Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Crossover Wednesday - Titans vs Broncos

Episode Date: October 9, 2019

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Welcome to the Locked on Titans podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Rowland. Titans fans, it is crossover Wednesday. We do have Cam from the Locked on Broncos podcast over to talk to us about the game. I'm going to ask him some questions about the Broncos in our second segment. And then in our third segment, he is going to ask me some questions about the Titans. And we might even give you a little bit of a game prediction before we close the show. Before we jump into my conversation with Cam in our first segment, I am going to talk to you about Deion Lewis and his struggles this year and how that relates to the roster moves we saw in the signing of running backs Rod Smith and Daylon Dawkins' elevation from the practice squad. So we're going to cover

that real quick and then get into our conversation with Cam. Let's get it. Your Tennessee Titans lead story are some roster moves on Tuesday made by the team that put pressure on running back Deion Lewis. Deion Lewis was signed to a four-year $20 million contract prior to the 2018 season. Needless to say, he has not lived up to the value of that contract. In the 2018 season, Deion Lewis only had 517 rushing yards for an average of 3.3 yards per carry in one touchdown and only amassed 400 receiving yards with one touchdown. Through five games in the 2019 season, he only has 56 yards on the ground for no touchdowns, an average of 3.7 yards per carry, and has only had 11 catches for 41 yards. While this offense has struggled mightily, Deion Lewis has clearly not done his part. Therefore, on Tuesday, the Titans

organization reached out and found some other options to bring onto the roster. Enter Rod Smith. Rod Smith, from the Ohio State Buckeyes, spent four seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. He had 364 yards rushing, five touchdowns, and 30 catches during that time. He'd also spent time with the Seahawks and the Giants in his career. He'll look to add a little bit more in the passing game, but be able to help in the running game as well. Hopefully fill that David Flewellen role after the roster pirate David Flewellen was finally placed on IR. Enter also Dalen Dalkins. Dalkins was elevated from the Tennessee Titans practice squad. He has history with the team. He understands what the offense is trying to do, and he has a

skill set very similar to Deion Lewis's. Hopefully, Dawkins will be able to get on the field and give the Titans something catching out of the backfield. Also, be a quick runner as opposed to Derek Henry's power style. One thing about Dawkins that you may remember, he, like I said, was elevated from the practice squad. He was on the roster during the preseason, and while he didn't get any activity really in the second and third preseason game, he did get some run in the first preseason game, but was able to really explode onto the scene in the Titans' fourth preseason game against the Chicago Bears. Dawkins had 13 carries for 117 yards and four catches for 31 yards and

two touchdowns against the Bears that day. If you recall, he did have some acrobatic flips into the end zone that really excited Tennessee Titans fans. If you go back to some of my conversation around the roster cuts, I was a fan of keeping Daylon Dawkins on the team rather than David Flewellen or even with David Flewellen. I felt like having a player like Flewellen, and hopefully that'll be Rod Smith at this time, and then a player like Dawkins gave you a compliment and a backup that matches the skill set of Derrick Henry and Deion Lewis. I felt like that would be important if the Titans ever experienced any injuries at running

back. At this time, they aren't really experiencing any injuries. It's more just ineffective play from Deion Lewis. One thing to consider is the Broncos, who the Titans play on Sunday, have a very talented secondary that really limits the wide receivers and the tight ends. What the Titans will have to do is rely on their running backs to get things going in the screen game and the short passing game and on those checkdowns when there really is nowhere to go due to the Broncos' strong coverage down the field.

Now, Deion Lewis has had his fair share of drops, so it is logical to think that the Titans organization has lost a little bit of faith in him, has lost a little bit of trust, and it's good to see that rather than dying on the hill of trusting some of your players who haven't been able to produce so far this season, the Titans are now moving into the situation where they're going to look to add people to the roster, they're going to look to make cuts, they're going to look to change the snap counts roster. They're going to look to make cuts. They're going to look to change the snap counts and see if they can get some players out there who can be a little more effective than Deion Lewis. Okay, we are going to get into our second segment with Cam, the host of the Locked On

Broncos. I'm going to ask him some questions about Denver and how they plan on attacking this Titans defense and how Denver's defense plans on attacking the Titans offense. Fellas, let's talk about the bedroom. Ever wish you could increase your performance or maybe just need a little confidence boost in bed? Well, listen up. BlueChew.com. That's blue, just like the color.

