With free agency rapidly approaching, the Tennessee Titans have locked up one of their own, as the team announced Friday it has agreed to terms with defensive end Ropati Pitoitua to a three-year contract. Jim Wyatt of the Tennessean first reported the news.
The contract is worth a total of $9.6 million, with a 2014 base salary of $975,000 and a $2.175 million signing bonus, Wyatt reported.
The good news didn't stop there for Pitoitua, as his son, Ryder Ropati Pitoitua, was born within an hour of the deal being signed.
Pitoitua, 28, is solid against the run and will give new Titans defensive coordinator Ray Horton some flexibility as the team transitions to a new defense in 2014. Look for Pitoitua to thrive as a rotation-type defensive lineman.
Undrafted out of Washington State in 2008, Pitoitua started in 13 games for Tennessee during the 2013 season, registering 44 tackles with four sacks and four passes defensed.