Back in May 2018, the Tennessee Titans brought in 24 undrafted free agents, including safety Joshua Kalu. As a rookie, Kalu joined the Titans with the hopes of earning a roster spot if he worked hard enough. But Kalu spent just three months with the Titans during the offseason before the team released him. A few days later, Tennessee re-signed him, and Kalu later made his NFL debut with the franchise. But looking back now, Kalu opened up about the reality of a rookie UDFA being far harsher than he imagined.

“First three months were hell, and I’m talking about my coach,” Joshua Kalu said on the latest episode of the Raw Room podcast. “Ohio State coach – Coach Coombs. Yelling, screaming, and face turned red. He talked with spit in your face, especially to me. We’ll go to practice, and we’ll have the families come out. He’ll tell his wife right in front of me, ‘I hate him the most.’ Like, what did I do? I’m just playing, trying to play ball, trying to get to where I need to be.”

Before entering the NFL, Joshua Kalu built a strong résumé as a defensive back for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. Kalu played 46 games for the Cornhuskers to tally 215 tackles and seven interceptions. Before the 2018 NFL Draft, many analysts believed that with his 6-foot, 203-pound frame, Kalu had the physical traits to land on an NFL team. But after he went undrafted, Kalu had to fight for every snap from the moment he arrived in Tennessee. 

During the Titans’ OTAs in 2018, then-rookie safety tried to prove himself and secure a spot for the regular season. However, Kalu just revealed that he received far fewer opportunities than other players in Tennessee. Titans defensive backs coach Kerry Coombs, who had just arrived in the NFL after coaching Ohio State, also appeared to be frustrated with Kalu.

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Kalu suggested that Coombs frequently expressed his dissatisfaction with him during practices, sometimes even pointing at his helmet in frustration. Was that tough coaching meant to motivate Kalu, or made up their mind about him?

When training camp and preseason games arrived, Joshua Kalu recalled that the situation still did not improve for him. He received very few reps in practice, but at the same time, Kalu’s fellow undrafted rookie, Damon Webb, received significantly more opportunities.

“We end up having our first preseason game,” Joshua Kalu said. “So, everybody in the DB room had about 40 plays, not the vets. We had another guy named Damon Webb. He went to Ohio State with Coombs. That game, he had 80 plays, and I had 12. Mind you, this whole time, the writing’s on the wall. Like, I already know I’m getting cut in my head, but I’m trying to be hopeful, right?”

Webb had played under Coombs for four seasons at Ohio State, appearing in 35 games and recording 131 tackles, six interceptions, and 2 touchdowns. With that connection, Coombs certainly felt more comfortable giving Webb more opportunities in Tennessee. 

But at the same time, in the Titans’ first preseason game against the Green Bay Packers in 2018, Kalu got only eight defensive snaps and four special teams plays. The Titans lost the game 31-17 to the Packers, and Kalu got no more opportunities in the preseason to show his value on the roster.

Joshua Kalu reveals how the Titans abruptly released him

On August 10, 2018, the Titans played their first preseason game, and the very next day, Joshua Kalu had the firsthand experience of being dealt with as an UDFA in the NFL.

“So, we get to the facility the next day,” Joshua Kalu recalled on the Raw Room podcast. “Now, I go to the cafeteria, grab my tray, pull out my chair, put my tray down, and put my bag in the back seat. I’m getting ready to sit down. As I’m sitting down, mid tap on my shoulder, ‘Hey, Kalu, the GM wants to talk to you and bring you to the room.’ I was like, ‘Sh-t, you want to bring my iPad?’ He’s like, ‘No, let’s just see what happens.’ I’m like, ‘I’m going to bring my iPad.’”

“By the time I got cut and I walked downstairs, my sh-t was already in the trash bag. They put that sh-t in the box, and they shipped that to my house. They had already booked my flight.”

Even though Joshua Kalu suspected that the cut might be coming, nothing prepared him for how quickly everything unfolded in Tennessee. Last week, Philadelphia Eagles center Cam Jurgens revealed the behind-the-scenes political business that takes place when undrafted players like Kalu get cut by NFL teams. 

According to Jurgens, NFL GMs often prioritize protecting their draft picks as they want those players to succeed and take credit for it. In that process, Jurgens revealed that GMs often cut undrafted players abruptly without giving them enough opportunities to prove their worth. In Kalu’s case, that scenario played out in Tennessee when he was a rookie, and it must serve as a reality check for many college football players before the upcoming NFL Draft.