Jeff Faine visits Tennessee Titans

Soon after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers released safety Tanard Jackson, the Washington Redskns brought him aboard to reunited him with current ‘Skins defensive backs coach Raheem Morris. Jeff Faine was released last month after no longer being needed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, with Jeremy Zuttah locked up to a four-year deal and moved to center after the addition of superstar left guard Carl Nicks to a lucrative deal.

Faine never really fit in well in Tampa, and injuries derailed his career. His time had run out with the Bucs, and the team was no longer willing to spend a large sum of money for a player on the downside of his career.

According to this tweet from Jim Wyatt, the Tennessee Titans are interested in signing Jeff Faine, and the center has visited the team. Faine was rated as the 9th-worst pass blocker among centers in 2009, and he was the 10th-worst a year later according to the Pro Football Focus’s pass blocking efficiency (PBE) statistic. In fact, Zuttah was the seventh best center in this stat in 2010. Last season, Brian Gagnon pointed out that Faine was graded -11.4 overall (-0.1 pass blocking, -11.2 run blocking) by PFF.

At the age of 30, Faine will likely receive a one or two-year deal with whichever team he signs with. He will do well with a change of scenery, and he isn’t nearly as bad as the ratings from the Pro Football Focus indicate. He’s had trouble staying healthy recently, but Jeff Faine has actually been decent when healthy and is a veteran leader. He wasn’t needed in Tampa, but Tennessee needs a center and Faine is a fit.

Eugene Amano was considered to be a player to watch for in 2010 at center, but he never made good on his potential and was a liability at the position. Last season, he was dreadful and especially struggled against the run by allowing 2.2 yards per carry. Coach Mike Munchak is considering moving Amano back to guard, and that is the best plan of action at this point. Although Amano is a terrible center, he has the potential to be a good starting guard in this league. In order to make this happen, the Titans should consider signing Jeff Faine to play at center and allow Amano to shift to his natural position.

Although Jeff Faine is a subpar player, he’s the best option left and is definitely a better center than Eugene Amano. Most Titans fans want the team to sign Faine and move Amano, and that’s what the Titans need to do to help the interior of the line. However, he has fallen off as a run blocker and isn’t a good player by any means. But by the same token, the Titans don’t have many options left.

The Titans have struck out on four centers thus far, including Dan Koppen who re-signed with the New England Patriots. According to this tweet from Max Luckan, the Titans are close to getting a deal done. They basically have no options left, and Faine is at least an upgrade to Amano (-13.2 PFF grade last year). Center is one of the biggest needs for the Titans, and we’ll keep an eye on what happens with the former Buc and Tennessee.

You can follow Joe Soriano on Twitter @SorianoJoe.

Like us on Facebook here and follow us on Twitter @ThePewterPlank.