Brown Has Played High Prep, College and Pro In Tennessee

By Terry McCormick

Tony Brown now has the security of a new contract he signed last year.He also has the satisfaction of knowing that, barring injury or unforeseen circumstances, he will be in the starting lineup for the Tennessee Titans at defensive tackle for the second consecutive season.

The former Chattanooga City High School star has taken a most circuitous route to finding success. Brown, 27, was discarded by three NFL teams, including the Carolina Panthers twice, before he landed in

Nashville just over a month into the 2006 season.

He was signed as a roster replacement for Albert Haynesworth when the Titans’ star was suspended for five weeks that season, but Brown has become much more than just a guy to fill a spot. He played well in a reserve role the rest of the 2006 season, and last year he overtook Randy Starks as a starter alongside Haynesworth.

Now the Titans are without Starks, Travis LaBoy and Antwan Odom and hope for an even bigger role for Brown.

“Losing the three guys we lost last year, I think it’s helped him because he’s now one of the guys that’s been in there, and he started 17 games last year,” defensive line coach Jim Washburn said.

“He’d been system to system, and now Tony is a leader and the young guys really like him. It’s a little bit different than the role he had last year, just being one of the guys. He’s a very charismatic guy, and he’s a really good football player.”

Even with that success, Brown won’t let it all go to his head. The only hint of him allowing himself to become secure in his mind about the situation came shortly after his contract extension last year when he finally bought a house in the Nashville area and moved his family from Chattanooga.

Before that, Brown had been renting a place during the season and was even making the hour-and-a-half trek from Chattanooga to Music City during part of the off-season activities.
Brown says his success hasn’t changed his work habits one iota from the days as a journeyman free agent trying to stick somewhere on an NFL roster.

“It feels good, but at the same time, I knew (at one time) I was the guy trying to get a job, too. So I practice every day like I still don’t know. And that’s the way I’m going to continue,” Brown said.

That attitude provides a good example for the many younger teammates who now look at Brown as someone they can learn from. That role is something he enjoys.

“I do, because there’s a few places I’ve been and I looked up to some guys, and they didn’t even help me. I don’t want to be that guy,” Brown said. “I don’t want anybody to fail. I want our entire team to be good. So I don’t see why I should hold information back from them.”

Titans coach Jeff Fisher said Brown has to be kept in check even during off-season work, especially with Haynesworth absent from organized team activities because of contract issues.

“We have to be careful with Tony because he likes to take every snap, and he doesn’t need to do that now,” Fisher said.

But Brown may never believe it.