Tennessee Titans starting OL Saahdiq Charles put on NFL retirement list, walking away from football

Posted by Admin August 6, 2024 NFL

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Tennessee Titans guard Saahdiq Charles has informed the team he is walking away from football, and he was placed on the NFL’s reserve/retired list Tuesday, per an announcement by the team.

Charles signed with the Titans as a free agent in March. He was listed as the team’s starting right guard on the initial preseason depth chart Monday, but he missed multiple practices last week for what coach Brian Callahan described as “personal reasons.”

Veteran Dillon Radunz has been Charles’ primary backup in training camp. Radunz started 11 games for the Titans in 2023, primarily playing right tackle but also spending time at left tackle and left guard. He started two games at right guard in 2022.

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Charles was heading into his fifth NFL season. He played his first four with the Washington Commanders, making 18 starts in 34 games. He started 10 games last season and parlayed that experience into a starting role with the Titans across OTAs, minicamp and the first week of training camp practices.

A former fourth-round pick out of LSU, Charles was college teammates with Titans center and fellow 2024 free agent signee Lloyd Cushenberry III.

Beyond Radunz, the other guard options on the depth chart are Lachavious Simmons, Andrew Rupcich and undrafted rookie Brian Dooley. The Titans also have Daniel Brunskill, who was the team’s primary starter at right guard last season, but Brunskill has exclusively worked as a backup center in 2024.

Charles had figured to be a key cog in the Titans’ rejuvenated offensive line in 2024, a group that also featured Cushenberry and first-round pick JC Latham as new additions. Peter Skoronski, the Titans’ first-round pick in 2023, is entrenched as the team’s starter at left guard opposite where Charles lined up.

The Titans play their first preseason game on Saturday against the San Francisco 49ers (6 p.m. CT, WKRN-2) at Nissan Stadium. The team returns to the practice field Wednesday, which will be Callahan’s first opportunity to comment on Charles’ abrupt departure.

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Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.