Tennessee Titans GM Jon Robinson explains what went wrong with 2020 NFL Draft class

Tennessee Titans general manager Jon Robinson acknowledged Wednesday the difficulties that came with draft prep in 2020, which produced his worst draft class since becoming general manager in 2016.

Just one of the six players selected that year made the Titans’ initial 53-man roster for 2022: Kristian Fulton, the team’s top cornerback. Defensive lineman Larrell Murchison (fifth round) and defensive back Chris Jackson (seventh round), both of whom were reserves their first two years, were cut and added to the practice squad. Offensive tackle Isaiah Wilson (first round), running back Darrynton Evans (third round) and quarterback Cole McDonald (seventh round) are no longer in the organization.

While Evans is on the Chicago Bears’ practice squad, Wilson and McDonald are not on NFL rosters.

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Robinson said he wasn’t able to go through his normal draft evaluation process in 2020.

"But I think that whole period of time was kind of weird for all of us, right?" Robinson said. "We were in this (COVID-19) pandemic, we were locked in our houses and we couldn’t do anything. We tried to go through our process, but it was just different.”

The Titans did, however, find undrafted gems in 2020. Wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, nose tackle Teair Tart and left guard Aaron Brewer are starters.

“Those guys have taken the opportunity that we’ve given them here and really worked hard to improve,” Robinson said. “They’re much better football players than they were when they got here. That’s a testament to those guys.”

Tennessee’s 2022 draft class has shown early signs of promise. Eight of the nine rookie draft picks are on the initial 53-man roster. Two undrafted rookies, running back Julius Chestnut and cornerback Tre Avery, also made the team.

As many as four rookies could be Week 1 starters: receivers Treylon Burks (first round) and Kyle Philips (fifth round), right tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere (third round) and cornerback Roger McCreary (second round).

“I was talking to Chic Ejiasi, our player development guy. He said, ‘This is one of the better rookie classes from the standpoint of coming in here and being able to act like what we expect a pro football player to act like,’ ” Robinson said. “Which is a testament to them and the universities that they came from the and the commitment to us and to the process.”

Ben Arthur covers the Tennessee Titans for The USA TODAY Network. Contact him at barthur@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @benyarthur.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Titans' Jon Robinson explains what went wrong with 2020 NFL draft