When football fans learned of Tuesday's trade between the Titans and Eagles -- a deal that sent enigmatic wideout Dorial Green-Beckham to Philly in exchange for reserve offensive lineman Dennis Kelly -- the first question from most was: "Who's Dennis Kelly?"
While Green-Beckham has been a frustrating player, he's also a freakishly gifted athlete who caused fantasy-heads to salivate before he spiraled down the Titans' depth chart.
Tiring of the DGB experiment, general manager Jon Robinson views Kelly as a better example of where the road-grading, run-heavy Titans plan to go this season.
"I just think based on his skill set, he's big, smart and tough and he's versatile," Robinson said, per the Tennessean. "He's played a lot of positions, so he'll be a nice added mix to that group for us. (The trade) was really just value-based. Dennis was a guy we thought could help our football team, would make us a more competitive position up there."
In one offseason, Robinson has effectively revamped Tennessee's roster to form a battering-ram offense that plans to unleash DeMarco Murray and Derrick Henry on smaller, quicker defensive fronts. Building up the O-line will always be a priority under this model and Kelly -- while not exactly Joe Thomas -- pleased coach Mike Mularkey with his game film.
"I felt good about him when we discussed making this (trade)," Mularkey said. "I watched tape of him. I felt good about watching him play, his style. I thought he would fit with what we do."
Said Mularkey: "He's played, started games, he was in the second series against Tampa and played a good portion of the first half. I liked what he did there. Again, he's very similar, in versatility (to injured Titans linemen Byron Bell and Josue Matias). (But) if somebody better comes across the waiver wire, we're going to go snag him if we can. We're going to try to improve this roster every day."
Make no mistake about it, Tuesday's trade says much more about Tennessee's lack of faith in Green-Beckham's NFL future. You don't ship away uber-talented physical specimens unless they're nearly impossible to develop. His on-field inconsistencies and inability to grasp the playbook were no secret. The Titans lost patience and were willing to listen when the receiver-desperate Eagles came calling.
The swap also serves as another reminder that Robinson, who cut his teeth under Bill Belichick in New England, will be an active wheeler-and-dealer and roster churner until the Titans mirror the team he envisions.
