Rookie Fernando Carmona is surging after a dominant debut, forcing a heated competition at right guard as he challenges veteran Cordell Volson for a spot in the lineup.
The Tennessee Titans did something out of the ordinary in their game against the San Francisco 49ers.
Instead of starting a proven veteran in Cordell Volson at right guard, they decided to trust rookie Fernando Carmona out of Arkansas instead.
Volson has played in 50 games with 48 starts during his time with the Cincinnati Bengals. Unfortunately, similar to Jaren Kanak and Jaylen Harrell, he sustained a season-ending injury in training camp last year, much as those two did for the Titans on Thursday.
While most rookies would've had some first-game jitters, Carmona looked nothing like that. He was very calm and stable. Robert Saleh noted how Carmona showed off his communication skills and ability to play to the end of the whistle.
As expected, Saleh was asked pretty quickly about Carmona at Saturday's press conference and how the competition at right guard was looking after the success he had in the first preseason game.
Volson and Jackson Slater are competing for the starting role as well, and Saleh assured the media that they are still very much a part of it. Slater was a late-round pick by the Titans in last year's draft out of Sacramento State.
"They're still part a part of the competition," Saleh said.
The head coach did share that Carmona is on the right track but still made sure to mention that it's a long way from being over. There are still two more preseason games for the Titans and plenty of practice sessions left in training camp.
"I'd say he has, but at the same time, it's nowhere near over," Saleh said. "Carmona's done a great job, like I said, with communicating, playing with great violence. Great strain. Is he still a rookie making rookie mistakes, rookie fundamentals? Sure. But at the same time, he's doing everything can to, like I said the last time we spoke, he's put his foot in the door and he's doing everything he can to throw a shoulder through it."
We still have a long way to go before training camp and the preseason come to an end, but the Titans' competition at right guard is heating up pretty early. After just one preseason game, the whole pecking order is starting to change.
Saleh said that Volson was a frontrunner for the right guard job and is now having to seriously compete with Carmona.
This could be a fun battle to watch down the stretch.
