Free agency has come and gone, the draft is complete, and rosters across the league have largely taken shape heading into training camp.
Having already covered the rest of the AFC, it's time to wrap up the conference with a look at the AFC South and hand out final offseason grades for each team.
Houston Texans
Key Additions:
T: Braden Smith (Free Agency)
G/C: Keylan Rutledge (Round 1)
G: Wyatt Teller (Free Agency)
RB: David Montgomery (Trade)
IDL: Kayden McDonald (Round 2)
S: Reed Blankenship (Free Agency)
Key Departures:
T: Tytus Howard (Trade)
WR: Christian Kirk (49ers)
IDL: Tim Settle (Commanders)
Up first are the Houston Texans, who devoted much of their offseason to rebuilding the offensive line, a sensible approach given how poorly that unit performed last season.
In free agency, Houston brought in Braden Smith from division rival Indianapolis and Wyatt Teller from Cleveland. Both players can help, though each comes with concerns regarding either health, recent performance, or both. The Texans then used their first-round pick on Georgia Tech guard Keyland Rutledge. While many viewed this as a reach, Houston did not have a ton of glaring needs, making a swing on a high-upside lineman understandable.
Another notable move was the trade for David Montgomery, which I thought was an excellent decision. Houston's rushing attack never found much consistency with Joe Mixon, and Montgomery should provide a nice boost in that area.
Overall, I thought Houston had a respectable offseason. The core of the roster was already in place, leaving fewer opportunities to make splashy additions. Instead, the Texans focused on addressing one of their biggest weaknesses and reinforcing a team that should once again be in the playoff mix.
Grade: C+
Indianapolis Colts
Key Additions:
WR: Nick Westbrook-Ihkine (Free Agency)
G: Jalen Farmer (Round 4)
EDGE: Arden Key (Free Agency)
IDL: Colby Wooden (Trade)
LB: Akeem Davis-Gaither (Free Agency)
LB: C.J. Allen (Round 2)
S: A.J. Haulcy (Round 3)
CB: Cam Taylor-Britt (Free Agency)
Key Departures:
WR: Michael Pittman Jr. (Trade)
T: Braden Smith (Texans)
EDGE: Kwity Paye (Raiders)
LB: Zaire Franklin (Trade)
S: Nick Cross (Commanders)
CB: Kenny Moore (Free Agent)
Indy had a fairly uneventful spring. Most of the Colts' work focused on filling out the roster rather than making transformative upgrades.
The free-agent additions were largely modest. Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Cam Taylor-Britt, and Akeem Davis-Gaither are all capable players, but I'm skeptical that they fully offset the departures of Michael Pittman Jr., Kwity Paye, and Kenny Moore. Maybe the Colts prove otherwise, but I was not completely sold on their approach.
Without a first-round pick following the Sauce Gardner trade, Indianapolis did not enter the draft until Day 2. Their first selection was Georgia linebacker C.J. Allen, one of the more highly regarded players at his position in this class. Given the earlier departure of Zaire Franklin, the fit was easy to understand.
The Colts followed that up by taking safety A.J. Haulcy, a rangy defensive back who should have a chance to help quickly. Beyond Allen and Haulcy, however, there may not be many immediate contributors from this class. That said, Deion Burks and Bryce Boettcher have enough talent to outperform if opportunities come their way.
I did not walk away from Indianapolis feeling much differently than I did a few months ago. The Colts did not dramatically improve, but they also did not take a major step backward. For now, they feel largely unchanged.
Grade: C
Jacksonville Jaguars
Key Additions:
G: Emmanuel Pregnon (Round 3)
TE: Nate Boerkircher (Round 2)
RB: Chris Rodriguez (Free Agency)
IDL: Ruke Orhorhoro (Trade)
IDL: Albert Regis (Round 3)
S: Jalen Huskey (Round 3)
Key Departures:
RB: Travis Etienne (Saints)
LB: Devin Lloyd (Panthers)
CB: Greg Newsome (Giants)
S: Andrew Wingard (Cardinals)
Jacksonville probably had my least favorite offseason in the entire AFC. Looking at the Jaguars' transaction log as a whole, there is very little that stands out as particularly inspiring, and that is before factoring in what the organization lost over the past few months.
A lot of Jacksonville's incoming talent arrived through the draft, though several of those decisions left me scratching my head. The Jaguars opened by selecting Nate Boerkircher, a move that was widely criticized as a significant reach. Personally, I am not very high on Boerkircher and believe there were several players still on the board who would have helped this roster more.
The Jaguars then used a pair of third-round picks on defensive tackle Albert Regis and guard Emmanuel Pregnon. Regis was another questionable choice in my eyes. He is an undersized defensive tackle whose value comes primarily as a run defender, and his lack of size creates legitimate questions about how his game will translate to the NFL.
Pregnon, on the other hand, was an outstanding pick and arguably the best move Jacksonville made all spring. He is a high-floor prospect who improves their depth and has a realistic path toward becoming a starter in the near future.
Outside of Pregnon, there simply is not much that excites me about Jacksonville's direction.
Grade: D
Tennessee Titans
Key Additions:
HC: Robert Saleh
WR: Carnell Tate (Round 1)
WR: Wan’Dale Robinson (Free Agency)
G: Cordell Volson (Free Agency)
RB: Nicholas Singleton (Round 5)
IDL: John Franklin-Myers (Free Agency)
IDL: Jordan Elliott (Free Agency)
EDGE: Jermaine Johnson (Trade)
EDGE: Keldric Faulk (Round 1)
LB: Anthony Hill (Round 2)
CB: Alontae Taylor (Free Agency)
CB: Cordale Flott (Free Agency)
Key Departures:
G: Kevin Zeitler (Free Agent)
C: Lloyd Cushenberry (Bills)
TE: Chig Okonkwo (Commanders)
EDGE: Arden Key (Colts)
IDL: T’Vondre Sweat (Trade)
IDL: Sebastian Joseph-Day (Steelers)
CB: L’Jarius Sneed (Free Agent)
S: Xavier Woods (Free Agent)
On the opposite end of the spectrum from Jacksonville, Tennessee had my favorite offseason in the AFC South.
For me, it starts with Carnell Tate, whom the Titans grabbed with the fourth pick in April. While Tate may not be the type of receiver typically associated with a top-five selection, he is still an excellent player, and Tennessee's top priority should be surrounding Cam Ward with as much firepower as possible. The Titans reinforced that approach by signing Wan'Dale Robinson in free agency. Coming off a career year in New York, Robinson should provide an upgrade in the slot.
Most of the other noteworthy moves came on the defensive side of the ball, where Tennessee invested heavily in John Franklin-Myers, Cordale Flott, and Alontae Taylor. The Titans may have paid a premium for some of those additions, but they had plenty of cap space available and desperately needed more skill across the roster. Given those circumstances, I understand the thinking.
The draft also brought further defensive reinforcements. Tennessee swiped Keldric Faulk in the first round and Anthony Hill in the second. Faulk is more of a traits-based project with considerable upside, while Hill looks ready to contribute immediately at linebacker. I liked both picks, and they suggest the organization has a great deal of confidence in Robert Saleh's ability to develop defensive talent.
My biggest criticism is the lack of investment along the interior offensive line, especially after the departures of Lloyd Cushenberry and Kevin Zeitler. Even with that concern, Tennessee should be noticeably better next season, and the work done over the past few months is a major reason why.
Grade: A-
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