The Titans have picked cornerback Alterraun Verner with the 104th overall pick (4th round) of the NFL Draft.  He is a tad small at 5′9″, 181 pounds and he runs a 4.55 40.  So he doesn’t measure up to what most GMs look for in a corner until you start watching game film.  Verner plays faster than his timed speed as he returned 4 INTs for TDs in his college career.  He also throws his body around especially against the running game.  Verner played in 13 games (all starts) at UCLA last season in which he had 72 tackles, broke up 4 passes, he had 5 interceptions (158 return yards) and he recovered 1 fumble.  He played in 51 games (37 starts) in his four years at UCLA in which he had 279 tackles, he broke up 43 passes, he had 13 interceptions (357 return yards), he forced 3 fumbles and he recovered 2 fumbles.  I think this was a outstanding pick for the Titans as Verner will likely start helping the team right away in 2010.

The Titans have selected outside linebacker Rennie Curren with the 97th pick overall (3rd round) of the NFL Draft.  Curran is only 5′10″, 225 pounds but he’s strong for his size and he’s very fast (4.6 40).  Although Coach Fisher was talking about using him inside I don’t think that would be the right thing to do.  Curren needs space to make plays and that likely means his future in the NFL will be on the outside of the D.  Curren played in 13 games (12 starts) last season for Georgia and he finished up with 130 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, had 1/2 a sack and he broke up 3 passes.  In his three years at Georgia, Curren played in 37 games (30 starts) in which he made 298 tackles, had 24 tackles for a loss, 6.5 sacks and he broke up 4 passes.  Curren was another player who dropped a little in the draft below his projected value so the Titans get another solid player for the D.

The Titans have selected WR Damian Williams out of USC with the 77th overall pick (3rd round) of the NFL Draft.  Williams is a big guy at 6′1″, 195 pounds and he has long legs eating up a lot of real estate with every stride.  He is not a speed burner but he has great hands and a nice array of moves.  He doesn’t offer much effort in run blocking but that’s not a problem when Chris Johnson is the back with the ball in his hands.  Williams played in 12 games (11 starts) for USC last season in which he caught 70 passes for 1,010 yards (14.4 avg) with 6 TD grabs.  Williams played in 38 games (25 starts) in three years in college (1 with Arkansas) in which he caught 147 passes for 2,114 yards (14.4 avg) with 17 TD grabs.  Head Coach Jeff Fisher was certainly happy with this pick as he said he wouldn’t be surprised at all if Williams were the Titans’ #1 WR in 2010.  Williams also can return punts which adds to his overall value.  This was another good pick by the Titans.

The Titans had to be amazed that DE Derrick Morgan of Georgia Tech was waiting for them with the 16th pick of the first round of the NFL Draft.  Morgan played in 14 games (all starts) for Georgia Tech last season in which he made 55 tackles, had 18.5 tackles for a loss, he had 12.5 sacks, batted down 1 pass, he forced 2 fumbles and he recovered 2 fumbles.  Morgan is not just a pass rusher at 6′4″, 275 pounds as he is a every down end who can defend the running game well also.  He played in 39 games (27 starts) at G.T. in which he made 103 tackles, had 29.5 tackles for a loss, he had 19.5 sacks, batted down 5 passes, he forced 2 fumbles and he recovered 3 fumbles.  I bet Jeff Fisher did a backflip in the War Room when Morgan dropped to them at #16.

The Titans are looking forward to being able to fill a lot of holes in this weekend’s NFL Draft.  The Titans have 3 of the top 97 picks in this weekend’s NFL Draft and they have 9 picks overall.  I don’t see the Titans trading very much this weekend but they are talking to the Redskins about DT Albert Haynesworth.  The Titans should make that happen for a 3rd round pick or lower.  The main needs on the Titans coming into this weekend are DE, OLB, CB, QB, C and G.  With that in mind I feel that they will be targeting QB Jimmy Clausen, C Maurkice Pouncey, G Mike Iupati, CB Kyle Wilson and DE Jason Pierre-Paul.  Watching the sieve like play of the secondary last season I just have a hard time believing that the Titans won’t pick a corner in the first round.

PROJECTED FIRST ROUND PICK:  CB, Kyle Wilson, Boise State