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

Episode Date: December 4, 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 will have the host of the Locked on Raiders podcast on our show today to talk about the game. I'm gonna ask him some questions about the Raiders in our first segment. In our second segment, he is gonna ask me some questions

about the Titans, and then we both do a little bit of a game prediction. Before we get into that conversation, in our first segment, we're going to talk about all the injuries to the Titans cornerbacks and the action that John Robinson took to try to help out that group a little bit. So we'll cover that in our first segment in our lead story before we jump into our conversation with Q from the Locked On Raiders. So I know everybody loves these Crossover Wednesday events.

Happy to get back on track with those. Let's get it. Your Tennessee Titans lead story. General Manager John Robinson has claimed cornerback Tremaine Brock off waivers after he was released by the Arizona Cardinals following Sunday's game against the Rams. While he was released, we haven't got official word, but this season so far, Tremaine Brock has made 37 tackles, had three pass breakups, and played in seven out of the 10 games for the Arizona Cardinals. He was also their highest graded cover cornerback per pro football focus. So take that for whatever you will. In his career, Brock has played for the 49ers, the Seahawks, the Vikings, and the Broncos

before signing with the Cardinals in April of this year. Brock has been relatively productive in his 10 year career. He's played in 113 games. He's started 52 of those games. He's had 11 interceptions, 53 pass breakups, and 246 total tackles. It makes sense that John Robinson would go out and look for some additional help in the cornerback room at this time as the injuries continue to mount. Malcolm Butler was already placed on IR this year with a broken wrist. Adoree Jackson missed most of the second half against the Colts with a knee injury, and based on this news, it's possible that he may be out for the game against the Raiders. So that's your top two outside cornerbacks down for the count. Next thing you know, you look for LaShawn Sims, who's been a very solid fourth

corner for this Titans team for a few years now. Well, LaShawn Sims was unable to play with an ankle injury on Sunday against the Colts, so it's hard to be able to expect him to be ready to play against the Raiders. That means that the Titans are down to using their fifth and sixth cornerbacks on the year. Practice squad call-ups Ty Smith and Kareem Orr and while Ty Smith made some huge incredible plays in the game on Sunday against the Colts and Kareem Orr was very serviceable out there for his first NFL action as an undrafted free agent rookie neither of them can be relied on consistently to get the job done for the Titans and at the minimum the depth is being tested now to where the Titans just need bodies who can And at the minimum, the depth is being tested now

to where the Titans just need bodies who can play that position. So at some point, it's not even about talent. It's just about ability to be out on the field. So Brock will come in and try to learn the system as best as possible. I would imagine that Smith and Orr will still be relied on a little more heavily than you could expect will still be relied on a little more heavily than you could expect Brock to be relied on just due to his unfamiliarity with the system and everything going on in Tennessee but the guy does have talent like I said he is a 10-year veteran so he has been in the league for

quite some time so that means that he does have familiarity with most coverages and most concepts so it won't be something completely brand new like a like a college rookie coming in and playing in the NFL for the first time so that's probably the reason that the Titans went and spent a waiver claim on Tremaine Brock now just so you have an idea of how this works for any of you people that play fantasy football you understand the concept of a waiver but each NFL team is in a line imagine Imagine they're in a line at the theme park for a roller coaster. And when someone is released in the NFL, they basically go on waivers for a period of time. That means that not everybody can openly sign them like they're a free agent.

What that means at that moment in time is there's a line of teams who get their shot at him first. So when a team uses their waiver claim on a player, they go to the back of the line. And there are different circumstances that affect that in the NFL. But basically the Titans felt like this was so important that they couldn't take the chance of missing him to another team claiming him. They went ahead and used their waiver claim to add Tremaine Brock. Now, to make this move and to make some roster space to bring Brock on, they did have to waive Huranis Grosu, the center. Right now, the Titans are in a good spot with their offensive line. They were stacking offensive line at the beginning of the year for good reason, as we know, with Taylor LeJuan being suspended and the injury to Pam Phil and some of the injuries that that did come along with Ben Jones as well so it made sense that

the Titans were stacking offensive line but with the offensive line kind of settled at this moment in time it makes sense that they would let a backup center go Jameel Douglas can play backup center for Ben Jones if the Titans need that in that situation, Heranis Grosu will go. Tremaine Brock is now a Titan, and they need him to play as best as he possibly can to help this team right now with all the deficiencies they have in the secondary. That is going to do it for our first segment, though. We are now going to jump into our crossover Wednesday conversation with Q from the Locked on Raiders podcast.

First, I'm going to ask him some questions about the Raiders, get his perspective, and then in our third segment, we're going to flip that around, and he's going to ask me some questions about the Titans, and we might even go a little long and give you guys a game prediction. So can't wait to jump into all of that, and we will do that next. Fellas, let's talk about the bedroom. Ever wish you could increase your performance

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Q, how are you doing, man? I'm really good, man. The, how are you doing, man? I'm really good, man. The Raiders aren't doing so good. Got a two-game losing streak going on, and the Titans got a three-game winning streak. But either way, I'm good, and I'm glad to be here talking some football with you. And this game on Sunday should be very exciting. Yeah, it's definitely a big game for both teams.

