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The Tennessee Titans upgraded their secondary this offseason, and now the unit is seen as one of the league's best.

Bleacher Report ranked the top 10 cornerback duos in the league, and while they came up short on the list, the Titans' pairing of L'Jarius Sneed and Roger McCreary ended up as honorable mentions.

"The Tennessee Titans acquired L'Jarius Sneed from the Kansas City Chiefs and signed him to a four-year, $76.4 million contract. He's coming off his best season, logging 14 pass breakups and two interceptions without giving up a touchdown," Bleacher Report writes. "Keep your eyes on third-year cornerback Roger McCreary, who has inside-outside versatility. He's a budding primary slot defender who didn't allow a touchdown in 2023."

Trading for Sneed was one of the biggest moves in the NFL offseason, but it may have been overshadowed by what the Titans did on the offensive side of the ball, signing Calvin Ridley and Tony Pollard.

The move should have a significant impact as the Titans look to compete against the top receivers in the AFC South. Sneed will also have a potential rising star in McCreary, who looks to build on his successful 2023 campaign.

If neither of those players gives up a touchdown again in 2024, the Titans may be on pace to return to the postseason.

Make sure you bookmark All Titans for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

JEREMY BRENER

This article first appeared on Tennessee Titans on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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Green Bay Packers: 2 Notable Former Wide Receivers Labeled as Surprise Cut Candidates
NFL

Green Bay Packers: 2 Notable Former Wide Receivers Labeled as Surprise Cut Candidates

As the Green Bay Packers deal with their own crowded wide receiver room, multiple former Packers pass-catchers are also embroiled in position battles across the league. Notably, two veterans that turned in many successful seasons in Green Bay now find themselves battling to make rosters and have been labeled as big names that could become surprise cuts when rosters are trimmed down. New York Jets May Soon Be Done With Former Green Bay Packers Receiver Allen Lazard Former Packers receiver Allen Lazard was always a favorite of Aaron Rodgers during their time together in Green Bay. When Rodgers left the franchise, Lazard ended up following the quarterback to the New York Jets. While the Rodgers era for Gang Green has gone up in flames, Lazard remains on the roster – for now. Lazard entered camp as the presumed second receiver behind Garrett Wilson, but so far, fellow veteran Josh Reynolds has seemingly beaten out Lazard for the second spot. A former Detroit Lion, Reynolds has reportedly been building a good rapport with new signal-caller Justin Fields, leaving Lazard potentially relegated to slot duties. Although the Jets have receiver depth problems, some experts don’t believe that Lazard will survive cuts. The Athletic’s Zack Rosenblatt has stated that he does not expect Lazard to be on the 53-man roster. Some names behind Lazard on the current depth chart include veteran Tyler Johnson and rookie Arian Smith, both of whom have had flashes of ability in camp so far. Several of the younger players also offer one thing that Lazard notably doesn’t – the ability to play on special teams. If Lazard is cut by the team, it would mean the team would have moved on from another former Packer after dumping both Rodgers and Davante Adams this summer. Can Former Green Bay Packers Receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling Stick in Seattle? Marquez Valdes-Scantling was a member of the Green Bay Packers from 2018 to 2021, playing out his rookie contract with the team while being a big part of the offense. He had over 2,000 receiving yards and 13 touchdowns for the green and gold before leaving for Kansas City in free agency. In 2025, Valdes-Scantling was with the New Orleans Saints until he signed a one-year deal with the Seattle Seahawks worth around $4 million. Despite the 29-year-old being a proven veteran and solid deep threat, Valdes-Scantling currently finds himself near the edge of the Seahawks roster. Rookie receiver Tory Horton has already surpassed Valdes-Scantling on the depth chart and has been the fourth receiver in the team’s first-team rotation so far. Valdes-Scantling has been relegated to the second unit in training camp practices as of early August. Respected NFL writer Brady Henderson has said that Valdes-Scantling has “barely made any” plays throughout camp so far, whereas Horton has continued to catch eyes and has been nicknamed “Jerry Rice Jr.” by teammate Tariq Woolen. Like Lazard, Valdes-Scantling does not offer much on special teams either, and although the Seahawks would love to have a deep threat to compliment Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Cooper Kupp, if Valdes-Scantling does not show up in camp, the team could move on from the former Green Bay Packer with little financial consequence.

