The death of Floyd Reese Saturday bought comments and memories from his many former players and co-workers.

Reese’s impact on the organization was profound, as he helped the club forge an identity in Tennessee after it was uprooted from Houston in 1996.

Blake Beddingfield, whom Reese hired as a scout in 1999 and who then rose through the ranks to become the team’s director of college scouting through the 2017 season, says he was extremely appreciative for what Reese did to help him get started in his career.

“Floyd was a true football man. He loved the team, the players and employees,” Beddingfield says. “He enjoyed working and being around the team.”

Beddingfield recalled Reese would be worked up in knots on game days, living and dying with nearly every snap, almost like a fan would do.

“He was intense on game days and showed everyone that worked for the team how important it was to him,” Beddingfield recalls.

It speaks volumes that many of the players whom Reese was in charge of signing and releasing held a fondness for the man who held their football fate in his hands.

Receiver Chris Sanders says he considered the then-GM a “gentle giant,” and adds, “He was and is a father figure to me.”

Another receiver, Drew Bennett, who came to the Titans out of same school where Reese had played at UCLA, also formed a special bond with the GM.

“Floyd bridged the gap that makes for a great executive,” he says. “He had a professional relationship with all the players, but also had a personal relationship with most of the guys.

“I really appreciated my years with him and was glad that he could be honest with me about my career and also talk to me as a friend.”