Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Locked on Titans: NFL Schedule release

Episode Date: April 20, 2018

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Welcome into another edition of Locked on Titans. I am Jimmy Morris, joined as always by Terry Lambert. Terry, how are you tonight? Doing pretty good. What's going on? I know you are super excited for the schedule release edition of Locked on Titans. Before we get into the Titans schedule, I want to remind you that we cover the Titans from UCMiracles.com, so you can check out our work there for SB Nation. cmiracles.com so you can check out our work there for SB Nation and then you can follow us on Twitter I'm at jmorrismcm Terry is at tlambertfb you can follow the podcast

account at LockedOnTitans you can subscribe to the podcast wherever you get podcasts iTunes Stitcher Spotify you can find us in all those places we did an episode earlier this week with Jonathan Hutton of the Midday 180 and Titans Radio so go back and listen to that if you missed it a lot of good We did an episode earlier this week with Jonathan Hutton of the Midday 180 and Titans Radio.

So go back and listen to that if you missed it. A lot of good insight from him on the Titans and the draft. And it was a pretty long episode, so a lot of good stuff there. All right, so tonight the schedule was released. And again, the hype over this thing is funny because we've known the opponents since December. But now we know the order in which they will play these opponents. And sure, there are some things you can look at. As far as the way travel breaks out and different places they're going to play, weather and that kind of stuff. All that stuff is kind of interesting.

So the Titans open in Miami. And, you know, when you go through this and we're going to kind of go game by game and give our initial thoughts on it. But keep in mind here that, you know, we're having this conversation as we sit here. It's the middle of April. We have no idea what the majority of these teams are going to look like when September rolls around, especially when you get into October, November, December. I mean, we know how things go in an NFL season.

You know how much injuries affect the team. You know how much just some teams come out of nowhere and surprise you. So that's kind of my disclaimer before we get going. Anything you want to add to that, Terry? Yeah, I agree with that. It's just so fluid. People last year, probably us included, thought the Titans were going to finish up easy with Rams, 49ers, and Cardinals,

and the Titans ended up dropping all three of those games. So a grain of salt here with everything you're hearing tonight. Still have a draft to go. Still have a full season to play. Injuries start happening in preseason. So not a big deal to me it's cool to see where the titans play where they get prime time games you know how how the bi-week checks out and all that but uh not a huge deal to me but i understand the excitement for people who are

traveling and for people who attend the games yeah and like you said i remember looking at last year's schedule and thinking that the stretch like october november where they played the ravens and the bingles and the steelers uh you know three out of those four weeks or whatever was going to be a really defining stretch for this team and if they could get through that splitting those games coming out healthy and like you said they've got the the cardinals and the rams and 49ers and teams that we thought would be wins and i just remember having a conversation with people man we got the nsc west that's great you know the seahawks are tough but those other three teams are all pretty bad that was kind of

the conversation leading into the year and they they go and you know beat the seahawks pretty bad uh here and then lose to the rest of the teams from the division so yeah things change um and especially the season goes along. So, yeah, just kind of keep that in mind as we go here. Week one at Miami. Second year in a row, the Titans will travel to Miami to play the Dolphins. Last year, remember, it was the disaster game where Mario didn't play because of the hamstring injury.

You had Matt Castle. A game the Titans absolutely should have won. If they had won that game, absolutely should have won if they had won that game they would have won the division um you know the a bad call a you know malarkey should have challenged a spot in that game there's all kinds of stuff that went wrong there but i don't know the dolphins will have tanny hill back so i mean i think they'll probably be a little bit better from that standpoint instead of running jay cutler there. But, I don't know, to me, that's one of the weaker opponents, and I'm not sure what they can do between now and then

to really make their team something that I would fear. Yeah, no more Ndamukong Su, no more Jarvis Landry, no more Jay Ajayi since we last saw him. But, yeah, you get Tannehill back. That's a big plus. And we don't know if he's going to come back healthy. That's another asterisk there. But the first thing I think of when I see Miami week one,

I think it's going to be hot. So I'll take that into account. You'll probably see Miami out in the white jerseys. You might see the Titans out in the light blues just to try and, you know, shield themselves from some of the heat. So, but, yeah, all things considered, pretty manageable week one opponent, a game the Titans should win. Yeah, absolutely.

