{"id":267254,"date":"2026-02-27T14:57:38","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T19:57:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=267254"},"modified":"2026-02-27T14:57:38","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T19:57:38","slug":"tennessee-titans-boost-pass-rush-by-trading-for-pro-bowl-edge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/02\/27\/tennessee-titans-boost-pass-rush-by-trading-for-pro-bowl-edge\/","title":{"rendered":"Tennessee Titans Boost Pass Rush By Trading For Pro Bowl EDGE"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>News broke on Thursday morning that the Tennessee Titans exchanged young defensive linemen who fit <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Connor_J_Hughes\/status\/2027055531966218712?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">each team better<\/a> than their current situations. The Titans reunited an old defensive pupil with their <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/01\/20\/report-tennessee-titans-make-decision-on-new-head-coach\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">new head coach<\/a> by trading away a defensive lineman who didn&#8217;t fit their <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/JustinM_NFL\/status\/2027045170655486237?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">long-term plans<\/a>. Did the Titans help their flagging pass rush with this trade? Does this trade take them out of the running for the premier EDGE prospects at the top of the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/category\/nfl-draft\/\" target=\"_self\">draft<\/a>?<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">The <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Jets?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#Jets<\/a> have finalized a trade sending DE Jermaine Johnson to the <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/Titans?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#Titans<\/a> for DT T\u2019Vondre Sweat, sources confirm.<\/p>\n<p>Johnson was a vital player for Robert Saleh in New York and is now back with him in Tennessee. <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/hzekY8xxWn\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/hzekY8xxWn<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Schultz_Report\/status\/2027035343887712383?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">February 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h2>Tennessee Titans Boost Pass Rush By Trading For Pro Bowl EDGE<\/h2>\n<p>Per Jordan Schultz and other outlets, the Titans traded nose tackle T&#8217;Vondre Sweat for Saleh acolyte and former Pro Bowler Jermaine Johnson II. How did each team fare in the uncommon player-for-player only swap? Did the Titans hoodwink the eternally rebuilding Jets?<\/p>\n<h4>Who is Jermaine Johnson II?<\/h4>\n<p>Johnson signed with <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/category\/sec\/georgia-bulldogs\/\" target=\"_self\">Georgia<\/a> from the junior college ranks before the 2019 season and played in Athens for two middling seasons. He then transferred to <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/category\/acc\/florida-state-seminoles\/\" target=\"_self\">Florida State<\/a> in 2021, where he truly got on the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2022\/04\/03\/2022-nfl-draft-jermaine-johnson-scouting-report\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">draft radar<\/a>, posting 70 tackles, 18 TFLs, and 12 sacks. The former Seminoles star pass rusher earned a first-round selection during the 2022 draft. Johnson didn&#8217;t truly get going until his second season, receiving a Pro Bowl nod after producing 55 tackles, 11 TFLs, and 7.5 sacks. However, the fast start was torn usunder by an unfortunate <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2024\/09\/16\/star-linebacker-jermaine-johnson-injury\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Achilles tear<\/a> against his new team in 2024. Johnson played through 14 games with 13 starts, logging three sacks along with 43 tackles in a recovery season. The player displayed his eagerness to join Tennessee on social media.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">TENNESSEE LETS \ud83e\udd2c WORK!!!! <a  href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/BzoedDu7Xd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/BzoedDu7Xd<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Jermaine Johnson II (@ii_jermaine) <a  href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ii_jermaine\/status\/2027059562004484460?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">February 26, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h4>Why did the Titans make the trade?<\/h4>\n<p>Tennessee desperately needed reinforcements from its EDGE group, as Arden Key did not deliver on expectations and is a free agent. He&#8217;s not expected back in Nashville due to his poor tenure. Johnson himself was a <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/10\/23\/top-4-jermaine-johnson-trade-destinations-ranked\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">trade candidate<\/a> last season because the Jets were the Jets. T&#8217;Vondre Sweat did not fit Coach Saleh&#8217;s system as currently constituted, so both parties made a challenge trade. Saleh was on record at the Combine, stating that it would be a <a href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/articles\/titans-robert-saleh-talks-tvondre-213638746.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">difficult transition<\/a> for Sweat while praising him. The now-former Titans nose tackle goes to a team that values <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/terrymc13\/status\/2027037122583036295?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">his skill set<\/a> more than Tennessee&#8217;s new attacking defense. Coach Saleh&#8217;s defense needs more pass rushers in four-man fronts, and Johnson would provide competitive depth. Schultz indicated that Johnson was a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Schultz_Report\/status\/2027044378225602867?s=20\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Saleh target<\/a> last season, but the Jets didn&#8217;t budge on the asking price.<\/p>\n<h4>How does he fit Robert Saleh&#8217;s system?<\/h4>\n<p>The newest Titans pass rusher had his best season in his young career under Saleh while Saleh was with the Jets. Saleh would know Johnson&#8217;s skills and intangibles well due to their past and will put him in the best position to succeed. Although the price seemed heavy, as he&#8217;s on his fifth-year option, it doesn&#8217;t hurt the Titans&#8217; cap space all that much, given they started with close to $100 million in cap room. As <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/01\/26\/aaron-rodgers-a-season-in-review\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Aaron Rodgers<\/a> recently proved, the second year away from an Achilles injury is more beneficial. Johnson was poised to be the second banana behind standout <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2025\/11\/10\/will-mcdonald-is-now-a-focal-point-in-the-new-jets-defense\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">Will McDonald IV<\/a> with the Jets. Now he has a chance to become the headliner in the EDGE group before free agency and the draft.<\/p>\n<h4>What&#8217;s next for Tennessee?<\/h4>\n<p>Tennessee still has oodles of cap space, even after making the trade, with over $97 million in cap space, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/overthecap.com\/salary-cap-space\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">OverTheCap<\/a>. While Johnson is a nice piece in the EDGE room, there&#8217;s still work to do there for Mike Borgonzi and company. Free agents like John Franklin-Myers, Odafe Oweh, Dante Fowler, Jr, and K&#8217;Lavon Chaisson dot the landscape. Depending on free agency, the Titans could elect to double down on the EDGE group and select a pass rush superstar like <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/02\/26\/david-bailey-2026-nfl-draft-profile\/\" target=\"_self\">David Bailey<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?s=Rueben+Bain+Jr\" target=\"_self\">Rueben Bain Jr.<\/a> at fourth overall. There are multiple ways to solve their quandary, and they have the assets to do it with.<\/p>\n<p>Main Photo: [Vincent Carchietta] &#8211; Imagn Images<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tennessee desperately needed help its pass rush depth. Did they do so with this trade for an old friend of the new coach?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4788,"featured_media":267427,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[33533,9180,3191,32355],"class_list":["post-267254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-titans","tag-2026-nfl-draft","tag-jermaine-johnson-ii","tag-robert-saleh","tag-tvondre-sweat"],"modified_by":"Michael Zimmelman","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/267254","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4788"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=267254"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/267254\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":267430,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/267254\/revisions\/267430"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/267427"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=267254"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=267254"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=267254"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}