Tennessee Titans receivers drop diva stereotype and instead focus on offensive turnaround

They're wide receivers. They're prima donna's, right? Divas. All they want is the ball. Run the offense through them and they're happy. Look any other direction and it's time to brace yourself for a tantrum.

It's the stereotype the Tennessee Titans signed up for. But, if one offseason practice is any indication, it doesn't seem to be the stereotype the Titans are getting.

The massively improved receiver room built around Calvin Ridley, DeAndre Hopkins and Tyler Boyd took the field for the first time as a unit Tuesday. Naturally, the veteran trio looked good running in helmets and shorts, an environment tailor-made for receivers to flourish. But the little moments in between routes stood out more. Like Ridley pulling Treylon Burks and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine aside after drills to debrief about releases and footwork. Or when every receiver on roster hooted at quarterback Malik Willis mid-rep to heave a 7-on-7 pass deep down the sideline to an undrafted receiver against single coverage.

"I watched Calvin and I watched Tyler today even, just their natural inclination is to go up and talk about something," coach Brian Callahan said. "Go talk about a route, go talk about an adjustment/ ... Sharing perspective, sharing a thought process on any number of things that involves the pass pattern, the route technique. Those guys have great feel and understand football as good as anybody."

This, at its core, is the Titans' path to success in 2024. Will Levis has the talent to emerge as the Titans' quarterback of the future. Now he has help. Ridley, Hopkins and Boyd have combined for 21 career seasons with at least 600 receiving yards. At this time in 2023, Titans' pass catchers accounted for a whopping zero such seasons. Comparing the Hopkins-led 2023 unit to this year's group is a little like comparing the backfields built around Antonio Andrews, David Cobb and Bishop Sankey to the ones built around Derrick Henry.

Making the trio

Boyd knows a thing or two about playing in a dominant receiver trio. He played the third-fiddle role alongside Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins in Cincinnati the past three years, with Callahan coordinating the offense. And he knows why a three-headed attack works.

"We all can play. It’s just how do we complement each other," said Boyd. "How can we do things off each other? How can I drag a nickel down and free him up to get open? At that point it’s just a lot of complementary football. Those guys are heckuva talents. Myself as well. We’ve just got to do a good job of locking into the scheme of the offense and being detailed."

On the surface, Hopkins said this is one of the best receiver groups he's played with in his 12-year career. He's admired Callahan's system from afar, volunteering Higgins as one of his favorite receivers to watch. He says it's obvious Callahan knows how to get the best out of his receivers and feels he, Ridley and Boyd can "definitely replicate" some of the magic Chase, Higgins and Boyd captured.

He also feels a different imperative attached to the passing game. He said the Callahan system is the first one he's ever played in that started installing routes with double moves on the first day of practice.

More than role players

So what roles will these receivers play? Running back Tony Pollard says he foresees Ridley thriving as a route technician, Hopkins winning his one-on-one battles as a possession receiver and Boyd setting the table with his knowledge of mismatches and savvy exploiting coverages. And Hopkins isn't shy about believing Burks has a role to play in this group; he calls Burks one of the most athletic receivers he's ever played with and dismissed the idea that Burks is being "slept on" because he doesn't think anyone in the Titans' locker room feels that way.

Which brings everything back to the stereotype. Receivers like when the ball goes their way.

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If the Titans' roster construction strategy works to its intended effect, Callahan believes it shouldn't be a problem for anyone.

"It should afford a lot of opportunities," said Callahan. "A lot less double coverage, a lot less cloud because you have to cover all the guys in the offense, and that's the idea in a good offense that you stress a defense is where do they deploy their resources. How do they stop whatever player they think is going to be most productive?... I think we have enough guys to put a lot of stress on a defense. When guys are patient, the ball comes to them."

Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Titans receivers drop diva stereotype, focus on offensive turnaround