Peter Skoronski finds himself heading to Nashville after being selected by the Titans with the No. 11 overall pick at last week's NFL Draft. While the Northwestern offensive tackle impressed enough for Tennessee to bring him aboard with its top pick, it doesn't sound like he was blowing away everyone. Skoronski, who met with 14 teams leading up to the draft, recalled a rather awkward exchange between him and Falcons head coach Arthur Smith, who didn't seem too interested in what he was seeing with the top prospect.
"The head coach was on me the second I got in there," Skoronski said of his meeting with Smith at the NFL Scouting Combine, via The Athletic. "I was giving them generic answers to their questions, and he said, 'You're really boring me right now. Your answers are so boring.' The whole meeting, he kept looking at his computer. I was kind of laughing to myself and said, 'Sorry, I don't know what you want me to do. I'm answering you honestly.'"
It's unclear, of course, if Smith was actually disinterested in Skoronski or if the head coach was playing some sort of mind game with him -- as some teams are prone to do -- to see how he'd react in what seems like a rather awkward exchange. That said, the Falcons ended up passing on taking Skoronski with the No. 8 overall pick, so it is possible that he truly was left unimpressed. Instead, the club opted for Texas running back Bijan Robinson to lead their backfield going forward.
Skoronski added that his interview with Titans head coach Mike Vrabel did go a bit smoother and noted that he "liked his energy," so he was able to endear himself to at least one organization.
The 6-foot-4, 315-pounder was CBS Sports' top-ranked tackle prospect this year and the No. 6 player in this class overall, so the Titans are getting themselves quite the talent. Skoronski is now positioned to take over the starting left tackle position which had formerly been held by Pro Bowler Taylor Lewan, who was released earlier this offseason.