A closer look at the Tennessee Titans backfield

From the moment Mike Vrabel was hired to be the head coach of the Tennessee Titans before the 2018 season, you knew you were going to get two things: a physical defense, and a heavy dose of running back Derrick Henry each week. After six years of that, it’s a new day in Nashville. Vrabel was fired after posting a 13-21 record over the last two seasons, and Henry signed with the Baltimore Ravens.

Vrabel’s replacement is Brian Callahan, who was hired after serving as offensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals for the last five seasons. In Cincinnati, he oversaw a pass-first offense led by young superstar quarterback Joe Burrow and the receiving tandem of Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins. While the Titans have upgraded their own receivers room, which now includes DeAndre Hopkins, Calvin Ridley, and Tyler Boyd, a familiar face from Cincy, the jury is still out on QB Will Levis.

As such, the ground game should be important for the 2024 Titans. With Henry gone, Tennessee gave former Dallas Cowboys RB Tony Pollard a three-year, $21.75 million deal to join promising youngster Tyjae Spears atop the depth chart. Let’s look at what we can expect from them this year.

Tony Pollard

Pollard saw a steady ascension with the Cowboys while operating alongside Ezekiel Elliott, highlighted by his work in 2022: 1,007 yards rushing, 371 yards receiving, 12 TDs, and 5.9 yards per touch. While he suffered a broken leg during their playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers, Dallas had seen enough to allow Elliott to depart and elevate Pollard into the lead role. The results were underwhelming. Despite setting career highs in carries (252) and receptions (55), Pollard gained 62 fewer yards and scored half as many touchdowns, while his yards per touch fell to 4.3.

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Given his struggles in a primary role, don’t expect Tennessee to view Pollard as a bell cow. What made Pollard so electric during his first four seasons with Dallas was the ability to sprinkle him in while Elliott handled a lot of the interior and short-yardage work. In 2021-22, he averaged just over a dozen touches per game. He might check in closer to that figure rather than the 18 he logged in 2023.

Tyjae Spears

When the Titans drafted Spears in the third round last year, draft analysts likened him to Pollard and saw his backfield pairing with Henry as a possible variant of what we’d seen in Dallas. Now, the two of them will share the position together.

As a rookie, Spears provided a spark to an often-stagnant offense that lacked big-play ability. While the final numbers aren’t great — 100-453-2 as a runner, 52-385-1 as a receiver — he at least brought an element of danger. He also grew as a pass catcher once the team made the switch to Levis, being targeted 30 times over the final six weeks. Last season, the Tulane product averaged a shade under nine touches per game. Expect that number to tick upwards in Year 2.

In terms of skill set, Spears checks a lot of the same boxes as Pollard. At just 23, however, he’s four years younger and has less mileage on the odometer. That said, Spears previously tore both anterior cruciate ligaments, has thinning cartilage in one knee, and suffers from an arthritic condition, all while missing an ACL entirely, per media reports.

Fantasy football outlook

Everything that has come from the Titans suggests they view the tandem of Pollard and Spears as interchangeable parts. It makes sense. They are cut from the same cloth and can contribute both as runners and receivers out of the backfield. New offensive coordinator Nick Holz even classified them as “1a/1b” in comments following Pollard’s signing — that was informative, especially when you consider Holz came from the Jacksonville Jaguars, which were one of the few teams to have a true featured back this past season.

When gauging value, Pollard feels like he has a higher floor but a lower ceiling. He has the experience edge, and he has pelts on the wall, being just one year removed from that 1,378-yard, 12-TD effort. Spears, meanwhile, has more upside. His youth and explosiveness give him more home-run ability than the veteran, albeit at a higher risk given his minimal track record. Both backs check in right around the top-30 ADP area, which is midrange or low-end RB3 territory. If you’re looking for reliability, go with Pollard. If you’re seeking upside, target Spears. Handcuffing the duo is unlikely based on how closely they tend to get selected.