NASHVILLE – Titans fans will get a kick out of this: Kicker Ryan Succop has passed his physical and has been taken off the team's Physically Unable to Perform list.
Even better: Tight end Jonnu Smith has done the same.
Succop and Smith spent the offseason recovering from injuries, working on a side field and inside Saint Thomas Sports Park under the supervision of trainers and coaches.
Kicker Austin Barnard kicked in the first two preseason games for the Titans.
But now the two veterans have been cleared to practice, roughly three weeks before the team's regular season opener against the Cleveland Browns.
Succop made 26-of-30 (86.7 percent) kicks for the Titans in 2018, and he's 235-of-281 (83.6 percent) during his 10-year NFL career. He joined the Titans in 2014 after spending his first four NFL seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Smith caught 20 passes for 258 yards and three touchdowns in 2018, including a 63-yard touchdown when he showed off his speed on a Monday Night Football grab and go in Houston. Smith suffered a season-ending knee injury in the team's December 6 contest against the Jaguars, however.
A third-round draft pick by the Titans in the 2017 NFL Draft, Smith told Titans Online earlier this offseason he's looking to take another big step in his career this fall himself.
"There's definitely some things that I want to improve on and want to build on, but there's also some things I thought I did pretty good," Smith said. "The mindset that I've got is just about getting better. So that's the approach I am going into Year 3 with – I want to carry some of the good things from Year 2, as well as the bad things, so I can correct them and just perfect my craft.
"I want to be more polished in everything that I do. Since I have been playing football, I've never focused on one specific thing I was required to do as far as my position goes. It was always whether to run block or route running. Whatever it may be, you just have to perfect everything in your craft. So I am trying to focus on everything."
The Titans face the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday at Nissan Stadium in preseason game No.3.
