No team has been the subject of more pre-NFL Draft trade speculation than the Tennessee Titans. Two cornerstone offensive pieces — Ryan Tannehill and Derrick Henry — have been inspirations for countless Titans rumors.
And it makes sense. Both are getting older and in line to make a lot of money. And neither was paid that money by new general manager Ran Carthon, who went on the record about both during his pre-draft news conference Monday.
Tennessee Titans Rumors: Will Derrick Henry, Ryan Tannehill Be Dealt?
The Henry buzz got new life over the weekend when former NFL player/current co-host of American Ninja Warrior Akbar Gbajabiamila tweeted out the following:
BREAKING: Move out the way, Derrick Henry (@KingHenry_2) is headed to The @Eagles 🦅 pic.twitter.com/RQCfURvmn8
— Akbar Gbajabiamila (@Akbar_Gbaja) April 22, 2023
We’re not sure who Gbajabiamila’s source was for this scoop, but he or she was mistaken. That report was quickly shot down by Pro Football Talk, among others.
On Monday, Carthon revealed just how wrong it was.
He said the Titans have not received a single trade call about Henry from any other team. Fair to say, for a trade to happen, the parties involved usually need to have at least one conversation about it.
MORE: FREE NFL Mock Draft Simulator (With Trades)
Carthon then made a point about how much misformation there is about Henry circulating the NFL media ecosystem, saying:
“We also were apparently trading Jeffery Simmons at one point and during that entire period we were negotiating his deal.”
So unless something changes dramatically, expect Henry to be back in Nashville for the 2023 season — even with a $10.5 million base salary and a $16.4 million cap figure. The Titans would save just a third of that cap number by cutting him (although they would have additional savings in 2023 with a post-June 1 cut).
Carton’s comments reflect the reality about Henry, who’s in the final year of his current contract and probably his final year in Tennessee: He’s expensive, but he’s also not playing at a level where it’s worth torching $10.1 million in cap space to cut him.
Henry ranked second in the NFL with 1,538 rushing yards in 2022.
Ryan Tannehill Trade Update
So Henry will almost certainly be back in 2023.
Will Tannehill? Probably depends on what the coming days hold.
The Titans own the 11th overall pick and certainly should consider taking a quarterback if one they like is in their range. But unless they trade up to the top five, it probably means they’ll be choosing between the likes of Anthony Richardson and Hendon Hooker.
Perhaps those SEC QBs will one day be stars. But few expect them to be Week 1 starters for any team in 2023.
So even if they take one, Tannehill — who, like Henry, is in a contract year — needs to be on the team. Because the only other QB on Tennessee’s roster is Malik Willis.
Carthon seemed to acknowledge that reality Monday when he said the following:
“Ryan and I had a conversation back in February that was between Ryan and I and Ryan and our organization. Ryan knows where he stands with us, and that’s really all that matters to me.”
Tannehill, the soon-to-be 35-year-old, is scheduled to have the second-highest cap figure ($36.6 million) and base salary ($27 million) in 2023. The Titans can save about half that cap number by trading or cutting him.