Report: Tennesse Titans favorites to land A.J. Bouye, Dont’a Hightower
By John Buhler
Expected to be big spenders in free agency, the Tennessee Titans are reportedly the favorites to land cornerback A.J. Bouye and linebacker Dont’a Hightower.
The Tennessee Titans have a respectable football team already, but are poised to be big spenders in NFL free agency. With roughly $65,523,638 worth of cap space for general manager Jon Robison to use, the Titans are going after some big fish out on the market.
According to NFL insider Benjamin Allbright, the “Titans consider themselves front runners for [A.J.] Bouye and [Dont’a] Hightower.” Signing just one of those marquee free agents would be massive for the Titans this offseason. What could happen if they land both?
Bouye had a breakout 2016 season with the division rival Houston Texans. One could easily argue that Houston had the best defense in football last season with Bouye as its best player in the secondary. For the amount of money he’ll command, it seems that Bouye has played his last snap in Houston.
Hightower was a hero for the New England Patriots in Super Bowl LI. His strip sack of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan shifted all the momentum in New England’s favor to pull off the stunning come from behind victory. However, New England hates to overpay for players. That would certainly be the case for what Hightower will garner on the open market.
Adding Bouye at cornerback would make Tennessee better out on the perimeter while simultaneously weakening a bitter division rival in Houston. Landing Hightower would provide stability in the middle of the Titans defense. Making New England worse only helps the Titans in their presumptive playoff push in 2017.
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With a handful of great draft picks as well, including the No. 5 overall pick from the Los Angeles Rams, the Titans might be the front-runners to win the entire 2017 NFL offseason, not just the Bouye and Hightower sweepstakes.