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Promo code LOCKEDON to try it for free. Blue Chew is the better, cheaper, faster choice, and we thank them for sponsoring our podcast. You're here with Tyler Rowland, host of the Locked on Titans podcast. For our crossover Wednesday event, we have the host of the Locked On Broncos, Cam with us. Cam, how are you doing tonight? I'm doing great. I'm looking forward to this matchup with the Tennessee Titans, right after the Broncos, of course, got their first win of the season.

Yeah, congratulations on that. I know it's been a rough start to the season for both of us from maybe what we expected, but it's still early enough that both teams, if they get this game, can start to turn things around. Yeah, I think that that's kind of one of the things that I was kind of hoping for is that maybe this one win can always spark a potential winning streak. That famous line in Major League where they say, do they win two games?

It's always, well, now this is what we call a winning streak, you know, like maybe we can start saying that after we win our second game. Yeah. Yeah. It's definitely possible. And you know how the NFL is. Anybody can always turn it around at any time. Well, I'm going to ask you some quick questions about the Broncos here in our second segment. In the third segment, Cam is going to ask me some questions about our Titans. So we will get into this. My real question here is just looking at the Broncos offense. Seems like the last two games you guys have scored over 20 points when you were having some trouble scoring early in the season. What in the last two weeks has kind of unlocked the offense and allowed you guys to put up some more points than you did at the beginning?

I think very first, it's really been pretty evident that they have been establishing the running game with their two-headed monster of Royce Freeman and Phillip Lindsey. And it's sort of kind of like that old school offense, kind of like that old Kyle Shanahan offense that he's been using down in San Francisco and just really just pounding the rock and really relying on that defense. And if they can certainly do that with guys like Phillip Lindsey and Royce Freeman, who as of this point are showing that they are capable of running the rock and being quite successful with it,

I think that that's just going to continue opening up other things in the passing game you know guys like you know Noel Fant potentially who has kind of come on and been a little bit more balanced but also kind of up and down as well and also you know it's going to help out Joe Flacco too if he can just rely on that running game you know potentially he can maybe even limit some of those turnovers. Yeah. Speaking of the running game there, obviously the Titans defense is a little bit better against the pass than they are against the run, even though they are still a stout defense. How do you see the Broncos with that two-headed rushing attack and the nice two wide receivers on the outside with Sutton and Sanders? How do you see them attacking this Titans defense?

receivers on the outside with Sutton and Sanders. How do you see them attacking this Titans defense? It's going to be really interesting to see what the Broncos do this upcoming weekend because in particular, Emmanuel Sanders only had one catch on the day last week, even in the win. And I think it's going to be quite fascinating. Do the Broncos change script? Do they want to get Emmanuel Sanders involved early? Do they want to do some end-of-rounds, maybe get him involved, maybe not as much in the passing game early on and continue establishing the run? Because we've seen Sanders be involved in those end-of-round plays

and those 49er staples, Shanahan staples, and with Scangerello being here, he's really adopted a lot of that, being with the 49ers and being truly under a Shanahan system and everything. So it's going to be really interesting. Do they deviate from script a little bit just so that they can get particular guys going? I think that that's going to be the real test. But if it was me, I always go by that old adage,

if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Yeah, I see here that early in the season, you know, the turnovers were kind of coming for Flacco. He's had quite a few interceptions early in the season. But it seems, like I said in the last few games, that the turnovers have dropped a little bit. How do you think Joe Flacco is going to try to keep from throwing interceptions in this game against a talented Titan secondary?

It is a really tight, it is a really talented secondary. I mean, you have guys like Logan Ryan and Malcolm Butler. One of the things I think is going to be interesting for Flacco, because he has, maybe pun intended, catching a lot of flack. Well done, well done. For some of his play. And I think that in some of it, it's a little bit unwarranted. Now, some of the turnovers and interceptions,

in particular the Chargers game that he had last week, the interception that he had was tipped at the line of scrimmage and picked off, which forced the Chargers to be in the red zone. And then the other one was a strip sack, which we all know that the majority of the time those are just tremendous plays by the pass rush to get to the quarterback and make a fumble like that happen. So I think it's just been more the the sake that you know it's just it's your timing of Flacco and where he's at on the offense I think he's trying to probably

