Titans Still Paying Price for Embarrassing Draft Mistake

It's been five years since the Tennessee Titans selected one of the biggest NFL Draft busts in not just franchise history, but the league as a whole.

With the No. 29 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, the Titans selected Georgia offensive tackle Isaiah Wilson, who filled a massive need at the time in the trenches. However, COVID-19 affected Wilson's ability to see the field as he contracted the illness in training camp, but he also got in trouble with the team. Those circumstances limited him to just one game with the Titans.

After one season with the Titans, he was traded to the Miami Dolphins. That's why Bleacher Report writer Matt Holder listed Wilson as the Titans' biggest NFL Draft mistake of the last five years.

"Part of the reason the Titans are in the position they are right now is that the organization had some massive first-round whiffs from 2020 to 2022. Cornerback Caleb Farley (22nd in 2021) or wide receiver Treylon Burks (18th in 2022) could also be listed here," Holder wrote. 

"However, Wilson played in just one game for Tennessee before getting traded with a 2022 seventh-round pick to the Miami Dolphins for a 2021 seventh-round pick, only to get cut three days after getting acquired by the Dolphins. He’s one of the biggest busts in NFL history."

The Titans haven't drafted the best over the last five years, which is why they ended up with the No. 1 pick back in April's draft. However, they could have made some choices that would have led to them not being at the bottom of the barrel in the NFL.

Four picks after Wilson, the Cincinnati Bengals selected wide receiver Tee Higgins.

"Literally anyone else would have been a better selection for the Titans, but we’re maximizing the team’s potential in this exercise. Higgins has become an excellent wide receiver for the Bengals, logging at least 900 yards and six touchdowns in four out of five seasons," Holder wrote. 

"If the Titans had taken the Clemson product over Wilson, maybe they also would have avoided the Burks fiasco two years later. Granted, trading A.J. Brown was the biggest reason the club took the former Razorback."

The Titans have made many errors and blunders over the years, but not taking Higgins over Wilson may be the most criminal of all.