NASHVILLE — The Tennessee Titans made some major changes at linebacker this offseason. They held over some young pieces, but swapped out a number of veterans. One of the veterans they brought in was former-49er Azeez Al-Shaair and it looks like it may have been an excellent addition.
Al-Shaair is getting rave reviews from those observing his play in training camp. Whether it be media, his fellow players or his coaches. Al-Shaair was brought in after spending four years in San Francisco, alternating between a starter and a backup, but is expected to be the Titans' top player at the position.
Al-Shaair was in the middle of all the action on Tuesday. He had an interception on the day according to ESPN's Turron Davenport and almost had a second on a quick throw to Kyle Philips. Al-Shaair has played with aggression and tenacity, fitting perfectly in the heart of the defense.
His teammates seem to be impressed. This was Titans' corner Kristian Fulton's answer when asked about who has stood out to him on defense.
"I'd definitely say Azeez," Fulton said. "He's definitely made some plays. I'm excited to see him go. Really the whole front seven, they've been going crazy this whole camp and I'm excited to see them go come the season cause that's only going to help us out on the backend."
Al-Shaair's new head coach and former NFL linebacker Mike Vrabel has also taken notice of his play. Vrabel talked about what has stood out to him.
"Just his intensity, his leadership," Vrabel explained. "He's been really good. Again, I've always enjoyed the conversations with him off the field. Sitting down and having lunch, having breakfast, getting to know him personally. I've enjoyed coaching him and again, he's playing with some speed out there. Not that it's perfect every snap, but I think he's understanding what we're trying to get done and I like the communication that he's playing with."
It is doubtful that we see the team's top linebacker in Saturday's opening preseason game against the Chicago Bears, but it looks like Al-Shaair has a great chance of showing up a lot in the regular season.
Titans Training Camp Stories
- Titans Stadium Video: The Tennessee Titans will be getting a new stadium in the coming years and the team just released an exciting video with new views and renderings of what the project should look like when complete. CLICK HERE
- Titans' D Dominates: The Tennessee Titans' defense continues to dominate training camp and on Tuesday they were able to get two interceptions off of starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill. CLICK HERE
- Fulton Finds Consistency: The Tennessee Titans corner back is looking to develop more on-field consistency by making some changes to his off-field habits. CLICK HERE
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