I mean, the Raiders aren't out of it by any stretch of the imagination. They're still right in the thick of it. And I'm sure after a few years of some up and down since the last Jack Del Rio team that made the playoffs, I'm sure that's a welcome sight for Raiders fans. No, it is. Yeah, it's been a, you know, up and down season just because a lot of the losses that the Raiders have taken have been really, really bad, like the last two weeks to the Jets and to the Chiefs, respectfully. And, you know, so that's been a hard pill to swallow. But ultimately, if you go from a 4-12 team in 2018 and you're 6-6 right now in 2019, with the opportunity to still, I mean, you know, so that's been a hard pill to swallow. But ultimately, if you go from a 4-12 team in 2018 and you're 6-6 right now in 2019, with the opportunity to still,

I mean, you go and run the table, you're 10-6, even an 8-8 season, in my opinion, would still be a really good season and let you know that at least the team is headed in the right direction. So that's a sign of optimism for Raider Nation. Yeah, it definitely has to be. And as a person who watched Hard Knocks and was pretty open about how I didn't think John Gruden was going to be able And as a person who watched hard knocks and was pretty open about how I didn't think John Gruden was going to be able to have any success, he's definitely, although maybe they're

not as hot as it seemed like, he definitely has got that team to a place that not a lot of people expected them to be coming into the season. Yeah, no, I think he's got a good pulse on what needs to happen for the team to get where they need to go. And obviously they gave him a big contract extension, or not contract extension, but gave him a big contract when they hired him with the idea of stabilizing this team, not for the short term. Like you mentioned Jack Del Rio, when he went to the playoffs, that was one of those, okay, that's a really good season. Well, when, when, when John Gruden took over, it was the plan to stabilize his team and make them go to the playoffs year after year, after year, instead of just the one and done thing. Absolutely.

Well, that kind of leads me into my questions. I have some questions about the offense first, showing as, you know, against the Jets, three points. Against the Chiefs, nine points. They haven't been able to put really much points up so far in the past couple of weeks. I guess I kind of did some research on the team. I see the offensive line looks like it's doing fantastic. They've given up the second least amount of sacks in the league at 18. I mean,

on third down, their seventh best offense in the league converting at 45%. Red zone, their 15th at 57%. But when you look at some of the more raw counting numbers, like points per game, they're only 23rd in the NFL at 19 points per game what is it about the offense that's I mean they seem from the numbers to be pretty successful the turnovers aren't too crazy what is it that's limiting the offense here recently I mean right now they're doing really well between the 20s you know that's just what it is they're doing really well between the 20s they're picking up yards they're doing you know stats are easy to to kind of be miscued you know I mean it's like it just seems like they're not clicking on all cylinders right now.

One day the run game will do really well, and then, like, Derek Carr will be off or guys won't be able to separate and, you know, turn a 10-yard gain into a 20-yard gain. It's just there's little things that are just not clicking. You know, there was a stretch when the Raiders were really, really pretty good and everybody was talking about, man, they could possibly make it to the playoffs. There was a stretch where they were scoring like 24 points a game at least. And I thought, okay, this is what it's going to be.

But, you know, ultimately I think that defenses are starting to realize what they're running and their tendencies, and they're starting to pay more attention. So kind of bowing their necks when they get near the goal line and near the red zone. And so, you know, it's been difficult as of late. And then again, you go against the Jets, man, even though they're not a really good team, they have a strong defense and they shut down Josh Jacobs, you know, it's just, it's been difficult as of late. And then again, you go against the jets, man, even though they're not a really good team,

they have a strong defense and they shut down Josh Jacobs, you know? And so they, that, that didn't, that didn't help. And then the chiefs, they didn't have a very good defense as far as stopping the run. But once you get up a lot of points, the game plan kind of goes out the window of run Josh Jacobs, run Josh Jacobs, run Josh Jacobs. So yeah, there's a lot of things that kind of played into it, but

yeah, their offense hasn't been clicking like it should be the last few weeks. And that is a concern. Well, I know exactly how you feel. I would say some of the problems you're having there where people can kind of just key in on Josh Jacobs and it kind of throws you out of the flow offensively is some things that the Titans were dealing with earlier on in the season with their lack of ability in the passing game. So my question for you here is to be on a more positive note. How impressed have you been so far with this rookie class led by Josh Jacobs and Max Crosby, who I'll talk when I have some questions about the defense. I love Max Crosby, so I'll get to that then.

