Season in Review: T’Vondre Sweat

In a season full of disappointment for the Tennessee Titans, there was one player who consistently defied expectations and separated himself from the play around him. T'Vondre Sweat was one of the most successful defensive rookies in the NFL season, and will likely be earning votes for the award during the NFL Honors event in February.

His lone sack came in the Week 11 win against Houston, and he recorded 4 TFLs on the season, but the big-play stats don’t accurately illustrate how much of a force he was up front. Sweat’s 51 tackles demonstrate his “nose” for the football, especially considering he primarily lined up as a Nose Tackle.

I can recall on multiple occasions watching Sweat sprinting out to the boundary to force a ball-carrier out of bounds, which stand out in my mind because players his size simply don’t move like he does.

Where he really makes his name, though, is containing and brutalizing the interior. Sweat routinely devoured double teams like a McNug, preventing opposing quarterbacks from stepping up in the pocket or making a run for it up the gut.

And of course, there was the legendary fumble recovery that put his off-the-charts athleticism on display for the world to see, becoming the longest run of the Super Bowl era for a 340+ lb ball carrier.

Overall, a great season for Sweat, who disproved some doubters going into the draft and put some great tape on the field. Hopefully he will continue to show some growth as a big play threat in the coming seasons, but he is already one of the most valuable players on Tennessee’s roster.

Grade: A-

*Credit Mike Herndon (@MikeHerndonNFL) for the footage