still feel his oats a little bit in the offense but at the same time he's still having a career year I mean he's he's at least with completion percentage and maybe not exactly the touchdown touchdowns but I it seems like he's doing a good job as far as taking care of the football. One of the things I think that we probably should see is can he throw the football downfield more? We saw it briefly in the first half with the pass to Cortland Sutton. Can we see a little bit more of that going forward? Because we all know historically Flacco has been known as being one of the better deep pass deep ball passers in the NFL. So looking at that and everything that the Broncos are doing with the Shanahan style offense and

finding a way to keep Joe Flacco from throwing interceptions, but also being able to drive the ball downfield. Who on the Broncos offense do you think are some X factors for the game against the Titans that Titans fans maybe don't know about, or maybe there's somebody we would know about, but who might have the biggest impact on the game if the Broncos are able to beat the Titans on Sunday? Well, I mentioned earlier that they really needed to get Emmanuel Sanders going. If you look kind of historically, I don't have the numbers in front of me, but if you look historically at the games that Sanders will have against Butler, it seems like Sanders has Butler's name all the time whenever they've been facing,

at least with the time when he's been with New England. It seems like Sanders kind of had his way a little bit with Butler in the past, so I would at least consider that a potential X factor. And I think with Noel Fant also, he was one of those guys that they really did not get going a whole lot as well with Sanders in the passing game. So do they give him a little bit more touches? He's a little bit more, say, balanced in his receptions and yardage a little bit more. But you can clearly see that the talent level is there for tight end.

We all know that rookie years for tight end are a little bit slow in development and everything else. So it's going to be interesting. Do they continue to give him the football and kind of give him some more confidence? Because he did start a little bit slow. But I think that those are probably your two main guys on the offensive side of the ball and on the defense I would probably still would probably have to peg the pass rush because they they're they've been there the last two weeks but can

they continue it against a pretty stout offensive line for the Tennessee Titans yeah now speaking of that defense I've noticed that uh although they had Va had Von Miller and they had Bradley Chubb for a while, I know he's out for the season now, but typically you would think with a Vic Fangio defense and having someone like Von Miller that they would be able to get sacks at the minimum. Only two sacks on the year. That's tied for last in the league. What do you think the Broncos are going to be able to do against a Titans offensive line that hasn't necessarily shown the ability to hold it up against some good pass rushers.

Which is funny because, I mean, historically in the last few years, the Tennessee Titans offensive line actually has been pretty decent. I just, with especially guys like Jack Conklin and Taylor LeJuan, meaning both of those left and right sides, I think for me, it's going to be going back off of the momentum off of last week, and it's really this new addition of Mike Purcell and Alexander Johnson, mainly Mike Purcell on that defensive line because once he was inserted and they made Adam Gatsas inactive, it created a lot of opportunities for that pass rush,

and I think that it really afforded guys like Shelby Harris, who was playing out of position a little bit on that defensive line, to move to defensive end where he could wreak havoc like he was in years past where he was knocking down passes and creating a lot of variety of pass rush moves along with guys like Vaughn Miller. I think probably one of the guys that I maybe even forgot to mention on the defensive side of the ball as far as X factors is this guy that had probably a quietly good game against the Chargers,

and that was Malik Reid. I think that he's probably in store for maybe even another game, especially with Bradley Chubb being out and them wanting to double Von Miller. Yeah, well, Vic Fangio is an excellent coach. I'm sure that his defensive coaching staff is excellent as well. I had high hopes for the Broncos early in the season and in the offseason because I do think Fangio is a defensive mastermind. So not surprised to see them, you know, turning things around here and playing a little bit better. The one thing that they are struggling at besides pass rush on defense is against the

run. They're 22nd in the league right now, giving up 126 yards a game. Obviously, the Titans want to run the football. That's what they have to do. What do you think the Broncos game plan will be against the Titans to try to shut down their offensive tech? I guess one of the things that just kind of keeping the trend, reactivating Mike Purcell is going to, I think, help a lot of that

because they're going to have a bigger body in there, and you're going to have guys like Derek Wolfe and Shelby Harris really kind of playing to their strength. It doesn't mean that it's going to work because we've seen in the past, back in the last few years, where they've given up a lot of yardage. And so those trends, while they seem positive, don't necessarily have an opportunity to continue at times. And so can the Broncos piggyback off of that