But Josh Jacobs has been one of the best running backs in the NFL. He's kind of the hub of the offense, it seems. What's allowed him to do that, or how impressed have you been with his ability as a rookie? I've been really impressed. I really liked him a lot coming into the draft. I was glad that the Raiders grabbed him when they did at number 24 overall. And you know, it's funny, you mentioned he's one of the best running backs in the league. He's right behind Derrick Henry as far as rushing yards, you know? I mean, he's up there. So that's really cool that he's been able to do that. And you know, just the other day, he became the first Raider rookie running back ever to go over a thousand yards as

rookie season. And I mean, that's saying something, you know, the Raiders are talking about 60 years of an organization. They've never had a rookie running back go over a thousand yards and he's, yeah, exactly. He's done that. So I like what he brings to the table. I like the fact that he came from Alabama and he didn't have a lot of wear and tear on his tires. Most, most of the running backs that come from Alabama, like a Derrick Henry, have been used so much that it's almost like, okay, a lot of their better days are behind them. But instead, he wasn't a guy who was a starter. He was just used at certain times. And so he really kind of was saved. And I'm telling you, man, he's got really good vision. He's strong. He runs hard between the tackles. I mean,

he's a guy that you could build an offense around, you know? And so that's exactly what the Raiders are trying to do. And I really like what he's done. And you mentioned the rest of the rookie class. The addition of Mike Mayock, man, is something that cannot be, you know, not talked about enough. I mean, really, because Mike Mayock, I think, has done wonders for the Raiders, helping out with that draft class, because we all know that John Gruden is not the best personnel guy when it comes to just selecting players. But with Mike Mayock's help and his knowledge his vast knowledge of the college game and the players coming out in the draft that really helped them find the players that they need to help this team move forward from a 4-12 team to a team that's sitting at 6-6 and

and have what Mayock called the foundational players to build around and have this team be successful for years to come yeah Yeah, it makes sense. And speaking of Mike Mayock, who I think he's done an excellent job in that Raiders rookie class, points exactly to the type of job. I think a lot of people don't realize that coaching a football team and then picking players as a general manager are two different jobs. It's hard to be good at both of them at the same time. It really is, you know, and that's something that if you go back and look at the history of what John Gruden has done as the coach and the de facto type GM, it hasn't been great.

I mean, it really wasn't. And you can even go back to 2018 when John Gruden took over for the Raiders and him and Reggie McKenzie were collaborating together. Everybody knew that that was John Gruden. John Gruden. Yeah, you can look at the draft class and it wasn't very successful. It really wasn't. There's a couple guys out of there that was kind of decent and kind of good, and you might say, okay, that's a cool guy, or maybe he's going to become a player.

But, I mean, man, heads and tails, this 2019 draft class has just blown those guys out of the water. So, yeah, Mike Mayock has really assisted in a major way, and I'm glad he came along when he did because with the Raiders having as many draft picks as they did, especially those first-rounders, you've got to hit on those guys. It doesn't matter if you have extra at-bats. What matters is if you get hits with those at-bats.

You know what I mean? And so they were able to get hits. And with Josh Jacobs in particular, got a home run. And with two people who I also think are really nice hits, possibly doubles, I know that you guys selected Cleland Farrell with the fourth pick. And I guess for me and a lot of the draft Knicks out there, it seemed like that was a little high. But when you draft somebody like Max Crosby in the third, fourth round,

I forget exactly which round he went in there to go along with. I know he's been injured, but the safety Jonathan Abrams, it seems like this rookie class really has a chance to mold the team. And I just wanted to hear, I know we know those names, Max Crosby, because he's been playing great. And I loved Max Crosby pre-draft. I'm really upset the Titans weren't able to get their hands on him, but I'm glad to see him have success with the Raiders.

Other than Crosby and Jacobs, what are some other rookies from this draft class that seem to be making an impact week to week, and especially on defense? Well, the guy that I like the most, really, on the defensive side of the ball, I mean, obviously you mentioned Mad Max Crosby. He's great, and he was a fourth-round pick out of Eastern Michigan, and he's a stud. But I'm telling you, man, the second-round draft pick out of Clemson,

Trayvon Mullen, he's the starting defensive back now. He actually made Garyon Conley expendable. The Raiders went and traded him to the Houston Texans, and Trayvon Mullen has slid in. And look, he had an interception last week against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. That would have been the second interception of the season. But they threw the challenge flag, which is the dumbest thing I've ever seen

in the league, and they returned it. So whatever. But anyway, he's a guy who's going to be a playmaker for the Raiders for years to come. I really, really like what he brings to the table. And look, this is what they did. Man, Cle Farrell, you mentioned him, and it was kind of a reach. It felt like a reach when they drafted him.

And I was there at the draft, and I even looked at my co-host from the radio station and was like, man, at four, really? Like, that's who you went with. But I get it. You know, and again, I mentioned that word foundational. That's what Mike Mayock was looking at. He said he went to Clemson and he said, hey, this defense is really good. Who is the leader on this defense? And they all pointed at Cleve Farrell and said, that's the guy who leads us and gets us going. So even though it sounds a little high to reach at number four for a leader, that's really who that guy is. He's a leader. He's a guy who demands excellence, even though he's slipped a little bit as of late.