That game's on Fox, which is weird. Yeah. That's an AFC-AFC game, but it's on Fox. That's not something you normally see. So just kind of keep that in the back of your mind. Next two games are division games, Houston at home and then at Jacksonville. A lot of questions around the Texans. You know, Deshaun Watson, we saw what he did to the Titans

and to the rest of the league, really, when he was healthy. Obviously, they were a different team after he went down. You expect him to be back and fully healthy for week one, really when he was healthy obviously they were a different team after he went down uh you expect him to be back and fully healthy for week one you know assuming no other injury happens um yeah i don't know when i look at this right now i just kind of assume that you know you obviously you have two with houston two with jacksonville two with indianapolis if we assume that ishawn watson's healthy andrew luck's healthy i think it's going to be a really tough division. And I just would kind of assume 3-3 in those six games.

And it's hard to really predict what's going to come where. But, you know, we saw last year the Titans matched up really well with the Jaguars. The Jaguars were the best team in the division last year for the most part. I mean, they won the division, so you kind of got to give them that distinction. But I don't know. It's really hard to predict what's going to happen within the division in the AFC South, but I do think that it's going to be a better division than it was last year, and I don't think you'll see it being the laughingstock of the NFL

like it has been in the last couple years. Yeah, you still don't know what you're going to get with Deshaun Watson, even though he set the league on fire. Year two of quarterbacks historically don't go as well. The NFL figures you out, and then you've got this ACL injury to take into account. You know, we had the Texans guys on a couple weeks ago, and they're just over the moon, rightfully so. But I don't know.

I feel like I've seen this story play out before. So that's a big question mark. And Jacksonville's Jacksonville. You know who that team is. They're going to play defense. They're going to run the football. And that's a pretty tough team to beat still. They're so simple.

But I'm on the record saying any of these four teams, including the Colts, if Andrew Luck comes back and it's Andrew Luck, the Colts can win this division. So it's going to be fun. I think your point about just going ahead and assuming 3-3 is probably an accurate one. So, yeah, these division games are going to get nasty starting this year. It's going to be fun. Yeah, and that's the thing. It is going to be fun. Yeah, and that's the thing. It is going to be fun to watch, and that's different than what's been in the past.

Even in the year, Jacksonville was terrible. The Titans were terrible. It's just been a long time since it's been a really good competitive division, and I think we'll see that this year. All right, so week four, the Eagles come to Nashville. Obviously, the Eagles are coming off the Super Bowl. You assume that Carson Wentz is going to be back and healthy. I guess he'll be back for the start of the year, but even if he's not,

you assume he's back by the end of September coming off of that ACL. It'll be a fun game. You've got that offense and what we know that they can do. Jim Schwartz coming back to Nashville. I mean, there's some storylines there. You know, I mean, obviously, as we look at it today, you'd have to kind of chalk that up as an L for the Titans. I mean, right. The Eagles were clearly a better team than the Titans last year. What kind of adjustment the Titans make? I mean, I don't know. But that's not a game that I feel comfortable in.

And I'm not going to we're not going to go through this and say win-loss, win-loss. We're just kind of looking at it as a high-level overview. But if you're looking at that game, I would have trouble picking the Titans in that game, but it'll be fun and kind of a measuring stick for the Titans when you see the team that won the Super Bowl last year. Yeah, a measuring stick for sure. You just talked about big games. That's probably a top three big game on the schedule.

You've got the Super Bowl champions coming to town. That roster top to bottom is just filthy. It's stacked. We'll see how Carson Wentz is. Even if he's not right, you saw what Nick Foles can do in that offense. Just really how they structured their offense and took apart a decent New England defense there. That's a scary one.

But, yeah, I don't, you know, we don't want to predict wins and losses there, but I struggle to see a Titans team hanging with the Eagles. And you go to Buffalo the next week. I don't see any way that the Bills are drastically improving. Now, they made the playoffs last year, but they kind of backed in, you know, similar to what the Titans did. You know, they're going to draft a quarterback more than likely,

but right now their quarterbacks are A.J. McCarron and Nathan Peterman. So it doesn't necessarily strike fear in the heart of opposing teams. Their fans will be hostile. They're still mad about the Music City Miracle, delusional thinking it was a forward pass. All that kind of stuff is still there. But that's kind of a favorable matchup, and good that you go there in October instead of December.

Yeah, and your quarterback room looks like A.J. McCarron, Nathan Peterman, and potentially a draft pick, maybe even Josh Allen. So they're in a bad place. And it's weird because they made the playoffs last year. I just don't think they're any good. I expect them to take a couple steps back this year, maybe even working a rookie quarterback into the mix.

So, yeah, that's one of the times I have to go get it. Then you have Baltimore here. Hate the Ravens. We know the history between those two teams. But, again, not a team that I think we're really going to be afraid of. Joe Flacco's old. They don't have a lot of weapons that you're scared of. That defense has still been good, but not the feared units that you've seen in the past.

