The Tennessee Titans have decided to cut Chidobe Awuzie lose after signing the veteran cornerback to a lucrative three-year contract last spring, when he figured to be a major part of the team’s plans.
Tennessee holds the No. 1 overall pick in the April draft and has a new general manager in Mike Borgonzi, who was working with the Kansas City Chiefs when Awuzie signed his ill-fated contract with the Titans.
Awuzie was guaranteed $23 million in the deal that could have netted him up to $36 million as the Titans spent big in 2024 trying to plug major holes, especially in their secondary.
According to Spotrac.com, Awuzie got $19 million at signing. His release avoids the $3.98 million guaranteed on the fifth day of the new league year, which is Sunday.
The 29-year-old Awuzie spent three seasons in Cincinnati before moving to Tennessee to play for former Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan in his first season as Titans coach.
Awuzie started only seven of his eight games in his eighth NFL season with his third team
He didn’t help much.
Awuzie started only seven of his eight games in his eighth NFL season with his third team. He finished with one interception, four passes defended, a forced fumble and 26 tackles. He was put on injured reserve September 27 and missed nine games before returning.
New general manager Mike Borgonzi and the Titans also released veteran linebacker Harold Landry III on March 7 as a salary cap move. The Titans’ longest-tenured player with one Pro Bowl had been due to count $24.1 million against the cap.
Landry then signed with New England, rejoining coach Mike Vrabel.
The Titans took a step toward fixing the interior of their defensive front by signing linebacker Cody Barton to a three-year contract amid a flurry of deals on Thursday.
The Titans traded linebacker Kenneth Murray to Dallas for a sixth-round pick despite him starting 14 games with 95 tackles and a career-high 3 1/2 sacks. Barton now gets to work behind Pro Bowl defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons, T’Vondre Sweat and also Dre’Mont Jones, who is newly signed to a one-year deal.
Tennessee started free agency by bolstering a struggling offensive line, agreeing with left tackle Dan Moore on a four-year contract and adding right guard Kevin Zeitler on a one-year deal. JC Latham, who started all 17 games at left tackle after being drafted No. 7 overall, is expected to move to the right side.
The Titans gave up 52 sacks, more than all but four other teams in 2024. They also added offensive lineman Blake Hance for much-needed depth.
They also changed punters, bringing in 17-year veteran and four-time Pro Bowler Johnny Hekker for Ryan Stonehouse, a former undrafted free agent who turned in the top two single-season gross punting averages in NFL history. Stonehouse also was first with a 52.2-yard average between 2022-24.
Tennessee Titans fans react during a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on December 8
The Titans announced Friday they agreed to a contract with 32-year-old journeyman quarterback Brandon Allen, who spent last season backing up Brock Purdy in San Francisco. The quarterback, a sixth-round pick in 2016 out of Arkansas, has played for Denver, Cincinnati and the 49ers. Terms were not announced.
Allen has started 10 of his 18 career games, throwing for 1,810 yards with 11 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He has a passer rating of 76.2.
The Titans met with two of the draft’s top quarterback prospects in Cam Ward of Miami and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders before the new league year and free agency opened Wednesday.
Allen joins Will Levis, the 33rd pick overall in 2023, in Tennessee’s quarterback room. Levis began the 2024 season as the starter only to be benched for Mason Rudolph. But Rudolph just went back to Pittsburgh as a free agent after one season in Tennessee.
The Titans also announced that they had re-signed center Corey Levin. A sixth-round pick out of Chattanooga in 2017, Levin has started five of 71 games played for Tennessee over five seasons.