He's jumped off sides a few times, and that's not good. Little pre-snap penalties. He's just trying to kind of prove his worth. But I think his leadership skills and I think the fact that he's going to be that dude who's going to work really, really hard, that work ethic, I think that's going to go a long way. And again, building that foundation. So it might not have been the sexiest pick at number four, but I still think it was a good pick at number four, just because of what the Raiders were looking for. Now, again, Trayvon Mullen in the second round, I think that was an absolute great

pick. And I think he's going to be a real deal Raider defensive back, somebody that you talk about for years to come. Yeah, he's an excellent player. And I was watching some of the highlights from last week, trying to keep up as much as I can while I'm watching the Titans game. And I did see that play. I didn't see that it got overturned. So disappointing to hear. He's definitely an excellent player.

One thing I do want to ask you about, though, talking about that Raiders defense, it seems to be if there's a clear weakness on the team, it's still the pass rush. Right now they're struggling to get sacks, ninth worst in the NFL with only 27. But one thing that I noticed is they're low on sacks, they're last in QB hits, but they're only blitzing 17% of the time per pro football reference. So why is it that even though they're struggling

to get pressure, they still aren't blitzing? What about the scheme is just letting them kind of rest on their laurels there and decide that they're not going to bring pressure? Well, you know, if you if you blitz and you don't get home, you're going to get burned, you know, and the linebacking core for the Raiders is not very good as far as in coverage. And and, you know, there's a lot of things that that happen on the back end outside of that defensive line that all of a sudden get burned if you're blitzing, if you're consistently sending guys after the quarterback.

So Paul Gunther, part of his scheme is get home with the front four. You know, that's what it is. Just get home with those guys. They've got to do that. And you mentioned Max Crosby. He leads the team in sacks with seven and a half. And then Benson Maioa, who's really just kind of like a journeyman, a guy who's not even a starter.

He's second with seven sacks. And it's not a very good total. I mean, like you mentioned, the 27. But you think about they had 13 all of 2018. You know what I mean? So, I mean, they're still an improvement. Yeah, it's an improvement. Again, it's not what everybody wants to hear.

It's not that great, but it's what it is. You know, and it's a building process, and that's what they're doing. And, you know, I think as that secondary settles in, I think as the safeties get a little bit better, as the linebackers maybe get a little bit improved, then you can start to send a few more guys. You can blitz a little bit more. You can take a little bit chances because you have confidence in the guys behind you. But if you consistently blitz and hey, all of a sudden the guy gets the ball out real quick, boom, then all of a sudden, what are you looking at? You know, you're looking at a 75 yard touchdown or you know I mean a big play hits you so that's kind of the risk reward and right now for the Raiders it's safer to play a base and try to get after you get after the quarterback with the front four then send the house and hope that you uh you get home because if

you don't well then you're in trouble yeah well I got good news for you the Titans give up the second most sacks in the NFL this season. I believe the number is at 49 now, maybe even climbing. Yeah, I believe it's 49 exactly. So the Titans will allow you with just four because that's a lot of what the Colts were doing. They were just rushing four and able to get home. So hopefully the Titans are ready for that. But from a Raiders perspective, that does kind of play into your guys' hand.

Well, that's kind of all the questions that I had about the Raiders team at this moment of time. I wanted to open it up for you, kind of open-ended. Just on offense and defense quickly, how do you expect the Raiders to attack this Titans team? I mean, no doubt about it, it's going to be with Josh Jacobs. You know, he's the bell cow. He's the guy who gets everything going.

He's the straw that stirs the drink, you know. So if they can establish to run, even like they did against Kansas City, had like 55 yards in the first quarter. I mean, he was cooking with grease, but then they got behind and they had to kind of go away from that. But it all starts with Josh Jacobs. If he gets going, if he gets those wheels turning, that offensive line starts blocking downhill, then that opens up everything else. That opens up the play action pass that allows Derek Carr to get a little bit extra time in the pocket maybe take a shot here or there but besides that besides Josh Jacobs running they're going to look to try to get the ball to Darren Waller the big tight end who's come on and really shocked a lot of people including Raider Nation who didn't know what to expect for the tight end position that's going to be a way that they try to attack them you know

offensively is through you know short intermediate passes where they can get some yards after the catch like i said darren waller josh jacobs expect to see a lot of those guys and then defensively like i said man they're going to try to send four after the quarterback they're going to try to play that base coverage little zone scheme and i hope they can they can get a couple hands on on some balls that are thrown around the yard by ryan tannahill maybe pick it off and like you said if they struggle the o-line struggles to block then maybe maybe a guy like Mad Max Crosby, Moe Hurst, Cleve Farrell, maybe they can get home and get a couple sacks and maybe even a turnover or two and just get Ryan Tannehill uncomfortable and off his spot. Well, you're definitely going to have opportunities.

Tannehill does take risks and throw into tight windows, so there is a chance to get some hands on some balls there. And he has fumbled in the pocket every game that he's played this year, whether he lost it. I believe he's only lost three of the six. But that's definitely a weakness of his and an area of opportunity that Titans fans need to be on the lookout and hope that the Titans can clean that up a little bit.