So, I mean, that's a game that I think is absolutely winnable, especially here. Titans beat them last year. It seems like we end up playing them every year. But, you know, I don't know. That seems like a winnable game. And then you head to London the next week to take on the Chargers, and we were talking a little bit before we jumped on here. I mean, you go back through the series history against the Chargers,

and it's pretty much just brutal on the Titans' side, even in years where you thought the Titans had the better team. It just seems like it never works out well against that group. Yeah, I don't have high hopes just because of the series history. It seems stupid, but there seems to be a mental block there similar to what the Titans had going on with the Colts. Yeah, just remembering that last game against the Chargers, Melvin Gordon goes nuts,

and then Marcus Mariotta has a chance to win the game at the end and throws a crippling pick, so that just kind of seems to be how the ball bounces. But, yeah, weird to have an 8.30 a.m. start on a Sunday in London. So that's going to be interesting, waking up with your coffee and Titans, and then you'll have the rest of your NFL Sunday. Yeah, like you said, it's going to be weird. And that's Ken Wilson-Hunt's revenge game, right?

Oh, gosh. He's still the offense coordinator there, right? Yeah. So that'll be fun. All right, so that leads us into the bye week. So coming up, we'll take a look at the remaining part of the schedule. All right, so coming off the bye, the Titans go to Dallas on Monday Night Football. Titans got two Monday Night Football games this year, which is cool.

Neither one of them are here in Nashville, which is a little bit unfortunate. But, I mean, that'll be a big stage, obviously. You know, Dallas is one of the premier markets in the league. You know, a good team, a tough place to play. Monday Night Football, all that stuff will be fun. You know, they're going to look to look different. They're not going to have Dez. Dak Prescott's team a little bit more.

Ezekiel Elliott. I don't know. That's going to be a fun environment, if nothing else. Yeah, anytime you play the Cowboys, for whatever reason, it just seems like a big deal. Playing in that stadium, on that stage, that Monday Night stage, it's going to be awesome.

Not sure what to make of the Cowboys now. Not a lot of offense outside of Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott right now. We'll see what they do next week in the draft. But yeah, still a good roster, still a good offensive line. It'll be a

tough test for the Titans. It's probably an 8-8 team so kind of similar to the Ravens and the Chargers the Titans are just going to have to find ways to beat those middle dwelling teams yeah and I think

we talked a little bit about this before we came on too this is probably the toughest stretch of the schedule October 21st you go to London to play the Chargers. Then you've got Dubai. Then you come, you've got at Dallas, out of Dubai. Then you've got New England at home. We know what they typically are.

Don't expect them to be a whole lot different this year. They're aging a little bit. We don't know if Rob Gronkowski is going to get traded. There's some stuff swirling around there. They're still the Patriots. Bill Belichick is still going to be their coach. Tom Brady is still going to be their quarterback. So, you know, that's always tough. But so out of the bye, you've got at Dallas, New England at home.

Then you go to Indy, to Houston. So those will probably be crucial games, division games there. And that just seems November seems like the toughest stretch of this schedule. Again, as we sit here right now, a lot can change. But that looks like the month of November seems like it'll tell us a lot about what this team's going to be. Four of five on the road, and then your home game is New England.

So that's pretty brutal. I don't care how it checks out with injuries. That's pretty brutal. The Titans are going to have to come out of there. It's probably two and three, I'd'd say to stay in the playoff hunt but uh as you're about to get to it does lighten up there at the end yeah and that's the point so then you come you come back home on the 2nd of december for the jets you've got jacksonville the following week you go to the giants uh on the 16th of December, and then you've got Washington and Indianapolis at home to end the season.

So that's at least, again, as we look at it right now, favorable to have for every last five games at home. Two division games, the Jets, who I don't expect to be in contention for a playoff spot. The same kind of with the Giants. I mean, never an easy chore to go up there and win in December when the elements will probably be pretty rough. Washington, I mean, I think they'll be a pretty good team,

but not, you know, an unbeatable group. So I think if you can kind of tread water into December, then, again again at least as we sit here right now having four out of five at home two of them division games so you can kind of make up some ground if you're a little bit behind there um so i mean i i like the way the schedule sets up in that in that you have a chance with a lot of home games towards the back end a couple division games so if they're if they're in mix, you have to look favorable at the way it plays out. But again, like you said from the beginning,

we thought the same thing about last year's schedule when you had road games against the Cardinals and the 49ers and then home to the Rams. We saw how much different that was. Again, the 49ers and the Rams weren't really any good. But the Titans caught the 49ers after they had acquired Jimmy Garoppolo. They were a much different team after that. And the Rams were obviously all better than we thought they would be.