and really stop a key rushing attack with guys like Deion Lewis and especially Derrick Henry? I mean, Derrick Henry is not your prototypical running back. I mean, he's a big, long, fast, and kind of a freak at running back. So can they really slow him down? And that type of back can really wear down a type of defense like the Broncos. And we certainly saw what a big back can do in Leonard Fournette when he was with the, when they're playing the Jaguars and he ran wild all over him. So I,

it's going to be a very, very tough task to really slow down a guy like a Derek Henry, but in the past, historically they've, they've really kind of faltered on, on those guys like a Dion Lewis. I mean, we were,

especially with the linebackers covering and even in that passing game, can they really rely on guys covering a guy like a Deion Lewis or even kind of slipping up and letting Deion Lewis run a little bit in the running game? I mean, he's a sneaky player. We saw certainly what he was capable in New England, and he may not have been the same player with the Titans, but I do believe that he's still a great player,

and he's a great piece for Mariota. Well, that would be a welcome sight for Titans fans. He's definitely struggled early on this year, but as with any player struggling on the Titans offense, it's fair to criticize the scheme and everything going around. It's just kind of like poisoning the well for Titans offense, so it's hard to evaluate each player individually. Cam, I appreciate you answering those questions for us. of like poison in the well for Titans offense. So it's hard to evaluate each player individually.

Cam, I appreciate you answering those questions for us. In our third segment, Cam is going to go ahead and ask me some questions about the Titans, and we will even make a little bit of a prediction about the game. If you found $100 on the street, would you pick it up or keep walking? Of course you'd take the money. So why do you keep picking winners but not betting on them? That's why I go to MyBookie. It's fast, it's easy, and they pay you when you win. Let's face it. Where you're betting is just as important as who you're betting on. And I wouldn't be telling you guys to bet if they weren't the best.

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That's promo code LOCKEDON. Visit mybookie.ag today. You play, you win, you get paid. Welcome back to our crossover series with the Locked On Titans. I'm with Tyler Rowland of the Locked On Titans. He asked me questions over in segment number two. Now it is my opportunity to ask him questions about the Tennessee Titans in segment number three. And I think my first question to lead things off a little bit

really is where is this offense? Because you look all around with all the pieces at the disposal with Marcus Mariota. And I'm a pro Mariota fan in general just because I think he's got the tools. But I want to at least start with Mariota. What is it that he's just been so inconsistent with in the season and probably even in years past recently? Well, I think the most frustrating thing for any Titans fan

when it comes to Marcus Mariota is just his inconsistency. And one thing that Titans fans wanted to see, and anybody who's a fan of him around the league wanted to see this year was you expected. He had enough offensive weapons. He had continuity and the type of person and Arthur Smith, the offensive coordinator who's been around him his whole career and was going to keep over some of that Matt Lafleur system.

He was going to cater to what Marcus has done well throughout his career because he's been with him. He had an offensive line where Roger Saffold was given big dollars to come in. Ben Jones, the center, got an extension. As you mentioned in the second segment, Jack Conklin was an all-pro his rookie season. Taylor LeJuan is the highest paid left tackle in the game, and he's only been back for one game so far after his PED suspension. But you just expected more consistency out of the offense

and out of Marcus in general. But unfortunately, this season has been a microcosm of his career. He's played two good games, two bad games, one meh game. And he's not consistent week to week in lifting the offense up so there's a lot of season left maybe getting the offensive line together we had two brand new starters last week maybe the continuity here and going against a defense like Denver that as I mentioned is susceptible to the run which should help the Titans offense do what they want to do maybe that'll allow them to get some more rhythm going through to the season but so far the the the big thing is that he's just inconsistent week to week. And that's something that you really

can't afford to have in the NFL long-term. Some of those inconsistencies, maybe even with quarterback has been the development of a guy like a Corey Davis, you know, a guy that they were rather high on a guy that came from Central Michigan, if I'm not mistaken, rather high in the draft. A guy that a lot of scouts and a lot of those experts were really rather high on. Myself was high on him. Does that have a little bit to do with Marcus Mariotta,

or is it just more that he's still kind of filling his oats a little bit or he's kind of hitting those rough patches. Because he's such a talented wide receiver. He can hit all the routes. He can make those tough catches. It looked like he was really coming on last season. What's up with Corey Davis? Yeah, and just for the record, it's Western Michigan,

all those directional schools in those states. It's hard to keep them all. Yeah, I don't expect anybody to remember the directional schools. But from a fifth overall pick, you would like to see more. One thing that you'll always hear is just the offense in general is not very healthy. So, like I said about Deion Lewis, it's hard to judge a player like Corey Davis in this offense when it's so unhealthy.

