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Former Auburn kicker John Vaughn’s chances of making the Titans roster could be termed at best as a long shot.
Rob Bironas has entered 2007 entrenched as the Titans starter, but it wasn’t long ago that Bironas made the Tennessee roster as a long shot when he nailed a 53-yard field goal to force overtime in a 2005 preseason game against Tampa Bay.
Bironas, who also played at Auburn for two years before he transferred to Georgia Southern, is set to compete with Vaughn for the team’s kicking duties this July. When Vaughn signed with the Titans following April’s draft, he became the first true competition for Bironas since he won the job from Ola Kimrin prior to the 2005 season.
Since he's replaced Joe Nedney as the Titans kicker, Bironas has led the team in scoring the past two seasons and set a franchise record with four game-winning field goals in 2006, which included a franchise-long 60-yard field goal in Tennessee’s upset over the would-be Super Bowl Champion Indianapolis Colts.
Although he admitted that competing against Bironas would be a tall task, Vaughn said he doesn’t mind that odds are stacked against him.
''When I got to Auburn I had to battle for the first couple of years to keep the starting job, so I feel like I’m pretty seasoned being in this situation having to battle for it,'' Vaughn said. ''I had to battle with a guy that had been at Auburn for a couple of years when I got down there, so I'd say I've had a little of that taste before, but it's been a few years so I just have to keep working hard and do my best.''
Vaughn said he took mental notes of advice he received from Bironas during team OTA’s over the last two months and added he can still learn a lot more from the two-year veteran.
''He's a great kicker,'' Vaughn said. ''Me being able to push him is going to make him a lot better and it's going to make me better. There are things that he can help me with and there's probably stuff that he can learn from me as well. I just try to pick his brain and study what he does and try to add it to what I do. I just want to be a better kicker when all this gets done.''
And even though they’re both competing for the same job, Vaughn said Bironas had assisted him with his technique.
''He's helped me a good bit and he's shown me some pretty cool stuff,'' Vaughn said. ''I'm just trying to take it all in right now, make a couple of adjustments here and there and get ready to go for camp.''
''I'm a guy that there's always something that I can do to get a little bit better,'' Vaughn said. ''It will definitely make me a better kicker when this is all said and done.''
Vaughn, a former Brentwood Academy standout, finished is career at Auburn amongst the nation’s most consistent kickers in the country and was named the Southeastern Conference’s Special Teams Player of the Year last season. On top of all that, he finished second in the Lou Groza Award voting for the nation's top kicker.
Trying to prove himself at the professional level, Vaughn said he is now expected to perform at an even higher level.
''That's the thing about being a kicker - you're evaluated every time you're on the field,'' Vaughn said. ''Everybody knows if you did a good job or if you did a bad job. It's one or the other. That's just kind of how it is on the field anyway, so it's a good thing for it to be like that in practice because that's how it's going to be in the games with 68,000 fans watching.''
Playing in front of Titans fans is something Vaughn said he looked most forward to. The Nashville native attended Titans games before he moved away for college.
''I grew up a pretty big Titans fan so it would be pretty awesome to get to play in the stadium where we've had season tickets since they've been here,'' Vaughn said. ''It will be cool to be able to look up and see where my family normally sits and everything.''
''Just to get to play out there will be a big honor.''
If Vaughn can bring his college performance to the professional level, he’ll get his chance to become the next Titans long shot this preseason.


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