Celtics' moves suggest new guard will be traded — eventually
NBA

Celtics' moves suggest new guard will be traded — eventually

The Boston Celtics got under the second luxury-tax apron by trading Georges Niang to the Utah Jazz Tuesday. The move also gives them a huge incentive to deal their most expensive new player. The Celtics have dramatically reduced their payroll in the wake of Jayson Tatum's Achilles injury. With their superstar unlikely to play in 2025-26, the Celtics traded away starters Jrue Holiday ($94.4M for three years, plus a $37.2M player option in 2027-28) and Kristaps Porzingis ($30.7M next season). They also let Luke Kornet ($2.8M) leave as a free agent, and Al Horford ($9.5M) is almost certainly gone as well. They received Georges Niang ($8.2M) in the Porzingis deal, but traded him Tuesday for undrafted R.J. Luis Jr., a rookie on a two-way deal. That effectively takes Niang's full salary of their books and gets them under the second luxury-tax apron, freeing them from the penalties and restrictions that go along with second-apron status. According to cap expert Yossi Gozlan, the Celtics have saved a whopping $286M in salary and taxes with their moves. Still, the team can reap a larger long-term reward by dropping below the luxury tax entirely, which requires reducing their payroll by just over $12M more. The Celtics don't seem inclined to trade Jaylen Brown, Derrick White or Payton Pritchard, wanting to keep some core members of their 2024 title team together for Tatum's return. Sam Hauser is on an affordable four-year, $45M deal, but losing his $10M salary wouldn't get them under the tax line. That's why Anfernee Simons, acquired in the Holiday trade, is likely not long for Boston. The 26-year-old guard makes $27.7M in the last year of his contract, making him the perfect trade piece to get Boston under the luxury tax. Not only would getting under the tax line free the Celtics of their tax obligations and save them as much as $40M, but it would make them eligible to share in the money from tax-paying teams. The Celtics would also be able to avoid the dreaded repeater tax penalties, which make every dollar over the luxury-tax number progressively more expensive every year a team stays over the tax line. This doesn't mean Simons is going to be traded this summer. Boston has until the Feb. 5 trade deadline to move Simons, since luxury tax is calculated on the team's total payroll the last day of the season. But given the massive savings they'd get back from losing Simons' salary, it seems inevitable. The Celtics have lost a lot of talent this summer, but they've saved a tremendous amount of money in the process. They might have to attach draft capital to get off Simons' deal, but if he plays well in Boston, he might even bring back something in a trade next season. Tatum's injury threw a huge wrench in the Celtics' plans. If they can use this season to get under the luxury tax, they'll have the flexibility to reload and contend again when their star is back in a year.

Fever Coach Stephanie White Assigns Blame After Loss to Sparks
WNBA

Fever Coach Stephanie White Assigns Blame After Loss to Sparks

The Indiana Fever came crashing back down to earth on Tuesday night following their disappointing 100-91 loss to the Los Angeles Sparks. The Fever had a lot of momentum entering this matchup, only to see their five-game winning streak come to an end against a Sparks team that they have failed to beat in three tries this season. Fever Coach Stephanie White Reacts to Loss Indiana head coach Stephanie White was not in a jovial mood during her postgame press conference. The veteran shot-caller was able to see some positives from the loss — including Kelsey Mitchell’s 34-point explosion on seven triples — but White just had to assign blame for the tough defeat. "I felt like we got good shots," White said. "Sometimes they don't fall. ... Oftentimes we can get people going in transition. We couldn't do it because we couldn't get stops. You can't get out on transition when you're consistently taking the ball in the net. "For us, we felt like we had enough, offensively. But we didn't get it done on the defensive end of the floor. ... We got to get better on the defensive end of the floor." Fever Had No Answer for Sparks The Sparks shot 56.1% collectively on Tuesday night, which explains why White just had to call out her team’s defensive shortcomings on the evening. Four L.A. starters scored at least 16 points, with Rickea Jackson (25 points, five rebounds) and Kelsey Plum (25 points on 7-of-11 shooting, 11 assists) leading the charge. Azura Stevens (19 points on 7-of-8 from the floor) and Dearica Hamby (16 points, seven rebounds) also chipped in. Apart from their problems on defense, Indiana’s bench also struggled badly in this one. The bench combined for just two points on 1-of-11 shooting, which is simply unacceptable, especially against a team like the Sparks, who have now won eight out of their last 10 games. Fever Remain Fifth in WNBA This loss saw Indiana fall to 17-13 on the season. They currently remain fifth in the league, and are now 1.5 games behind the Phoenix Mercury, who won on Tuesday, for the No. 4 spot in the WNBA. A top-four finish will secure home-court advantage for the Fever in the first round of the playoffs, and this is an attainable goal they will go and set out for. They will be back in action on Thursday in the fourth and final game of their current road trip. Indiana will battle the Mercury at PHX Arena on Tuesday in a matchup that will have postseason implications.

Fabrizio Romano drops evening bombshell that catches Liverpool in its radius
Soccer

Fabrizio Romano drops evening bombshell that catches Liverpool in its radius

Fabrizio Romano now reports that Manchester United are increasingly confident of completing a deal for Benjamin Sesko. The Red Devils officially threw their hat into the ring with a total package valued at €85m [£74m]. Newcastle’s competing bid (a second offer following a rejected first) is understood to comprise a fixed rate of at least €80m [£69.5m]. Manchester United confident they’ll beat Newcastle to Benjamin Sesko There’s potentially quite a bit riding on Newcastle’s transfer clash with United for Sesko’s signature. Those of a Liverpool persuasion will certainly be keeping a close eye on proceedings, given the surrounding context around Alexander Isak. Reports coming out of St James’ Park indicate that the Magpies will only consider selling the Swede if they manage to secure a replacement. Following Fabrizio Romano’s latest update on X (formerly Twitter), however, matters are about to become complicated. If a club is near openly briefing they’re confident of beating a Premier League rival to a deal, it probably doesn’t bode particularly well for Eddie Howe’s men. That said, this update isn’t conclusive until Romano throws out his trademark ‘Here We Go’.

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