Should Titans consider trading Rashaan Evans before 2021 season?

After the Tennessee Titans declined his fifth-year option earlier this offseason, linebacker Rashaan Evans’ future in Nashville is murky at best.

The move to not pick up the option on Evans’ rookie contract didn’t come as a surprise, as the former first-round pick struggled mightily and led the team in penalties in 2020 after a strong sophomore campaign in 2019.

But to be fair to Evans, Tennessee’s entire defense took a step back last season after the unit performed as one of the worst in the NFL.

Making things worse for Evans’ future prospects with the Titans is the fact that they appear to have two options to eventually replace him, whether sooner or later.

Tennessee’s 2019 sixth-round pick, David Long, has shown plenty of flashes of being a starting-caliber linebacker, and the team also drafted Monty Rice out of Georgia with one of their third-round picks in this year’s draft.

With the writing on the wall that this might be his last season with the Titans, Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon believes it would be a wise idea for Tennessee to consider trading Evans before the start of the 2021 season.

The Tennessee Titans didn’t pick up Evans’ fifth-year option for 2022, which means the 2018 first-round pick is slated to hit free agency next offseason. He’s started all 32 games the last two seasons but has failed to stand out on a consistent basis and now the Titans have added third-round rookie Monty Rice to the fray at that position. 

If they figure he’s gone next year anyway, and if Rice and/or third-year linebacker David Long can prove they belong, the Titans would be smart to float potential Evans trades out to the rest of the league. 

If we look back at general manager Jon Robinson’s history of first-round picks, an argument can be made both for and against keeping Evans, no matter how shaky his future with the team is.

Guys like wide receiver Corey Davis and right tackle Jack Conklin both had their fifth-year options declined but went on to have great seasons before ultimately leaving in free agency the following year.

So, on one hand the Titans could get Evans’ best year yet, which would be a huge help to their rebuilt defense, but on the other hand it makes sense to try and get something for a player who is unlikely to return after 2021.

Talk about a double-edged sword.

According to Over the Cap, if the Titans were to trade Evans it would lead to them saving $2 million against the cap. That isn’t a big number, but with the Titans not having a lot of funds to spare and potentially interested in making more moves before the start of the season or compiling some extra cap space for in-season moves, it would be useful.

If the Titans do trade Evans, we would imagine it would come closer to the  start of the season, and certainly not before training camp. Taking a wait-and-see approach makes sense for multiple reasons.

Doing so will allow the team to see what it has in Rice in training camp, and they’ll be able to get a good look at Long and Evans side-by-side to better determine if the former is ready to take on a bigger role next to Jayon Brown.

Also, the list of suitors for Evans could expand if a team suffers a serious injury at the position in training camp or during the preseason, which could lead to Robinson getting max value for the Alabama product.

If the Titans feel Long is ready to step into a starting role and that Rice is a capable backup option, trading Evans should absolutely be on the table.