Well, I appreciate all your answers on the Raiders. That's Q from the Locked On Raiders podcast. We are going to flip this conversation in our next segment, and he's going to ask me some questions about the Titans, and we will talk about things from that perspective. So we will see you on that side. Right now, it's the crossover edition, talking Titans, talking Raiders. The Tennessee Titans are the next team up on the schedule for the Raiders.

And to help me break it down from the Titans' point of view is Tyler Rowland. He's the host of Locked on Titans. And let me ask you this, man. The first question, most importantly, matter of fact, the Titans are on a three-game winning streak. They knocked off the Chiefs, the Jags, and the Colts. What, in your opinion, has been the main reason for their recent success for the Titans? And don't look now, but all of a sudden they're players in the AFC South. Yeah, I think that the obvious answer is

Ryan Tannehill taking over at quarterback, but it's not just his ability to play quarterback. The offensive line here recently has finally got, I guess, on the same page. There was a little bit of shuffling going on at the beginning of the year. Taylor LeJuan starting left tackle was out the first four games with a suspension for PEDs. We drafted a rookie, Nate Davis, in the third round who was expected to start and contribute immediately. He was injured in the preseason and wasn't able to play or practice very much. So we finally got him back in the lineup week five and Jack Conklin has dealt with some injury or the other right the other tackle or right tackle has dealt with some injuries as well last season. So

Roger Saffold was a free agent signing as a brand new left guard. So kind of all those moving pieces people getting used to each other. The offensive line is finally kind of coalesced together and is working better as a unit, although they still struggle at times. And then Ryan Tannehill has opened up the offense because teams actually fear the Titans throwing the ball now. There's something to worry about there where there wasn't before. So all of those things together combined with just momentum. Football is a very emotional game,

and the Titans have great momentum and great emotional character. So combining all of those things together, that's where this run has basically come from. So what is Ryan Tannehill specifically done that has been different and changed the game and made it more confident and given the ability to sling it around the yard a little bit more than what Marcus Mariota was doing before he got benched? It's two things. So I would say both of them stem from the fact that Marcus was playing scared. Okay. I don't know.

Tannehill, I would imagine. Now, I don't know the guys personally, but just from my view on the field, Tannehill is coming out there and playing like, hey, this is my last shot to be considered a starter. I failed before. I got traded. I was on the bench. This is my shot, and I'm going to take it. I don't care what happens. Marcus was playing the opposite of that. He was playing, hey, this is my last couple of chips I got. I got a pocket aces here, but I can't go all in because I only got a few more chips. He was playing scared. He was dropping his eye level when pressure would

get on him. And he's been battered and beaten in his career with the Titans. It's true. So I can't really blame him necessarily for the way that he reacted. But you can't play quarterback when you see a little bit of pressure and your response, rather than to find a space in the pocket to get a throw off, is to kind of duck your head and maybe run and he would put himself in worse position so that kind of in pocket fear I would call it uh was really killing his ability to make any kind of throws or have any kind of pocket presence but also even when throwing the ball Tannehill has a much stronger arm just quite frankly I would uh describe Marcus Mariota as a as a finesse thrower, as a push thrower. He kind of pushes the ball like a point guard to where he wants it to go.

Tannehill is a drive thrower, and he rips it in there. And so some of these windows, like I mentioned earlier, how the Raiders defense will have the opportunity to get some deflections here, it's because Tannehill will throw the ball into tight windows. And in the NFL, people aren't always going to be wide open. Your first read isn't always going to be wide open. So you kind of have to throw guys open or throw into some tight windows that otherwise aren't there.

And Tannehill has been willing to do that and successful doing that, and it's unlocked the entire offense. So those are the two biggest changes, having confidence in the pocket, not dropping your eyes, and then throwing the ball with velocity that have really helped Ryan Tannehill succeed so much as compared to Marcus Mariota earlier in the season. So is the plan with Ryan Tannehill to try to sign him to a long-term deal? I know he's a free agent at the end of the year, or do you think that that's an avenue that the Titans should not go down? Well, it does depend on these next four games.

I don't have a concrete answer for you. I would say at the beginning of the season, I kind of had an idea that this might happen. And my thought process was we could probably sign Tannehill to like what Mike Glennon got in Chicago or Joe Flacco got in Denver, like a two-year $ 15 to $18 million deal, maybe a team option on the second year or something like that. Well, I think at this

point, Ryan Tannehill may have played himself into a franchise tag conversation, which I believe the average would be around 23 million. I don't think that he'll accept a one-year deal just generally because he's going to want to cash in on his play here and look for, whether it be Tampa, Carolina, Chicago, wherever the opportunity arises, he may look for a two to three-year deal from somewhere like that. Right now, I think that the Titans would franchise tag him for one more year make him prove it to us before we give him a long-term extension but what I can't tell you is if the Titans go out and win three of the next four games beat the Texans win the AFC South make it to the playoffs even if they get a wild card spot and win a playoff game I don't think it would be crazy to expect a two to three year deal for about 25 to

$27 million for Ryan Tannehill. I think that may be a mistake. I'm in favor of the franchise tag at this moment in time, but with the way he's played and if he gets us to those heights, it would be hard to blame the front office for pulling that kind of trigger. No doubt. That makes sense. Talking all things Titans right now with Tyler Rowland, host of Locked On Titans. And look, I mentioned Josh Jacobs and how he's the straw that stirs the drink for the Raiders. Well, Derrick Henry, he's special.