The offensive coordinators are changing. Marcus is up and down, things like that. But one thing that we can talk about Corey Davis on is what he is doing individually. And while he does make some good plays and he gets open and doesn't get the ball sometimes, this season he's had a few third downs where he's dropped the ball and it was a good enough pass for him to make it. And you want your fifth overall pick wide receiver to make a catch like that. He's had some circumstances where he ran the wrong route and it's pretty obvious that he was in the wrong. So he does enough on the field to like on his own. There are some errors that he's making to where I can say that as the fifth overall selection, he hasn't lived up to that hype.

But also the other coin of that, it's hard to judge him and how successful he's been considering how unhealthy the offense has been pretty much his entire time here. So as I probably say a lot, it's hard to judge some of the pieces in the offense when the offense is kind of struggling the way it is. And it's clear that everyone's at fault, but Corey Davis individually hasn't lived up to the fifth overall pick selection value either, in my opinion, just on things he can control. But as far as some of those receivers that has seems to be getting some,

some steam going in the last handful of weeks, it's been a guy from Ole Miss, the teammate of DK Metcalf AJ Brown it seems like he's really kind of coming into his own the last few weeks yeah and one thing that allows him to do that and make those plays is his ability after the catch the yak as everyone knows it's called now because where Corey Davis is a big physical wide receiver that can get down the field and make catches, he's nowhere near the ball-in-his-hand ball carrier that A.J. Brown is. So that makes A.J. Brown look a little better because he can get a short pass where he maybe didn't have to run the greatest route to get open or anything like that.

And he can just use his after-the-catch abilities, his speed, his power, his size, to get down the field and make a huge play. A lot of his big plays have been catches about 10 to 15 yards down the field that he's just made a few moves, made some people miss, and physically gotten into the end zone. Corey Davis doesn't have quite the ball-in-his-hand abilities that A.J. Brown does. He doesn't have some of the fluidity and the agility as a ball carrier.

A.J. Brown is almost like a hybrid between a running back and a wide receiver with the way he runs the ball. Corey Davis just doesn't have that. That, again, could point back to my previous answer. Maybe he's not living up to quite the hype of a fifth overall pick. A.J. Brown, on the other hand, as the 51st overall pick, is definitely living up to that just because you don't have to have a great throw or a healthy offense for him to make plays because you can just get him the ball short and he's going to make something happen eventually with his talent.

So that's kind of why you're seeing him excel so early whereas it looks like Corey Davis is kind of struggling. They just play different games and that's good for the Titans offense to have different kinds of receivers like a basketball team, you want a diverse lineup out there. But that one thing that's going to help him in this kind of offense in their struggles is being able to take the short passes longer than Corey Davis can. You were mentioning as far as the offensive line and kind of the inconsistencies recently of that offensive line.

What has been, at least in your opinion, the main cause of all of that offensive line what what has been the the at least in your opinion the main cause of all of that because that is something with a say a confident defensive line like denver recently of a victory against the chargers and and where they the the run stopping of melvin gordon and and austin neckler they probably could be looking at something like that and thinking, oh, we probably could stop the run now with Derrick Henry coming in. But what are some of the inconsistencies recently with that Tennessee Titans offensive line? Well, I think part of the reason is the shuffling of pieces. So initially the starting offensive line should have been Taylor LeJuan,

Roger Saffold, Ben Jones, Kevin Pamphil, and Jack Conklin. Pamphil got hurt in week one, and LeJuan got suspended for four games in training camp. So that right there is going to put in your backup left tackle. So now you're talking about your sixth best lineman. And then they put in Jameel Douglas, who, in my opinion, was like their eighth best offensive lineman during training camp and preseason. But he found a way to get into the lineup.

