Titans cut Shaun Phillips, put Brian Schwenke on IR
The Titans took a chance on an aging pass-rusher this offseason, hoping he'd provide the same boost he'd supplied in his first 10 NFL seasons.
It didn't happen. On Tuesday, the team released veteran linebacker Shaun Phillips. The Titans now plan to look at more youthful options at the position, including linebacker Dontay Moch, who was promoted from the practice squad to the 53-man roster.
On the same day, the shake-up on the offensive side of the ball came because of injury, and it hurt.
Brian Schwenke, the team's starting center, was placed on injured reserve because of a knee injury he suffered in Sunday's loss against the Eagles. Schwenke, who started all 11 games for the Titans this season, suffered a torn left MCL.
The Titans signed center/guard Eric Olsen to take Schwenke's place on the 53-man roster, although the Titans plan to start Chris Spencer in place of Schwenke. Olsen has played in 18 NFL games, including four starts, in five seasons with the Denver Broncos, New Orleans Saints and Pittsburgh Steelers.
For now, the Titans plan to give left tackle Taylor Lewan more time to recover, although his status for Sunday's game against the Texans doesn't look good after he suffered a severely sprained left ankle against the Eagles. Lewan was in a walking boot on Monday.
Byron Stingily is in line to replace Lewan, the team's first-round pick this year, in the starting lineup. Counting Schwenke, the Titans have put five starters on injured reserve this season.
Phillips, an 11-year veteran, wasn't a good fit in Tennessee after signing a two-year deal with the team. He received a $750,000 signing bonus with a base salary of $1.5 million (in 2014), but his release means he won't get the $2.55 million he was scheduled to make in 2015.
Phillips, 33, failed to make much of an impact in the first 11 games. He had just two sacks and 28 tackles with the Titans. He had 79.5 sacks in the previous 10 seasons, playing nine seasons with the Chargers and one with the Broncos.
Phillips had 10 sacks last year in Denver. He was named a Pro Bowler in 2010 with the Chargers, where he had at least seven sacks in seven of nine seasons with the team.
The Titans plan to look at some younger players at the position in the final five games.
Moch is one of the players who will be given more of an opportunity. Moch (6-foot-2, 257 pounds) was a third-round pick by the Bengals in the 2011 NFL Draft, and he spent one season (2011) on the Bengals' practice squad. He played in four games for the Cardinals in 2013 after being claimed on waivers from the Bengals. In his five NFL games, he tallied two tackles and one sack. He joined the Titans practice squad in September.
The team recently promoted linebacker Justin Staples, and he could get some work outside, while Quentin Groves also figures to get snaps at outside linebacker.
It's been a position with a lot of movement for the Titans, who traded outside linebacker Akeem Ayers to the Patriots earlier this month. The Titans also have linebacker Kamerion Wimbley, but he's dealing with a hamstring injury, which makes him questionable for Sunday's game. Derrick Morgan has been the team's most consistent outside linebacker this season with 3.5 sacks and a team-high 21 quarterback pressures.
The Titans have 31 sacks in 11 games with 15 players recording at least one sack. Defensive lineman Jurrell Casey leads the way with five.
Reach Jim Wyatt at 615-259-8015 and on Twitter @jwyattsports