I just realized that in the 20-some-odd posts that I've made on this freaking site, I've neglected to mention some of
my favorite teams while avoiding sports in general. You know, as someone whose collegiate major and non-paying job depend on them, sports play a pretty big role in my life... So I guess, it's surprising in the least that I've avoided those posts.
In the celebration of Titans training camp starting the other day at Baptist Sports Park, I guess I'll give my preview of the team. Keep in mind that I'm overly optimistic, and I'm biased. I mean, I'm so freaking biased that even Fox News and MSNBC think its in bad taste.
Since I lack the ability to write with any sort of ability regarding transitions, I'm gonna split up the positions to talk about them. As with the album review below this post, I'm not gonna give any freaking letter grade towards any position strength. Those are subjective, and I'm biased, sooo.... every position will get a much higher grade than is actually deserved.
OFFENSEQuarterbacks
Everybody already knows about Vince Young. It's his third season in Tennessee, and no one is really sure what to expect. Titans fans like myself believe he's more like the quarterback we saw in his rookie year as opposed to the stats he put up last season. Now, I understand on paper, this sounds ridiculous, but as someone who has seen the games, it's pretty clear that he was handicapped by a ridiculously inept system for his strengths last season. If you look at how successful he was throwing from the shotgun, one has to question why former offensive coordinator Norm Chow refused to go to those sets until the Titans were down by two touchdowns.
I also think the whole way the Titans approached the offense was flawed. There were series that started with two runs, and then Young trying to pass for a first down on third and six or worse. I mean, if it's third and long, the defense knows what type of play is about to be run. That's no way to establish any sort of rhythm.
It's also worth noting that the receivers for Tennessee were notoriously god awful. Now, I have the utmost respect for head coach Jeff Fisher, but I have to wonder just how Paul Williams or Biren Ealy could have had a pair of hands worse than Roydell Williams and Brandon Jones (when he was actually playing). That said, my mind says that the system had more to do with passing ineptitude than anything else.
I hate Kerry Collins with a passion. I don't think he's good at all, and quite frankly, if he's in the game, I've already resigned to the game being a loss. I will say he's a decent back up, and the Titans certainly could do worse at back up quarterback.
Receiving Corps
This is, without a doubt, the biggest question mark on this year's Titans squad. Everybody in the league knew that Tennessee boasted the worst wideouts in the league last year. Following the Monday Night game against Denver, SportsCenter highlighted their ineptitude all night. Now, I'd hope that the receivers took that criticism to heart, and really worked on it this offseason.
But I'm not holding my breath.
There are certainly a handful of reasons to be optimistic though. The receivers that we do have seem to have the necessary tools to be legit wideouts, but they just lack the consistency. Unlike some attributes, consistency can be learned and developed. I'd like to think that Brandon Jones can in some way live up to some of the potential he displayed earlier in his career, but I said the same thing about former receiver Tyrone Calico too. However, bringing back Justin McCareins (who I've almost forgiven for some fumbling issues in a game against the Colts a few years ago) might be a real help.
I figure now is as good a time as any to talk about former USC star receiver, Mike Williams. Now Williams was considered the best pro football prospect coming out of the draft just a few short years ago. However, a bad diet and a questionable attitude turned the former "can't miss" prospect into one of the biggest busts in recent NFL Draft memory. The Titans mark his third team. Coach Fisher, a USC alum, laid out an ultimatum to Williams this offseson. He basically said that the Titans are his last shot at pursuing his NFL dream. Since that happened, Williams is certainly saying all the right things, and even more importantly, has dropped 30 pounds off of his six-foot-five frame. If he can live p to half the hype he had coming out of college, the Titans receiving corps might see a huge improvement.
I'd also be remiss without at least mentioning the group of tight ends. Since the days of Steve McNair and Frank Wycheck, the Titans have always been known to use their tight ends as well as any team in the league. This offseason, they picked up former Pro Bowler Alge Crumpler. Crumpler made a killing by being Mike Vick's number one target in Atlanta. Who cares, right? Well, that makes him very experienced with the so-called scramble drill, he knows how to play with a mobile quarterback. I think that's a vastly underrated ability to have. I expect a huge season out of him. We also have a more than serviceable back up in Bo Scaife, who has turned out to be one of Young's most comfortable targets. I have high hopes for our draft pick, Craig Stevens, who's supposed to be a really good blocker. He's got great wheels for his position as well.
Backfield You know, a lot of people are uneasy with the Titans running back situation. I'm more than comfortable with it. I think we have decent depth here. LenDale is a bruiser, and managed to get a 1,000 yards last season while splitting carries with Chris Brown and Chris Henry. Henry, when he's not on drugs, proved to be a pretty serviceable back-up. He's got the speed and power to pull off the impressive run here-and-there. I don't know how much playing time he'll see this season, but I'm not that queasy when I see him on the field.
Chris Johnson could be the real difference-maker for this years Titans. LenDale is really gonna loosen up those defenses, so I'm thinking if Johnson is as fast as he looked in college, there's gotta at least be the occasional home run touchdown run in him. And you know what, with the questions in the offense, that's something the Titans could REALLY use. It's also a plus in that he's experienced in catching balls out of the backfield or in the slot (where the Titans are talking about giving him some plays out of).
I cannot express the importance of our fullback here. Ahmard Hall is another former teammate of Vince Young, and his blocking ability is severely underrated. The Titans haven't had a true blocking fullback since Lorenzo Neal left. I think the Titans' ability to run again has less to do with Eddie's departure and more to do with the incredible ability of Hall. Hall won't get any carries, nor does he expect any. That's something you want in a fullback.
