Titans’ Robert Saleh gets real about Alontae Taylor position change ahead of Browns matchup

October 24, 2026 · Yahoo Sports

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Tennessee Titans head coach Robert Saleh is shaking things up in the secondary ahead of a crucial home matchup against the Cleveland Browns. Cornerback Alontae Taylor, who joined the franchise on a big three-year contract this past offseason, was a surprising healthy scratch during Tennessee’s 26-20 road victory over the Indianapolis Colts. However, Saleh revealed that the defensive coaching staff is re-evaluating his role by actively working him into slot rotations during practice this week.

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“We’ve gotten him some nickel reps trying to get this close, he’s attacked the heck out of it, he acknowledges it too, our nickel is a lot different,” Saleh said. “You know, he played both nickel and corner and I’ve always been a big firm believer that he can play just one position let’s see how good he can get but at the end of the day he got here because of his ability to play now and we felt like he could still go play corner but at the same time, it was just a ‘what is his fastball?’ And I suppose we’ve really got to recognize what his fastball is.”

#Titans Robert Saleh acknowledged Alontae Taylor was initially going to play only corner but they're going to get him some reps at nickel. Saleh likes how Taylor bounced back and it started with his energy during the game even though he was inactive. pic.twitter.com/IKqcGnV8hI
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— TURRON DAVENPORT (@TDavenport_NFL) October 23, 2026

Saleh praised how Taylor responded to the benching, highlighting his high energy and enthusiasm on the sideline despite being inactive. Shifting him back inside is a noteworthy pivot for the scheme. Taylor is widely considered at his absolute best as a disruptive slot defender, whereas his outside transition produced mixed results. Through his first five starts this year, opposing quarterbacks completed 21 of 24 pass attempts thrown in his direction.

Tennessee’s defense showed real teeth against Indianapolis in his absence, racking up six sacks and grabbing two interceptions off quarterback Daniel Jones. As the Titans prepare to defend home turf against Cleveland, unleashing Taylor’s “fastball” in the slot could give the secondary the exact playmaker energy it needs to stack back-to-back wins this season.

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