In today’s NFL, everything is the future. Even the present.
Tennessee Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi spoke in broad strokes about his draft philosophies at the team’s pre-draft press conference two days before the 2025 NFL Draft begins on April 24. Beyond declaring that there’s no use in any opponent calling to inquire about trading for the No. 1 pick because a decision has been made to pick a player, Borgonzi didn’t say much that points to what the Titans will do over the weekend.
But he did give a few hints as to what he’ll value when making his first set of picks as Titans GM.
“I think you’re trying to marry up the need with the value,” Borgonzi said. “You’re never trying to force a need in the draft. For us, we do have a lot of needs so I think it’s important for us to stay true to the board and really take the best available player at the pick.”
“Part of the draft process is projecting two or three years from now what they’re going to be,” Borgonzi added later. “We’re trying to take what’s this player going to look like in Year 2 or 3. That’s really where I think the good teams separate themselves. “
These are the things front office types say before just about every draft, and Borgonzi and president of football operations Chad Brinker admitted as much. But statements like this can shed light on the Titans’ thought process before a pivotal draft.
The Titans have needs just about everywhere on the field. Borgonzi said he didn’t want to get into what specifically he considers to be primary needs because he doesn’t want to give opposing teams too much info. Still, this idea of drafting with sights set on 2026 and 2027 represents a bit of a culture shift after two years of drafting and making free agent signings that were so focused on the present.
Borgonzi mostly deflected questions about the likelihood of trading back, or what it will take for the Titans to value a picking a player in the early second round over adding more picks later in the draft. When those decisions get made, it’ll be easier to parse the Titans’ draft strategy. But based on those two Borgonzi quotes above, it doesn’t seem like a major factor in those decisions will be pro-readiness. If a player can start in 2025 as a rookie, that’s great. If that players fills an existing need, even better. Neither of those factors are as important, per Borgonzi, as evaluating the overall potential of what a player can be when he’s fully formed.
The Titans own eight picks in the 2025 NFL Draft, including two apiece in the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds. Borgonzi and Brinker spoke earlier in the offseason about their preference being 10 picks per draft and a high percentage of those picks falling in the top 100, where the Titans only have two picks.
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at [email protected]. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans: Mike Borgonzi strategy for NFL draft
In today’s NFL, everything is the future. Even the present.
Tennessee Titans general manager Mike Borgonzi spoke in broad strokes about his draft philosophies at the team’s pre-draft press conference two days before the 2025 NFL Draft begins on April 24. Beyond declaring that there’s no use in any opponent calling to inquire about trading for the No. 1 pick because a decision has been made to pick a player, Borgonzi didn’t say much that points to what the Titans will do over the weekend.
But he did give a few hints as to what he’ll value when making his first set of picks as Titans GM.
“I think you’re trying to marry up the need with the value,” Borgonzi said. “You’re never trying to force a need in the draft. For us, we do have a lot of needs so I think it’s important for us to stay true to the board and really take the best available player at the pick.”
“Part of the draft process is projecting two or three years from now what they’re going to be,” Borgonzi added later. “We’re trying to take what’s this player going to look like in Year 2 or 3. That’s really where I think the good teams separate themselves. “
These are the things front office types say before just about every draft, and Borgonzi and president of football operations Chad Brinker admitted as much. But statements like this can shed light on the Titans’ thought process before a pivotal draft.
The Titans have needs just about everywhere on the field. Borgonzi said he didn’t want to get into what specifically he considers to be primary needs because he doesn’t want to give opposing teams too much info. Still, this idea of drafting with sights set on 2026 and 2027 represents a bit of a culture shift after two years of drafting and making free agent signings that were so focused on the present.
Borgonzi mostly deflected questions about the likelihood of trading back, or what it will take for the Titans to value a picking a player in the early second round over adding more picks later in the draft. When those decisions get made, it’ll be easier to parse the Titans’ draft strategy. But based on those two Borgonzi quotes above, it doesn’t seem like a major factor in those decisions will be pro-readiness. If a player can start in 2025 as a rookie, that’s great. If that players fills an existing need, even better. Neither of those factors are as important, per Borgonzi, as evaluating the overall potential of what a player can be when he’s fully formed.
The Titans own eight picks in the 2025 NFL Draft, including two apiece in the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds. Borgonzi and Brinker spoke earlier in the offseason about their preference being 10 picks per draft and a high percentage of those picks falling in the top 100, where the Titans only have two picks.
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at [email protected]. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans: Mike Borgonzi strategy for NFL draft
