Marc

Mariani

Mariani didn’t miss a game after suffering the injury in the preseason, but says it sapped his explosiveness. Mariani was still one of the league’s better return specialists last season, but his numbers were down from his Pro Bowl rookie campaign. Drawing praise for his work as a receiver this offseason, Mariani’s roster spot should be secure.

“He’s one of the guys that when the ball went up, it seemed like he came down with it, or he found a way to get open,” said Munchak. “His routes were sharp ... He was fun to watch.” Mariani’s strong showing will certainly help in his quest to nail down a roster spot, but he’s not going to be higher than fifth on the depth chart at receiver.

Mariani was down for several minutes before they finally got him off on the cart, and was clearly in a ton of pain as he was taken away. Replay showed a brutal injury; Mariani’s left leg was clearly fractured and pointing in the wrong direction. Darius Reynaud may have sewn up a roster spot already, but he’s locked in now. Mariani was a shifty, explosive return specialist.

It was a brutal break and will require extensive recovery. The good news for Mariani is it occurred before the season started, as opposed to in November or December. Mariani underwent immediate, emergency surgery after suffering the injury. We suspect he won’t be back until 2013 training camp at soonest.

“It all depends on how the receiver thing shakes out and how much he is playing (in the offense) and what happens with Marc [Mariani] and all that stuff,” said special teams coach Alan Lowry. “I don’t think we’ll know until we go all the way through training camp.” Wright returned just seven punts and two kickoffs in four seasons at Baylor.

Mariani sustained a compound fracture in his left leg during the preseason last year. He’s not 100 percent yet, but appears to be getting close. Mariani holds a career average of 24.8 yards per kickoff return and 11.2 yards per punt return. Darius Reynaud averaged 23.4 yards on kickoff returns and 13.2 yards on punt returns last season, and has since been re-signed to a one-year contract.

Nate Washington will become the Titans’ No. 1 receiver and there isn’t much fantasy upside opposite him. Williams didn’t appear to be on the same page as Matt Hasselbeck yesterday and Hawkins is an average talent at best. The Titans’ best option will help fill the void will be getting athletic tight end Jared Cook involved in the passing game regularly.

Mariani’s brutal leg break last preseason was the same injury suffered by Louisville’s Kevin Ware in the Elite Eight. Mariani is just three years removed from a Pro Bowl campaign as a returner, but won’t be guaranteed a roster spot after the Titans signed Kevin Walter and re-upped Darius Reynaud.

Mariani missed the entire preseason with a bruised AC joint and coach Mike Munchak wouldn’t commit to carrying him on the 53-man roster. Darius Reynaud is set to replace him as the Titans’ return specialist.

Darius Reynaud will be Tennessee’s return specialist again this year. Mariani suffered a compound leg fracture in 2012, made it back, and then separated his shoulder early in training camp. He’ll be a free agent in 2014.