ESPN NFL

Posted by ESPN.com's Paul Kuharsky

Crumpler

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Still groggy after a quick turnaround from Canton back to Music City, but took in the Titans' practice Monday morning.

The tight ends stood out. Alge Crumpler continues to look like a red zone solution, and in a team period he made an excellent one-handed catch with a spin with linebacker Colin Allred on him. The soft-spoken Crumpler said afterward he didn't even remember it. A bit later, Dwayne Blakley made a one-handed snag of his own, though not as fancy. Third-rounder Craig Stevens failed to follow suit, letting a ball over the middle squirt right through his hands.

Some other highlights:

In seven-on-seven work, cornerback Nick Harper made a great play on receiver Justin Gage as he ran a post route, though Harper will probably kick himself when he sees it on film because he had a chance to corral a nice interception.

Linebacker Stephen Tulloch continues to shine. He's not much of a leaper, but he did what he needed to in order to rise and grab a Kerry Collins pass intended for Biren Ealy in red zone seven-on-seven. Tulloch landed on his back, but got up and took off.

Also, receiver Roydell Williams is off the PUP list and took a step in his comeback from a broken right ankle he suffered as the Titans got ready for their playoff game in San Diego last season. He went through the individual period with receivers and ran some one-on-one routes and Monday afternoon he expects to add on seven-on-seven.

He's developed a bit of a reputation for needing to feel good to play well, but won't be able to do that this year as the recovery comes with a degree of pain until pins are removed after the season.

"Most likely I'll have to play with a little pain, but in the NFL it's more of what you can play with," he said. "Everyone is hurting out there. You just have to suck it up and go out and play. Pretty much every year I've been nicked-up. That's one of the things I've learned to do is just deal with the pain."

His straight ahead speed is fine, but he's still working on getting in and out of his breaks.
He's missed a lot of time with new coordinator Mike Heimerdinger, and Justin McCareins has inherited Williams' starting slot from last season, though McCareins is currently out with a hamstring issue.