By Terry McCormick, Correspondent

NASHVILLE — On the topic of great defensive lines, some names for some teams readily come to mind. Others don’t resonate as much with NFL fans as the years go by.

For instance, Alan Page, Carl Eller and Jim Marshall stand out as members of the Minnesota Vikings’ Purple People Eaters. But the names of Gary Larsen and, later, Doug Sutherland, are largely forgotten, except by the most hardcore NFL followers.

Same thing for the Dallas Cowboys of the late 1970s and early ’80s, with Randy White, Harvey Martin and Ed “Too Tall” Jones up front on defense. No one seems to remember that Larry Cole was the fourth member of that unit.

And while the Tennessee Titans’ front four have plenty of things to accomplish before they can mentioned with the likes of those great lines, they have something in common with those groups already.

Most casual pro fans can probably recite the names of three members of the line fairly easily, as Kyle Vanden Bosch, Albert Haynesworth and Jevon Kearse all have had Pro Bowl appearances.

People in Chattanooga and Nashville know the fourth guy, former City High standout Tony Brown. But he doesn’t have the notoriety of his mates nationwide.

“On this defense, they can just name three, but I don’t care at all,” Brown said. “To be perfectly honest with you, I really don’t care at all, because people don’t have to know my name.”

Titans fans know Brown’s story of his finding a home with the team in 2006 after having been let go by Miami, San Francisco and Carolina. He rose from street free agent to key backup to starter and finally to core player, and he was rewarded with a contract extension early last season.

He is a favorite of defensive line coach Jim Washburn.

“The other guys are probably better known,” Washburn acknowledged. “He’s a good football player. I don’t know how to put it in any other words. He’s quick, he’s talented and he’s explosive. ... He understands how to play football.

“He’s good. He might not have fit with 31 other teams, but he fit us to a T. He’s made for us, and he’s one of the best defensive tackles we’ve ever had here, period.”

Vanden Bosch projects a big season in 2008 for Brown, especially with the attention directed toward other members of the line.

“I think this is going to be his breakout year,” Vanden Bosch said. “Me, Albert and Jevon, I think will get a lot of attention from offenses scheme-wise, blocking-wise. Tony has really worked on improving his game to being a playmaker, and I think he’s going to be one to surprise a lot of people this year.”

Brown is more interested in the production than he is the attention that it might produce.

“Every time they see that film, they know. I know I’m not a big-name guy, but sometimes the people you least expect can be the one that stands out to you the most,” Brown said.

His teammates know what he can do as well.

“As other teams see it, he’s the unknown, but he’s right up there with us,” Haynesworth said. “The guy can play ball. I don’t know what Carolina and San Fran and all those other teams that cut him were thinking, but he’s got a home here. We know who he is.”

Upshaw reaction

Titans center Kevin Mawae, the president of the NFL Players Association, spoke Thursday about the death of NFLPA executive director Gene Upshaw.

Upshaw died Thursday at age 63 from pancreatic cancer that had been diagnosed only four days earlier during a family vacation.

“For me he’s been a friend, a mentor and a leader in my life for the last 10 years, so the unexpected hearing of his death this morning was a shock to myself and to many others,” Mawae said. “The thing that I will always remember most about Gene was that he was a man of his convictions and he was the man that stood for the players and the NFL.”

Mawae detailed several of the major accomplishments the NFLPA had seen under Upshaw’s regime.

“A lot is going to be said about what Gene’s done and hasn’t done for the former players, what he’s doing for the current players, but I don’t think that anybody will ever question his passion for the league and for the players of the NFL,” Mawae said. “We’re at a time in this league right now that the money is far greater than it has ever been. The players are getting a bigger share than they ever have before in the past. Our benefit levels are the greatest of any sport in the country, and it’s all because of what Gene has done and the passion that he’s put into his work.”

E-mail Terry McCormick at sports@timesfreepress.com

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