He's a special dude. I mean, ever since 2016 when they drafted him, which, matter of fact, I wanted the Raiders to draft him in 2016. Instead, they went and got Jahad Ward, and that's a whole other conversation. It seems like Derrick Henry's never been used enough, whether it's like DeMarco Murray was in his way or maybe they just weren't committed to the run game as much as they should have.

The last couple seasons, especially a lot this year, part of this run that they've been on has been the legs of Derrick Henry as well. He's been doing some big things. Why now are they so hell-bent in going with Derrick Henry, and why is it taking so long? I mean, he's been in the league four years, and now it's like, okay, now we're going hellbent and going with Derrick Henry? And why is it taking so long? I mean, he's been in the league four years and now it's like, okay, now we're going to go ahead and let him run. Well, I think the first two years, I'll answer this in two separate ways. So the first two seasons with DeMarco Murray, the reason that DeMarco Murray was the lead back

rather than Derrick Henry, and this is going to be crazy that the Titans guy coming on and saying bad things about Derrick Henry right now. But the reality is that Derrick Henry is a limited player and that's why it makes it scary for me as a, as a, I would say a fanalist. What are we going to pay Derrick Henry when he, so somebody like Josh Jacobs, why he's so valuable is because he can be like an Alvin Kamara type, a Christian McCaffrey type. He can do those things in the passing game while still being a very physical runner.

So the issue with Derrick Henry is you see an angle route from a Christian McCaffrey. You see a wheel route from a Kareem Hunt or an Alvin Kamara. Derrick Henry cannot run an NFL running back route tree. He just can't. He doesn't have the agility. He doesn't have the body composition to be able to do that. It's not even a knock on him. I mean, I guess it is versatility wise, but for him personally, it's just the way his body is built. He doesn't have the lateral agility quickness needed to run those kinds of satellite back routes that you hear. Think about a Darren Sproles type, the type of things he does on a football field.

That is the opposite of what Derek, Derek Henry literally cannot do those things. So the issue is when he's on the field, defenses can kind of know what's going to happen. Now, the Titans have done a good job of using him in the screen game, which makes it a little easier on him. He can just get the ball in his hands, have blockers out in front of him, get up to full speed, and then he's taken off. But if you're not running a screen and you just need a running back to run a regular running back route out of the backfield on a third and four,

he's not going to be able to do that. And because of those limitations, you're going to need a guy like DeMarco Murray who opens the playbook a little more and makes the defense have to think about what can happen a little more. Or like right now, the Titans are paying Deion Lewis $5 million a year. Mark Ingram for the Ravens is making $5 million a year this year. So Deion Lewis is not giving you anywhere near $5 million worth of production, but the Titans will always, as long as they have Derrick Henry,

they will always have to have a guy like DeMarco Murray or Deion Lewis because there are things Derrick Henry simply cannot do as a running back. Now, on to the positive. Like you mentioned earlier, he had a lot of tread on the tires at Alabama, so I'm kind of happy with those first two years of him being worked in and out. And at the beginning of last season, everybody remembers the big Derrick Henry burst the last five games of the year last year where he almost almost had a thousand yards in like four or five games. Well, what happened before that, that made that outburst so amazing?

Well, he just wasn't running hard. I don't, a guy that size, he was tiptoeing. He was finessing through holes. He wasn't hitting the hole hard. It's very simple to put it in football terms. And he got a call from Titans legend, Eddie George. And he told him, hey, man, you're running for your career right now. You're not far out from a contract negotiation.

And right now, the way you're running, you know, your career is on the line. And since that moment in time, he's been the best running back in the NFL. And in the last 16 games, the last 16 games, he leads the NFL in rushing yards, 1,725. He's had 18 touchdowns rushing, not to mention the couple that he's had in the screen game so he's been the best running back in the NFL quite frankly for the last 16 games and as long as he continues to run this way it doesn't matter what he lacks in the passing game because he's just so effective in the run game so combine that with my answer about the offensive line coalescing earlier, and you're getting everything that you're getting from Derrick Henry right now. He's been a beast. So with that being said, going into the game on Sunday against the Raiders, is it about Derrick

Henry getting cooking early? Kind of like what I said about Josh Jacobs, it's the offense goes through him, get him cooking early, and then it opens up the rest of the game for the Titans. Well, yeah, I think that has to be the case. Sometimes with a team like the Colts who have a really good rushing defense, same thing with the Raiders. I mean, they're giving up 122 yards a game, which sounds like a lot, but that's 10th best in the NFL right now. So the Raiders don't have a bad rushing defense, but at some point in time, you have the immovable object and the unbreakable wall. And for the Titans, with the way this offense is built, I don't think it matters how good the run defense is.

