Joey Slye and Johnny Hekker remain free agents, leaving the Tennessee Titans with an underrated special teams need still to address this offseason.
It was an incredibly active first day of NFL free agency for GM Mike Borgonzi and the Tennessee Titans.
As the legal tampering window opened on Monday, the Titans agreed to terms on 10 free agent contracts by the time things settled down for the night. That included nine deals with players from outside the organization and an agreement to bring back long snapper Morgan Cox, who has been with the Titans since 2021.
Was I a fan of every move the Titans made? No, of course not. But it’s hard to be overly critical of a team that just went 6–28 over the last two seasons making a serious effort to fix its roster. The Titans entered the offseason with multiple glaring needs, and on Monday they made a clear financial commitment to addressing many of them.
Before free agency opened, I highlighted areas like backup quarterback, cornerback, and wide receiver as positions that needed to be addressed through veteran additions, and the Titans managed to check off each of those boxes.
But of course, there are still some needs that remain.
Most Titans fans are waiting for the team to bring in an impact edge rusher or an athletic linebacker to anchor Robert Saleh’s defense. Others are still hoping for a more meaningful addition along the interior of the offensive line.
However, there’s another need that isn’t being talked about nearly enough.
The Titans still need to lock in their specialists for the 2026 season.
The team has its long snapper secured, but Tennessee still needs both a punter and a kicker.
Titans Still Have Decisions to Make at Kicker and Punter
Special teams coordinator Bones Fassel was retained by Tennessee and remains on staff under Robert Saleh, but his entire group of specialists entered free agency this offseason.
Cox, as mentioned earlier, is already back in Tennessee on a one-year deal. Kicker Joey Slye and punter Johnny Hekker, however, are both unrestricted free agents.
Slye went 28-for-35 on field goals in his first season with the Titans, including 19-for-21 from inside 50 yards. His longest kick of the year came from 58 yards.
Slye possesses a powerful leg, and his percentage took a bit of a hit due to a few extremely long attempts from 62 yards and beyond that realistically shouldn’t be held against him.
Overall, he was serviceable.
And when compared to the other kickers available on the free agent market — Daniel Carlson, Jason Sanders, Matt Prater, and Riley Patterson — Slye arguably offers the best combination of range and reliability.
Patterson, for example, went 27-for-30 on field goals in 2025 with the Miami Dolphins, but he’s just 7-for-13 in his career from beyond 50 yards.
For that reason, a one-year reunion with Slye would make plenty of sense.
Hekker’s situation may be a bit different.
The veteran punter is now 36 years old, and while his ball placement and experience still hold value, he doesn’t quite have the same leg strength he once did.
The Titans finished 24th in the NFL in net punting average. They can, and need to, do better than that moving forward.
Free agents like Tommy Townsend and Braden Mann are both younger options who could potentially provide an upgrade.
At the same time, there’s also a reasonable argument for bringing back the entire unit simply for the sake of continuity in the kicking operation.
Regardless of which direction the Titans ultimately choose, this is a roster need that shouldn’t be overlooked when discussing the moves Tennessee still needs to make in free agency.
If you neglect special teams in the spring, you usually pay the price in the fall.
And while it may not dominate headlines or top fans’ wish lists, the Titans still need to figure out their kicking and punting situation sooner rather than later.