Ever since he was hired back in March, Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson has been dropping the mic with electrifying quote after electrifying quote.
When he took to the podium on Wednesday, Wilson once again stoked excitement within the Titans fanbase.
The Houston Texans have been the talk of the town in the AFC South this offseason, and for good reason. The Texans have made a handful of splashes in free agency, which include luring former Titans Azeez Al-Shaiir and Denico Autry over to the dark side.
However Houston has made plenty of headlines lately after acquiring superstar wide receiver Stefon Diggs in a trade with the Buffalo Bills. Pairing Diggs with 2023 AFC Offensive Rookie of the Year QB C.J. Stroud is enough to frighten any opposing secondary in the NFL, especially with Nico Collins and Tank Dell alongside.
With that being said, Wilson doesn't seem too worried about the high-flying Texans passing game.
"I don't focus on what other teams have," said Wilson. "To me, they're nameless faces. It's 11 versus 11. And in terms of the defense, it's 11 against one, it's 11 versus the ball. So, you can get a whole lotta receivers, a whole lotta weapons, but there's only one ball. It's our job to surround the football and take it away."
Now if Wilson was working with the Titans secondary of 2023 this quote might come off as a bit out of touch. But the Titans spent the free agency period signing game-changers on defense such as the new cornerback tandem featuring L'Jarius Sneed and Chidobe Awuzie.
Sneed has had success shadowing Diggs in his career. The two have played five games against one another with Sneed holding the new Texans wideout to just three catches on 10 targets.
"It's a passing game, but it's all about matchups," Wilson continued. "With offensive coordinators, when they put together a scheme, the first thing is, 'Where's the matchup? Who can I exploit?' We have the guys. We have the talent."
Wilson has to feel good about how his secondary matches up with not only the Texans, but any opposing passing attack in the NFL.
There is still work left to be done on the defensive side of the football, and those holes will be patched up as the offseason continues. But there isn't a trio that exists in the league that should overwhelm the Titans top three cornerbacks in Sneed, Awuzie, and Roger McCreary.
If the Titans defense embodies Wilson's confidence, his unit has the potential to finish in the top third of the NFL in all major categories in 2024.
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