The 2018-2019 NFL season doesn't begin until September 6th, but it's never too early to start talking football. You see, the offseason is a legitimate part of the NFL calendar and how teams utilize that can decide between a deep playoff run and an unfortunate early exit. The Tennessee Titans finished last year's season with a record of 9-7 and their first playoff win since 2008.

They ended up second in the AFC South, just under the Jacksonville Jaguars (who Tennessee beat in both matchups this past year). For a team that hasn't won a championship since the start of the Super Bowl era, and has only won their division once, a playoff win can be enough to start a team on an imperative uphill swing.

Tennessee needed to capitalize on their momentum and on March 14th they did just that. The team signed CB, 2015 Pro-Bowler, and two-time Super Bowl Champion, Malcolm Butler, for a staggering deal of 61 million over 5 years with at least 30 million guaranteed making him the second highest paid player on the roster.

The transaction caught lots of attention from the media not just from Butler becoming one of the top-10 highest-paid cornerbacks in the league, but also because he'd just ended the 2017-2018 season on a, particularly odd and bitter note.

Despite playing 98% of New England's defensive snaps going into Super Bowl LII, Butler would ride the bench for every play (except for one on special teams) in the biggest game of the season. Since being added to the Pats as an undrafted rookie in 2014, Malcolm played in 59 games for the Patriots, starting in 48 of those.

He'd made a name for himself and achieved national fame after he intercepted Seahawks quarterback, Russel Wilson, in a late fourth-quarter goal-line play to help earn the Patriots the victory in Super Bowl XLIX. His heroic and clutch play three years earlier would not be repeated as he sat and watched his team be picked apart by the Eagles, Nick Foles throwing for an impressive 373 yards and 3 TDs.

Why didn't New England's go-to-guy in the secondary play? That's still a mystery. Of course, speculation ran amuck in the weeks following the 41-33 loss, but neither Belichick nor Butler would ever verify an exact answer. Some suggestions included team-rule violations, sickness, a poor week of practice, tardiness, or a disagreement between coach and player, but regardless, the decision was made and the Pats suffered in the championship game defensively because of it.

Whatever the reason was, Titans head coach, Mike Vrabel (who played under Belichick with New England), doesn't seem too worried. “I didn’t ask Bill why he didn’t play him. I don’t know if anybody else knows why he did or didn’t play other than the head coach. I don’t know…We felt like we knew Malcolm well enough.

People that we trusted that we talked to about his character, about his work ethic, about the teammate that he was. We’re excited to have him," Coach Vrabel said, "there are decisions coaches make, people make for their team. That was a Patriot decision. Malcolm, he’s a Titan now," (Guregian).

Malcolm Butler is a Titan now, and I believe this is his chance to really prove to this league that he deserves respect (and a 61 million dollar contract). While with the Patriots, he collected 8 interceptions and racked up 50 pass breakups, and has formed a reputation as one of the best outside corners in the NFL.

His play declined this past season, after he signed a below-market 1-year deal for 3.9 million in New England, which was significantly trivial compared to the deal the Pats offered CB Stephen Gilmore (65 million for 5 years) that same off-season. He'd been asking fruitlessly for more money from the Patriots since his Super Bowl performance in 2015, but the Titans are the ones who finally answered. This new pay raise for a new team with a new coaching staff should give the 28-year-old Mississippi-native a much-needed confidence boost.

For the Titans, Butler will serve their team well. He's joining a defensive roster with standout players like FS Kevin Byard (one of the league's best up and coming safeties), DE Jurrell Casey (3-time Pro-Bowler, 5 sacks in 5 seasons), and cornerbacks Logan Ryan (who he played with in New England), and Adoree' Jackson.

The Titans were looking for a consistent veteran cornerback to join 5-year vet Ryan and 2nd year Jackson, and Butler is an almost perfect fit. Ryan will be able to move back into the slot where he's significantly more effective with Butler and Jackson on the outside. As an outside CB, Butler had the 7th best PFF grade in the NFL in 2016. Having Logan Ryan in the slot will allow Dean Pees (Tennessee's defensive coordinator) to run a more versatile defense with their personnel in more appropriate positions.

Butler adds depth to the defensive side of the roster. Although the Titans will most likely use predominantly nickel defenses, now, for dime package defenses, Sims, Smith, Reed, and Hurst will all have to compete for the 4th or 5th CB spot instead of the 2nd or 3rd. Butler can also slide down and play slot which will give the Titans a much wider span of options for coverages and matchups.

While he doesn't possess over-powering athleticism, Butler is smart, competitive, and instinctive which often gives him an advantage against his opponents, even those who have more speed than him. He also brings 48 games (11 of those are playoffs) of experience to a team that's hoping to go farther in the playoffs in this coming season than they ever have before.

Coming off such a shocking exit to his last season with the Patriots, Butler's going to enter into the 2018-2019 season out for blood. He's joining a team who's going to depend on him to bring in depth, versatility, talent, and experience to their roster, and they've given him the contract to prove their faith in him. I hope these others teams are ready to eat because Butler is ready to serve.