Titans’ free agent pickup now leading NFL in sacks

No, the No. 1 spot belongs to Kyle Vanden Bosch of Tennessee with five sacks. Not bad for a man with two bad knees whose previous team gave up on him.

And he admits he’s a little surprised himself.

“I didn’t expect to have five sacks at this point in the season. I expected to have a better pass rush than I had in the past. That’s one of the main things I’ve worked on since I’ve gotten here. I didn’t expect to be leading the league after three weeks,” Vanden Bosch said.

His NFL career seemed over after injuries to the anterior cruciate ligaments in each knee during his four-year stint with Arizona. The Titans, with little room under the salary cap in a rebuilding year, gambled and signed him to a one-year deal for the veteran’s minimum at $455,000.

The Titans had some extra insight into Vanden Bosch.

Linebackers coach Dave McGinnis had drafted Vanden Bosch with the 34th pick overall out of Nebraska in 2001 as the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals. He watched as the 6-foot-4, 278-pound linemen had surgery on his right ACL as a rookie, then hurt his left ACL during the 2003 preseason and missed the entire season.

McGinnis was fired after that season and didn’t get to see Vanden Bosch play in each game of a season in 2004 for only the second time in his short career. His 15 tackles with no sacks didn’t impress new Cardinals coach Dennis Green, so Vanden Bosch found himself looking for work.

The Titans signed Vanden Bosch on April 25, hoping to add some experience to a very young defensive line with his ability against the run. Anything else would be a bonus.

Through three games, Vanden Bosch already matched his career total of five sacks, including two last weekend in a 31-27 loss at St. Louis. He also has 18 tackles, a forced fumble a teammate returned for a touchdown and a fumble recovery.

Adding to the total Sunday could be difficult. The Indianapolis Colts (3-0) are the only NFL team not to allow a sack this season, and Peyton Manning doesn’t give linemen much of a chance to hit him because of his quick release.

But Titans coach Jeff Fisher called Vanden Bosch a complete player and relentless pass rusher who didn’t luck into his sacks.

“These sacks aren’t result of happenstance. Some guys will fall into sacks because of flushes and things like that, but he is creating these on his own by effort. That is good to see,” Fisher said.

Now would seem to be a good time to ask for a contract extension. Don’t expect Vanden Bosch to go knocking on the general manager’s door.

“I’ll worry about that when the time comes. I just want to keep getting better. I just want to win. I don’t take a lot of satisfaction in having the sacks. … It was a long four years in Arizona because we didn’t win many games,” Vanden Bosch said.

“I just want to be able to win here.”