The Titans are making multiple changes to their offensive line by waiving Nicholas Petit-Frere and signing Sam Mustipher, Brenden Jaimes and Oli Udoh Titans senior team writer Jim Wyatt passes along.
A 2022 third-round pick out of Ohio State, Petit-Frere started 16 games at right tackle as a rookie. Viewed temporarily as a player who could help the Titans recover from their historic Isaiah Wilson whiff in the 2020 first round, Petit-Frere was unable to sustain momentum and stick as the team’s RT starter. The Titans have since changed GMs twice since drafting him.
A suspension for violating the league’s gambling policy and a shoulder injury limited Petit-Frere to just three appearances in 2023. After being briefly shifted to LT in 2023, Petit-Frere returned to start at RT to open the 2024 season but lost his starting job after Week 6 due to poor performance. After injuries decimated the Titans’ tackle depth, Petit-Frere started from Weeks 11 to 16, giving him a total of 34 appearances and 28 starts in his career in Tennessee.
As a former Day 2 pick with a prototypical frame for an NFL tackle, Petit-Frere could receive some interest on the waiver wire. However, that would require his new team to take on his 2025 salary, which was bumped to $3.4MM due to the league’s Proven Performance Escalators. Teams may prefer to wait until after the draft to sign Petit-Frere for less money in free agency.
None of the Titans’ new offensive line signings are expected to take over Petit-Frere’s spot at right tackle. Instead, the team plans to move 2024 first-round JC Latham back to his college position, with new free agent signing Dan Moore Jr. taking over Latham’s job at left tackle. This left less use for Petit-Frere, whom the current coaching staff inherited in 2024. The Titans will hope Latham stops a revolving post-Jack Conklin door at RT.
With Kevin Zeitler added to join a line housing former first-round guard Peter Skoronski and high-priced center Lloyd Cushenberry, Mustipher, Udoh and Jaimes are coming in to vie for backup jobs. Udoh and Mustipher held full-season starting roles — both in the NFC North — but each has settled onto the backup level since. The trio joins free agency addition Blake Hance, the recently re-signed Corey Levin and holdover Jaelyn Duncan as potential Tennessee second-string blockers.
Udoh started 16 games as the Vikings’ top right guard in 2021, working almost exclusively as a backup since. He played two more seasons in Minnesota and served as a New Orleans second-stringer last season. The Bears used Mustipher as their primary center from 2021-22 but did not retain him in 2023, leading to one-year Ravens and Chargers stopovers. Mustipher overlapped with Jaimes in L.A. Jaimes played in 46 games with the Bolts, starting three at center in 2023.
Sam Robinson contributed to this post.