And unfortunately, having guys that lack talent to be starting offensive linemen, I think Dennis Kelly is one of the top five best backup tackles in the league. But as a starter, he's one of the worst. And that's just a reality of the lineup. Jameel Douglas is a very low caliber caliber guard I saw a stat ESPN put out today for past uh protection grade he was in the bottom 10 in the league as guard he just shouldn't have been in the starting lineup but unfortunately our third round pick our rookie Nate Davis who was if you dropped a guy in the third round you expect him to be a starter he was injured in the preseason

and training camp didn't get enough reps and they finally put him in in our last game. They started him against the Bills. He rotated a little bit against the Falcons. Now he's in the starting lineup for good. Taylor Luan's back from suspension. So some of it has been just the lineup shuffling and not having starting caliber people in there. But another problem, in my opinion, and I know it's hard to criticize coaches when you're not in the locker room and in those meetings, but it's pretty obvious that

the Titans offensive line struggles communicating and pass protection. They don't pass off stunts very well with defensive tackles and defensive ends, twisting and diving and slanting. They don't seem to, whether that's from the quarterback, the center, they don't seem to communicate which way to slide properly. And a lot of that, in my opinion, the center. They don't seem to communicate which way to slide properly. A lot of that, in my opinion, is on coaching. Keith Carter, the Titans offensive line coach, I don't think that he's doing a very good job. It's been over the past two years you see the same mistakes

in communication and pass protection. The run game, you block the guy in front of you, you've got to shift and do some things, but the communication is on a different level in the pass protection game, and it seems pretty obvious to me that the Titans struggle with that. So if the lineup is inconsistent and the coaching isn't great, that's going to cause a lot of the problems that you've seen and some of the devastating sack numbers the Titans offensive line has allowed. And some of it is Marcus holding the ball too long too, but a lot of it, in my opinion, is the shuffling of the

lineup and the subpar coaching on the offensive line. You know, switching sides and going to the defensive side of the ball on paper, the Titans really do have a very sneaky and really good defense with, with guys like, like Cameron wake there and it's one of the newer additions and going even up and down the board with, you know, guys like that, that,

that secondary core, with Kevin Byard, who's probably one of the underrated free safeties that doesn't get talked about a whole lot in the NFL. And then obviously Kenny Ficarro in the strong safety, and we were mentioning Logan Ryan and Malgun Butler in the second segment. Where exactly is this defense? Because to me, it just seems like this defense really has the makings to be rather good, especially with Mike Rabel being their head coach.

Yeah, the defense is excellent. And some Titans fans and some people in the Titans media want to criticize the defense, and I can't bring myself to do it. I watch the games every week. I watch it over on the coach's film. I watch the broadcast over the next day. I can never find a time where I'm like, you know what? The defense should have done better because what's happening is they're playing the entire game and they're holding the other offense down. They're making everything as difficult as possible. They may give up a few first downs here and there but for the most part they're limiting the other offense to 20 points or less a lot a lot of the times and what's happening is they're seeing the other side of the ball go out there and the

offense three and out third and long killing drives no points missed field goals penalties ruin in first downs putting them in bad field position. One thing the Titans offense isn't doing is turning over the ball, but the defense is just going out there and giving their all every game. And when you watch the offense give you nothing back, eventually it's hard to be perfect every single snap, every drive. And they break at some point during the fourth quarter. Typically it's a long run. We've seen three games now where the other team gets a long run in the fourth quarter. That's it's a long run. We've seen three games now where the other team gets a long run in the fourth quarter that's kind of a backbreaker for the Titans' defense.

But they've been asked to be perfect all day just to have a chance to survive. Lucky there are a lot of good veterans in the locker room, and the locker room isn't breaking like you've seen happen sometimes in these circumstances. But it's definitely disappointing that this caliber of defense is kind of being wasted by the offense. Kind of gives me bad memories of the Broncos defenses over the years. Yes, exactly.

Where, you know, the offenses were the ones that were putting the defenses in really bad positions. And especially you were mentioning the offensive line, you know, giving me bad memories with the offensive line that we had in the past where it was all rotating and especially on our offensive line with all the injuries and miscommunications. We are not so different.

