily only apply to Tennessee's offense.

          The Titans' latest move to sign Harold Landry III to a five-year, $87.5 million deal is an example of how they are putting their money where their mouth is, and the move will have more of an effect on opposing quarterbacks, which Vrabel puts a major emphasis on.

          Essentially, Tennessee took a major step in the right direction on Tuesday.

          Landry's new deal comes after he registered a team-high 12 sacks, a career-high 49 quarterback pressures, 22 quarterback hits and 21 quarterback hurries in 2021. He was named to his first Pro Bowl after starting all 17 games.

          Landry's 12 sacks, up from 5.5 from 2020, ranked 10th in the NFL and were the highest total by a Titans player since Jason Babin reached 12.5 in 2010. He joined Micah Parsons, Aaron Donald and Cameron Heyward as the only NFL players in 2021 to post at least 75 tackles and 10 sacks.

          Landry also was the first Titans player to reach double-digit sacks since Brian Orakpo posted 10.5 in 2015.

          The new deal makes Landry the highest-paid player along Tennessee's front four. The front four consists of Landry, Denico Autry, Jeffery Simmons and Bud Dupree, who has a husky deal of his own that is worth $82.5 million over five years. Autry joined the Titans via a three-year, $21.5 million deal before last season.

          Tennessee's pass rush finished with 19 sacks in 2020, one shy of tying the 1982 Atlanta Falcons and 1970 Miami Dolphins for the fewest sacks (18) in a season by a team that made the playoffs. The Titans' sack total jumped to 43, placing them eighth in the NFL. Tennessee's starting front registered 32.5 sacks alone.

          The quartet of pass-rushers collectively harassed quarterbacks every week, thanks to defensive coordinator Shane Bowen's willingness to dial-up stunts that allowed them to free up and go after the quarterback.

          "I think it's always critical to keep your best players together," Vrabel said of the front four at the combine. "They all have unique skill sets in where they're productive and where their production comes from. Our job is to recognize that and make sure that we put them in spots to produce and continue to work together."

          Perhaps the biggest measure of the impact the Titans' front four is capable of making is their performance against the Cincinnati Bengals in their 19-16 divisional playoff game loss in January.

          They sacked Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow nine times, tying a single-game postseason record set by the 1966 Buffalo Bills, 1984 San Francisco 49ers, 1986 Cleveland Browns and 1993 Kansas City Chiefs.

          All four players will be back in 2022, including Dupree, who will be further removed from the torn ACL he suffered in Week 11 of the 2020 season. The Titans have limited depth at outside linebacker with second-year player Rashad Weaver as their primary reserve, but he is returning from injury.

          Losing Landry would have forced the Titans to strongly consider selecting a pass-rusher with the 26th pick. Now, the Titans can shift their focus to a deep class of pass-rushers that will yield productive players outside of the first round.

          They've already done their due diligence on a couple of likely Day 2 draft prospects in USC's Drake Jackson or Ole Miss' Sam Williams. Tennessee had formal meetings with both of them at the combine.

          One thing the Titans will also have to keep in mind is the eventual contract that Simmons will command. Simmons blossomed into one of the most disruptive interior defensive linemen in his third season.

          The Titans will get a bargain in Simmons this season, since the fourth-year player is in the final year of the four-year, $12.7 million contract he signed in 2019. Tennessee is expected to pick up Simmons' fifth-year option, which is worth $10.7 million in 2023.

          Titans general manager Jon Robinson had some swings and misses throughout the years when it comes to taking a shot at impactful pass-rushers. Free agents Vic Beasley and Jadeveon Clowney come to mind, in addition to 2016 second-round pick Kevin Dodd.

          It's no wonder the Titans are investing resources to keep this group together now.