When the Tennessee Titans declined to pick up the fifth-year option of their 2018 first-round pick, Rashaan Evans, the writing was on the wall that he wasn’t long for Nashville.
The decision came after two very different seasons for Evans. In 2019, he looked to be on the rise as one of the better young linebackers in the NFL. However, Evans was very disappointing in 2020 and took a step back.
In a make-or-break year in 2021, not only did Evans not perform, he was also surpassed on the depth chart, as both he and his former starting mate, Jayon Brown, lost their roles to David Long and Zach Cunningham.
Atlanta Falcons defensive coordinator Dean Pees, who oversaw Tennessee’s defense in 2019 when Evans was on the come up, was surprised the Titans allowed Evans to leave in free agency, but is glad they did.
“I don’t know why Tennessee let [Evans] go and quite frankly I don’t care, but I’m glad they did,” Pees said, via Maria Martin of 11AliveNews.
Some might take this as a shot at the Titans, but what did you expect Pees to say? That Evans was a first-round bust who didn’t deserve to remain in the two-tone blue?
Nevertheless, we would point Pees to the second and third paragraphs of this article for an explanation.
Pees saw a very different version of Evans in 2019 than the one we saw in the year after he “retired” from coaching. Perhaps a reunion with Pees is exactly what Evans needs to reignite his career.
Whatever the case may be, whether it’s because of his lackluster play and/or the Titans having better options, Tennessee was fully justified in not keeping Evans around for the long haul.