Offensive Line I'll be honest here, I'm worried about this. We lost both Benji Olsen and Jacob Bell, both of which did pretty good jobs on the line over the years. I think Dave Stewart, Michael Roos, and Kevin Mawae are among the league's best at those positions. On the other hand, the Titans need to have those guard spots playing well in order to really expect any running ability out of LenDale. Dude is a hard guy to bring down, but he needs blocking on those inside runs...
DEFENSEDefensive Line It's pretty obvious that this is where the Titans are at their absolute strongest. Last season, Tennessee boasted one of the league's most intimidating pass rushes, while also being above average at stopping the run.
The Titans best defensive player, and someone who I think was undoubtedly the most valuable defensive asset in the league last season, is Albert Haynesworth. I don't think there's been a defensive tackle that can single-handedly make a defense dominating since Warren Sapp's heyday. Let's look at this. In the games Haynesworth played last season, the Titans stopped offenses from doing really anything with any sort of consistency. There were games where whole teams struggled to gain 100 yards of offense. However when he went down with an injury, the Titans looked average (or worse) at stopping even the most mediocre offenses.
The strategy that made the defense so good last year looks almost obvious in retrospect. They decided to start lining up Kyle Vanden Bosch and Haynesworth on the same side of the line. Why did this work? Pretty elementary when you think about it actually. Haynesworth requires a double team on almost every play. Usually that means Vanden Bosch gets to go one-on-one, and with someone who has a motor like KVB, that's not a good sign for the quarterback. So who do they double? Haynesworth, who can wreak absolute havoc (and is big enough to crush any quarterback that he comes in contact with, just ask Matt Schaub. Or Byron Leftwich) or KVB? You can't double both, as that'll open up the other side of the line.
Speaking of the other side of the line. The Titans welcomed back The Freak this season. It seems like forever ago, but Jevon Kearse earned all that money in Philadelphia based on how he dominated in Tennessee. In fact, if he can stay healthy (or not suck), Kearse and Vanden Bosch should be the best combo of defensive ends since Kevin Carter made his relatively short stay in Nashville.
I am worried about the other defensive tackle spot (and depth in general), but this should be the strength of the Tennessee Titans this season. If there are too many injuries, I fully expect a long season.
Linebacking Corps
I've felt pretty uneasy about the linebacking corps as a whole for a few years now. That's not to say I don't think they're good, I absolutely do. But I learned this from Peter Sirmon, an injury can turn somewhat of a strength into a vulnerability in no time.
Keith Bulluck and David Thornton are two of the best linebackers in the league. I think Bulluck has been criminally underrated since he entered the league, and over the last decade I defy you to find an All-Pro caliber linebacker who is ignored by the national media as much as Bulluck. After those two however, the lack of depth at this position becomes clear. The bright side is that the defensive line can certainly make up for any shortcomings that might plague the linebackers by forcing mistakes or helping in stopping the run.
Defensive Backfield
Last season, I think this may have been a relative weakness for the defense. I say relative because this defense last year was pretty good all around. I think our defensive backs were playing above their heads for much of the season though. Now that Pacman's, I'm sorry, Adam Jones's departure is for certain, I guess it's easy to say that the loss might be negligible. Regardless of personal issues, on the field, Jones was a great asset at corner. He could shut a receiver down as well as anyone.
But he's not on the team anymore. Cortland Finnegan was incredible last season considering he was a late-round pick filling in for Jones. I really think that he'll be even better this season. He carries the speed to play with anyone, and he will not back down from any challenge. He can pack the occasional wallop on the field too. Eric King is reportedly in the mix for starting. That should be interesting considering in the previous three years, he's only started two games. Nick Harper is pretty serviceable at the opposite corner though, and I don't feel all that bad about the quarterback throwing to that side of the field. Reynaldo Hill is hot, stinky garbage though.
The safety position is particularly interesting. Chris Hope was great last season, but his health is still in question for this season. I'd like to think he'll get it worked out by the season kick-off. Calvin Lowry and Vincent Fuller are both more than accomplished as back ups if necessary. Michael Griffin played great at free safety last season, and I'd hope to see him get even better this season. He can really hit hard, and he seems to have a knack for being in the right place at the right time. So we'll see what happens.
COACHING Okay, everybody and their mother knows that Jeff Fisher is a great coach. He's now the longest tenured coach in the NFL, and boasts a history of winning teams. I may not be able to guarantee wins for the Titans this season, but I can guarantee that whatever happens, the Fisher will get the absolute best out of his teams. I mean look at the history of the franchise with him at the helm. The Titans have made trips to the playoffs (and the Super Bowl. Once.) with teams that were significantly less talented than other teams. Shoot, even when the Titans won nine games in two seasons just a couple years back, they played their tails off. I remember some dude on ESPN once saying, "They may not be winning, but there is no team in the NFL having as much fun as the Titans." after putting Indianapolis in a deep hole after three onside kicks. In the first quarter.
I have faith in the assistant coaching this season too, and that's something I'm usually less optimistic about. Norm Chow has been replaced with Mike Heimerdinger. When Heimerdinger was last offensive coordinator with Tennessee, Steve McNair became a top-line passer, and our offenses were among the league's best. I'd like to think that he understands how to utilize a quarterback's strengths instead of trying to make him fit into some preconceived box.
The defensive coaching staff is somewhat of a strength. Jim Schwartz was frequently under fire prior to last season, but I think he's redeemed himself at least a little bit. Jim Washburn is a legend for working with defensive lineman, and Haynesworth is just adding to that legacy. This is something to watch though. If the Titans defense reverts back to 2006 instead of 2007, Schwartz will get the boot.
Anyway, that's all I got. I know I wrote entirely too much for a season preview, but I figured I'd at least give someone some decent bathroom reading. One thing is for certain though, I just killed a gang of time, and that's kind of the point of this blog anyway.