The Titans have to be able to run the ball, and they have to win that strength-on-strength matchup week to week. They're going to face the Saints run defense. The Titans play the Saints in two weeks. They're a top-five run defense, under 100 yards per game. They're excellent. But for the Tennessee Titans, it doesn't matter. They're going to have to come out and run the ball because play action in the play action bootleg is the most important part of the passing offense for the Titans and you don't

get near the effectiveness from from play action and the bootleg that you would if you had a you know a good running offense so you have to have a successful running offense to be able to get to our most successful plays in the passing game so whether or not the Raiders have a good rushing defense or not, or whoever the Titans play, yes, the number one goal will be to get the ball going downhill with Derrick Henry to help yourself out and play action. And Raiders fans can expect that the Titans aren't going to try to trick anybody. We know what we do, and we're just going to do it better than you can stop it. And that's pretty much the offensive plan right now. I'll tell you right now, man, it sounds like the Raiders

are going to be playing against the Raiders, or the Titans are going to be playing against the Titans. Right, right, yes. There are a lot of teams that do that. I have a theory that when it comes to general roster building, either you have one of those stud quarterbacks, which there's only like four or five Watson, Lamar Jackson, Rogers, Mahomes, Russell Wilson, either you have one of those stud quarterbacks

who can raise all tides. They lift everybody around them and you can consistently contend and make Super Bowl runs with that guy because he's that special. And if you don't have one of those guys, then you're looking at old school football, complimentary football, great special teams, run the ball, get to play action, play good defense against the run, give yourselves third and manageable, prevent the other team from getting third and manageable. I mean, football is a very simple, although it's complex in nature,

it's very simple in the general outlook. And right now the Titans and the Raiders are both teams without one of those stud quarterbacks. So both teams have to run the ball, stop the run, and not make mistakes and play good special teams. So a lot of games you're seeing here late in the season, it's like looking at yourself in the mirror because they are literally trying to be the same kind of team because they don't have the stud quarterback,

which is the other way to do it. So, yeah, it's kind of like a Frankenstein's monster game here. And the church said, amen. That's good stuff right there. That's Tyler Rowland crossover edition is what you're listening to. He's the host of the locked on Titans. Let me ask you how healthy are the Titans right now? I know they claim Tremaine Brock, the defensive back off a waiver. Uh, is the secondary something that's a major concern? I know a Dory Jackson was banged up last week. Uh, are they concerned with the secondary or is's a major concern? I know Adoree Jackson was banged up last week. Are they concerned with the secondary, or is he really just being brought in for death? And that's something that I talked about actually in the first segment of my show

that is just part of the Locked on Titans podcast before we got on here. No, Tremaine Brock needs to play and play soon. So the Titans are relatively healthy on offense. There's not really a lot of injuries to speak of on offense, but on defense, the Titans are definitely dealing with some injuries. Middle linebacker Jayon Brown has been banged up the last few games, although he's been able to play. I expect him to still play this week, but who knows how long he'll be able to play or if something will pop up. Taking a look at the edge depth, the Titans have lost a lot of people on the edge.

Cameron Wake was brought in here to be a veteran role player, situational pass rusher, and he went on IR last week with a knee. Then to the secondary, the Titans are good at safety, and they still have their top two players in the secondary, Kevin Byard and Logan Ryan, who is the best nickel cornerback in the league, in my opinion, and should be an all pro this year. But as for cornerbacks, they are just slam. Malcolm Butler went on IR earlier this year with a broken arm. Adoree Jackson was out a game earlier this year with a knee, left the Colts game

early with a knee, and it's not sounding too optimistic that he'll be able to play. So we're looking at LaShawn Sims, who is the titans fourth cornerback and he missed last week with an injury and is looking like he might not be able to play so the titans were playing ty smith their fifth string cornerback who spent most of the year on practice squad they brought up kareem or an undrafted free agent rookie who has been on the practice squad for most of the year they just signed signed Tremaine Brock, as we discussed and as we talked about in my first segment on the show. So the Titans are just incredibly beat up at the cornerback position, and they're taking

the opposite approach of what the Raiders seem to take. They know that they're limited in the secondary, so they just try to bring four and put everything to the coverage and try to help the coverage as much as possible. The Titans go the opposite approach. We're blitzitzing safeties we're blitzing linebackers we're running twists and studs up front with the defensive linemen we're blitzing corners off the side having safeties come up the middle disguising coverages and bringing blitzes to try to help out our corners and and try to get to the quarterback and limit the time they have to cover so you're seeing two different uh you're seeing the same problem,

but handled two different ways on defense with the Titans and the Raiders. So if I'm the Raiders, I know that the run game is the staple of what they do, but I'm running wide receiver screens. I'm running short ends. I'm running slants and making these Titans backup practice squad corners cover. Yeah, well, I'll tell you, that's what they're going to do as far as, I mean, they're going to stick with the run game as well, but they're going to have a lot of short intermediate passes,

a lot of crossing routes. They're going to do a lot of that. That's just a staple of what John Gruden does, and that's really what Derek Carr does. He does really well as well, so he might have a hell of a game. Yeah, I'm worried. I'm concerned that the game, a lot of people are all of a sudden down on the Raiders because they've looked bad a couple of weeks. Everybody's high on the Titans because they've had a good win streak

and had some explosive offense. But the NFL is just based on parity, and I could see this game being very, very close and maybe throwing some people off of what they're expecting to see from these teams. Well, you know what's funny? Derek Carr, I believe, is like 3-0 against the Titans, but then Ryan Tannehill is 3-0 against the Raiders. You know what I mean?

