Just one day after the two-time Pro Bowl safety was dealt to the Philadelphia Eagles, Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel expressed his sincere gratitude to Kevin Byard:
Vrabel acknowledged that the NFL is a business first, but he seemed to choke up when he talked about how tough it was to decide to transfer Byard after their five seasons together.
The Titans acquired safety Terrell Edmunds and picks in the fifth and sixth rounds of the 2024 NFL Draft in Monday’s trade with the Eagles.
Throughout his eight seasons with the Titans, Byard established himself as one of the league’s top defensive players. The fact that the franchise is willing to trade him for draft capital may be an indication that Tennessee is about to undergo a fire sale. With a record of 2-4 through Week 7, the Titans are now in last place in the AFC South.
As for Byard, he slots into an Eagles secondary that has been banged up this season. Safety Justin Evans has been on injured reserve all season, and safety Reed Blankenship missed time with a rib injury. Cornerback Bradley Roby is also dealing with a shoulder injury.
It’s difficult to do a better job upgrading the position than the Eagles did landing Byard. Regarded as one on the best safeties in football, Byard has 47 tackles and a fumble recovery through his six games this season.
It may be difficult to move on, but he now leaves a struggling franchise that may be on the verge of more changes and joins a first place Eagles team coming off of a Super Bowl appearance just last year.
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