The Tennessee Titans suffered several injuries to their wide receiver core in Sunday’s Week 11 loss to the Houston Texans. No. 1 wideout Calvin Ridley went down with a season-ending fibula injury. Chimere Dike, though initially cleared concussion protocol after fumbling (and recovering) a punt return, was ruled out with a chest contusion.
Titans drop hint that Xavier Restrepo could make Week 12 debut
Could Xavier Restrepo finally make his debut in Week 12?
That left Cam Ward with a trio of Mason Kinsey, Van Jefferson, and Elic Ayomanor at receiver. Ayomanor was in/out of the game with recurring soreness. Kinsey was at least partially to blame for two missed opportunities as he misplayed explosive passing attempts from Ward.
Interim head coach Mike McCoy provided updates during Monday’s presser with the media. Ridley will go on season-ending IR. Both Dike and Ayomanor will be monitored throughout practice this week. The Titans would be very fortunate if both were healthy enough to play versus the Seattle Seahawks in Week 12.
All the injuries and uncertainty at wide receiver could lead to the Titans promoting one or two receivers from the practice squad. The options are James Proche II and Xavier Restrepo. Titans fans have literally been begging for Restrepo to receive an opportunity with Ward all season long. McCoy dropped a hint that it could finally arrive.
“We’ll look at where the roster is,” McCoy said about injuries at wide receiver. “He’s [Xavier Restrepo] done a great job of starting to work more in the kicking game,” McCoy specifically said about Restrepo. “That was something he wasn’t doing as much of early on. He understands the importance of that. We’ll see what happens throughout the week and what are options are.”
A lack of special teams versatility is seemingly why Restrepo didn’t receive an opportunity earlier. The merit of that decision is debatable. Now that Restrepo has familiarized himself with more special teams duties, paired with multiple injuries at receiver, could lead to a Week 12 debut for Ward’s favorite college target.
The Titans have already maxed out Proche’s three gameday elevations allowance. That means once Ridley is placed on IR, Proche is probably likely to take his 53-man roster spot. That doesn’t necessarily mean Restrepo won’t debut on Sunday. Restrepo should replace Kinsey in the Titans’ receiving lineup.