Something has to change here. What's going to happen? Exactly. Let me ask you this. I just got a couple more questions for you. How much does it hurt the offense not having Delaney Walker, the guy, the tight end who's been around forever? And it seems like every time the Raiders play the Titans, he's always on IR. Yeah, it's been unfortunate. So he always on IR. Yeah, it's been unfortunate. So he dislocated his ankle week one against Miami last year and was out the entire season, came back. He played in about six games this year and just playing his role, not an every down tight end like he used to be. He was one of the most complete tight ends in the NFL in terms of speed, athleticism, route running and blocking. He just doesn't have that ability anymore,

and he never fully recovered from the ankle. So he went on IR for that ankle that just never fully healed. I have to be honest, I don't think it's that big of a deal for the Titans this year. The improvement in backup tight end, Jonu Smith, which I don't even want to call him backup anymore because he was the starter all year, and Delaney was playing a role as a pass-catching tight end

and coming in when they needed two or three tight end sets so Johnnie Smith is kind of a clone of Delaney Walker just younger he's 6'2 very athletic uh very agile good with the ball in his hands uh polished route runner things of that nature he's not great in in the blocking game though that's where he needs to improve and he has improved but the Titans run like a tight end by committee. Anthony Ferkser is like your classic Jason Witten, Dallas Clark type tight end who runs good routes, has very reliable hands. Mecole Pruitt is a fullback slash blocking tight end who comes in in heavy sets.

And then Jonu Smith is the versatile one who is the tight end in pretty much every set when you need a tight end. So they're kind of doing tight end by committee. And unfortunately due to Delaney's injuries and just decline and play due to age, it hasn't been that big of a drop off. You would love, he's still with the team for veteran leadership,

which is important, but unfortunately I feel bad saying it, but it really hasn't been much of a drop off this year without Delaney because of the improvements of the other tight ends. All right. Well, I got one more question for you. I know there's four games to go. The Raiders are obviously the most important, but with four games to go and Tennessee got Texans twice,

how do you think they do in the AFC South? I actually think that the Titans are able to beat the Texans once, lose in week 17 in Houston, but I do think that the Titans are able to beat the Texans once, lose in week 17 in Houston. But I do think that the Titans are able to go nine and seven and get the sixth wildcard spot. So I see them making the playoffs in that spot. But I think they split with the Texans and end up second in the AFC South. Okay, that'll work. Well, do you have any predictions for the game

or do you not like to do predictions? You know, I've noticed it does depend on who I'm talking to. I don't mind doing predictions whatsoever. I think that the Titans win this ballgame 24-21. Wouldn't be shocked if the teams were flipped and the score was the same, but I don't see it being a super high scoring or low scoring fair, kind of in the middle, 24-21 with a few turnovers for both teams. You know, it's funny.

I like how you said you wouldn't mind or you wouldn't be surprised if the teams were flipped and that's exactly what I'm going to do with it. I'm going to flip it. I think the Raiders go with 24 and the Titans get 21 and they get off the snide and get a victory. I do think that the key difference is going to be they're playing in Oakland and that crowd that's carving for some more Raider football. It's the last season in Oakland. We'll provide another three points for the Raiders. That's the difference in the game. Yeah, and it's a central time team going out west,

playing a West Coast team. There's just a lot of issues with that. So I would not be surprised. That's why I'm trying to get Titans fans ready. I know a lot of money in Vegas and stuff is on the Titans, and everyone's believing in the Titans right now. But this is a very, very tough game with the strengths and weaknesses, the way they line up, and going out west to Oakland.

If this was in Tennessee, I would feel much more comfortable about the score and the margin for the Titans, but being in Oakland, and this is a good football team. They're maybe not great, and maybe they're not going to win the AFC West and beat the Chiefs like people thought, but this is a good football team with good players and good coaching. So I say 24-21. And yeah, I wouldn't be surprised whether either team was on either side of that score.

Well, that's great stuff right there. That's my guy, Tyler Rowland. He is the host of Locked On Titans. This is the crossover edition. Titans Raiders is going down this Sunday at the Coliseum. And that's great stuff, man. I definitely appreciate you. I look forward to talking to you again.

Yeah, talk to you again, Q. Thank you. Okay, guys, that was my conversation with Q from the Locked on Raiders podcast. Had a really good time chopping it up with him, talking about the game. Hopefully you guys enjoyed that as you always do. That is going to do it for this crossover Wednesday. Tomorrow we are going to be right back at you with another show. So I will see you then.

As always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland, and this was Locked on Titans.