The Tennessee Titans used their first-round pick in this year’s NFL draft to take cornerback Caleb Farley of Virginia Tech at No. 22, a move intended to bolster their defensive rebuild.
General manager Jon Robinson focused on that side of the ball after releasing starting cornerbacks Adoree’ Jackson and Malcolm Butler to free up salary cap space in March.
The 6-foot-2, 197-pound Farley announced his decision to opt out of the 2020 season last July because of the coronavirus pandemic. He lost his mother to cancer in 2018 and was unwilling to put another loved one at risk.
The cornerback also had surgery in March to repair a herniated disc just before the Hokies’ pro day, though he is expected to be ready for the start of training camp and expressed no regrets about his decision to skip this past season. He also tore an ACL in 2017.
Farley didn’t attend the draft in Cleveland because he announced Wednesday he had tested positive for COVID-19.