Things Get Interesting at a Couple Key Positions

The Titans' final week of the preseason included New England's decision to cancel joint workouts between the teams prior to their game on Aug. 25, the news that cornerback Caleb Farley's father was killed in an explosion that destroyed Farley's North Carolina home, and the news that former Tennessee wide receiver decided to end his NFL career at 28 years old and with one year remaining on his contract with the New York Jets. ... Davis was not as good a player as the Titans hoped when they selected him fifth overall in the 2017 draft, but he played one of the best games of his career against them in 2021, his first season with New York. ... The battle between young kickers Caleb Shudak and Trey Wolff ended when both were released and veteran Michael Badgely was signed. Badgley had a brief and disastrous stint with Tennessee early in 2021, and coach Mike Vrabel made it clear that Badgley might not last long this time either. ... A minor injury kept rookie quarterback Will Levis out of the preseason game at Minnesota. That allowed Malik Willis to play the whole contest and potentially stake his claim as Ryan Tannehill's backup. The Titans won that game, but Willis did not necessarily help his cause. ... Speaking of the backup quarterback battle, the San Francisco 49ers' decision to make Trey Lance, the No. 3 overall pick in 2021, their No. 3 (at best) opens the door for some interesting possibilities for the Titans, whose general manager (Ran Carthon) was in San Francisco when Lance was drafted. ... Kyle Philips became the second Titans wide receiver in as many weeks to sustain a knee injury. His issue followed the one for Treylon Burks. Each is expected to miss a matter of weeks and uncertainty about their availability for the start of the regular season will make final roster decisions much more difficult.