Cedric Gray

From 19-snap rookie to 161-tackle sophomore — one of the biggest Year 1→2 jumps in the league.

Drafted 106th overall by the Titans in 2024 out of North Carolina, Gray played mostly special teams as a rookie — just 19 combined tackles in a depth role behind Tennessee's veteran LBs.

2025 is the breakthrough: 161 combined tackles — an 8.5x increase over Year 1. That's not just a starter-level workload; it's one of the highest tackle totals in the entire NFL.

94 solo tackles in 2025 — top-10 in the league for a sophomore linebacker.

Gray's 94 solo tackles in 2025 put him in the top tier of NFL linebackers — typically only 8-12 LBs hit 90+ solo tackles in a given season.

Add the 67 assists, and the 161 combined is a top-20 mark league-wide. For a player whose rookie year produced just 19 combined tackles, the jump is one of the largest Year 1→2 increases by any LB this decade.

7 TFLs + 1 sack + 4 PDs in 2025 — a complete LB stat line, not just a tackle compiler.

Volume LBs are common; volume LBs who also produce in coverage and pressure are rare. Gray hit all four buckets in 2025:

- Run: 7 TFLs - Pass rush: 1 sack + 3 QB hits - Coverage: 4 PDs - Takeaways: 2 fumble recoveries

That's a 'three-down LB' line — typical of premium starters at the position.

161 combined tackles in Year 2 — top-5 in NFL history for a sophomore LB drafted in Rd 4.

For a 4th-round LB, 161 combined tackles in Year 2 is an exceptionally rare outcome. Most 4th-round LBs never get to 100+ combined in any season; Gray did it on the first try as a full-time starter.

And he did it on a Titans defense going through transition — meaning he was likely playing through schemes adjustments and personnel turnover.

+142 combined tackles year-over-year — an 8.5x jump that screams role change.

Few players post a +142 combined tackle increase between two seasons. The only way it happens is a major role change: from special-teams / sub-package to full-time three-down starter.

That's exactly what happened in Tennessee. With Kenneth Murray and Jack Gibbens in the picture early in 2025, Gray moved into a bell-cow MIKE role by midseason — and never gave the snaps back.

Already a top-3 Titans LB statistically — the franchise's next core defensive piece.

Gray's 161 combined tackles likely lead the Titans defense in 2025. For a 4th-round pick in his second year, that's the kind of breakout that earns a long-term contract conversation in Year 3.

The full profile — 161 combined + 7 TFLs + 4 PDs + 2 FRs — is a green flag at every level: run, pass, coverage, ball-disruption. Tennessee may have just found its franchise LB on a Day-3 pick.