You and I, I guess you could say that kind of now going as far as the game, you had mentioned as far as the X factors on, on my side of the ball, who are some of your X factors when you look at this particular game on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball? Well, I think on defense, Von Miller is still going to be a factor, even though the sack numbers are down this year. So I think Jack Conklin, who I think will see Von Miller a lot, and if Taylor LeJuan happens to see him a little bit, they will have to shut down Von Miller.

When you know there's a player of that caliber on the defense, those two tackles are going to have to shut him down and not let him wreck the game. Make someone else on the Broncos' defense step up and beat you. Another X factor is going to be Delaney Walker. His snaps are going down. He's only being featured in certain packages, passing situations. When the Titans have 11 personnel trips, three wide receivers out on the field, Delaney will be the other tight end. They have to get him going.

He's a talented player still, even at his age. And the Broncos linebackers can struggle in pass coverage from time to time over the middle. So I think they'll need to attack there. And Marcus has always been best when he's off of play action, throwing the ball over the middle. So hopefully they'll be able to get him going on defense. Harold Landry, the Titans talented pass rusher across from Cameron Wake. Cameron Wake's been a little banged up lately. We'll see if he's able to go and have an impact, but Harold Landry is the Titans young pass rusher

who has to step up and make an impact. So against this, you know, Broncos offensive line that while they have some talent, I wouldn't call them elite or one of the better offensive lines in the league. It's going to be important, at least in pass protection. It's going to be important for Harold Landry to get going. And then Joe Flacco does make turnovers. So I think it'll be important for Kevin Byard to make an impact and have a turnover because this Titans offense needs all the help it can get. And Byard will have to step up, be the all pro he is.

And as you said, he's underrated. I think he's the best safety in the league. He's paid that way. And watching him every single week in and out, he's clearly the best player on the Titans. And hopefully he's able to get another interception like he did last week and help this really pitiful offense out a little bit. That brings us to the score predictions that we were mentioning.

Where exactly do you – we'll leave with you first, with the score prediction. Fair enough. We are the away team. Well, going into a place like Denver, the elevation of the stadium makes it difficult for teams to play there. It's a weather environment that I think definitely helps the home team. The Broncos have a really good home field advantage as well,

and they're starting to turn things around. I am 0 for 5 on my predictions this year. So because of that and the jinx that I have somehow created, I'm going to say that the Broncos win this game 21-17 over the Titans. See, I feel like I might even it out because I went to the preseason game where the Broncos were facing the San Francisco 49ers and they lost. Now we're in the regular season, so I feel like I might even that out a little bit. So we might be kind of like one and one a little bit on the even playing field.

I'm actually going to say the Titans win this one, which is kind of interesting because, I mean, I've been talking so much as far as the momentum and everything with the Broncos and everything with this potential first win. And I just think that there's just these times where you can get an emotional high off of a victory. And I just feel like there might be just a tad bit of a hangover a little bit with this game. Now, I think one of the underrated parts of this game will be like the, the, the new signing of the kicker,

Cody Parkey coming in the, the famous kicker, Cody Parkey, obviously from the, from the bears playoff game, the double doink. Yes. Right.

Right. But, but you know, he is going into mile high. It's an, it's a new kicker. So the, obviously a special teams can certainly

play a big role in Denver so it could it come down to another last minute field goal I don't think so but I I'm gonna say you know 20 to 17 so kind of going off of your score a little bit but I'm gonna say 20 to 17 in favor of the Titans I think it's gonna be a lot closer though than as far as a true defensive game, though. Yeah, definitely. Well, that's all the Titans play, it seems like, most weeks. So I would not be shocked whatsoever to see that. Well, Cam, I definitely do appreciate it. Host of the Locked On Broncos.

Had a really great time asking you questions. Good luck to your Broncos the rest of the way through. You as well on the Locked On Titans. Hopefully you guys have a successful season, and maybe we can catch up here sometime soon. Okay. All right. Hopefully so. Thanks, Cam. All right.

Again, that was Cam from the Locked On Broncos podcast coming on with us, generous enough to answer some questions for us and ask me some questions about the Titans, get everything out in the air for both fan bases. Always really enjoy the Crossover Wednesday event. We're going to be bringing that to you every single week possible, hopefully running through January for our Tennessee Titans

if they're able to turn things around. Really appreciate all you guys listening to this show. Can't wait to talk to you tomorrow. I am your host, Tyler Rowland, and this was Locked on Titans. you