But you've got to like having the bulk of your home games kind of look back in there. Yeah, it doesn't really matter who you play. Four out of five to end the season is what you want. And it's interesting. We were talking about this earlier. You end the season with the Colts at home. I don't remember the last time that happened. It seems like the Titans always play the Colts in Indy to either end the season

or super late in the season. So that was one noticeable difference for me. That trip to New York to play the Giants, I don't know what the Giants are going to be. Apparently they're not going to take a quarterback on Thursday. We'll see about that. But you add Saquon Barkley to that mix, that's Saquon Barkley and Odell Beckham,

that's a pretty potent offense in a tough matchup in December. I guess we should mention the Redskins game could be flexed to Saturday night. I guess if the Titans and Redskins are both in the hunt for the playoffs. So one minor note there. Yeah, and again, you know, cool that the Titans get two Monday night football games. I don't remember the last time they played on Monday night twice. You've got obviously a Thursday night game. Everybody gets one of those.

But there was some, you know, obviously playing at Dallas this year, there was a chance they could play on Thanksgiving. That's not the way this shook out. And, you know, you look at the back half of the schedule and maybe a game, could that New England game get flexed to a Sunday night game? I think that would be cool. It's been a while since Titans have played on Sunday night night and it's just something that I'd like to see just because that you know that that means you're in the mix that means that there's a storyline there

the national tv audience at least the networks think they want to see hasn't been the case for the Titans lately just because you haven't had that many compelling games for them so maybe they can get another one of those but I mean you like I said, you look at three primetime football games right now, a chance for maybe one or two more. And then obviously, you know, the back half of the season, all that depends on records and all that kind of stuff. But, you know, and again, the more you win, the more national TV games you get. And that's what we're seeing this year. So hopefully, you know, we'll see the Titans continue to make some strides. I mean, I think, like we we said we knew who the opponents were going to be um there's a there's a you know there's a few quirks in there as you look at the schedule

but at the end of the day we're all excited to see this new coaching staff especially this new offense and what malafor is going to bring to marcus mariotta and company and you know again this conversation we've been having is all contingent upon Mariota staying healthy. If he is hurt early in the year and misses an extended period of time, you know, I think Blaine Gabbert's better than Matt Castle. But I don't think we have a lot of, you know, high hopes for a team that is led by Blaine Gabbert for an extended period of time. And you can make those same comments,

or you can have that same conversation about pretty much any of these teams that we're talking about. Yeah, and one other note, I think it's pretty cool that ESPN jumped on board with Titans at Texans. You know, ESPN hadn't done a lot right these days. But I think hopping on to a budding rivalry there, the rivalry's already there. But, you know, you've got Marcus Mariota and deshaun watson going head to head that's a that's a marquee quarterback matchup maybe for the next decade uh that espn can capitalize off of so i think it's a smart move to go uh get those young quarterbacks on tv uh get this get this titan stacks and rivalry

uh in the spotlight because like we were saying earlier, AFC South is going to be really good, and it's going to be really good for a long time. So hats off to ESPN there. Yeah, absolutely. And, again, just fun to have the Titans in the national conversation. It's always fun to see it through that lens because we haven't gotten to see it much lately just because they haven't been very good. So that's it. That's our breakdown of the schedule.

And, again, I'm not going to get into game by game, wins and losses, because I think that's just silly. But that's kind of our high overview as we sit here and look towards the end of April on what the 2018 season could look like. All right, so that will pretty much do it for this week. Now next week is thefl draft um so that's obviously you know a very exciting time uh not sure exactly what the schedule will look like we will obviously do a podcast after the first round for the second third rounds that you know after

the saturday stuff so we'll have three next week we'll probably do one or two early in the week just and see if we can get uh some interesting guests on to talk about the different players and what the Titans will be considering. But on the other hand, we've kind of beaten that to death at this point. And again, it's a tough conversation to have when you're not picking until 25 because so much can change leading up to that pick. So if you have any questions or wondering you know, wondering about needs or whatever, like I said, go back and listen to the thing, the conversation we had with Hutton was the last podcast we did. We did kind of a mock draft on the podcast before that.

And then two weeks ago, or I guess last week, we had Justin Mello on and really broke down needs and some individual players. So go back and listen to that kind of stuff as we lead up to the draft this week. And like I said, we'll get maybe just kind of a primer episode before the draft next week just to kind of get you ready with players that have visited the Titans and some conversations that we've heard and that kind of stuff as to what they might be thinking. So any final thoughts on any of this, Terry?

One note I don't think we mentioned yesterday titans visited privately with alabama safety rod uh is it ronnie ronnie harrison there we go uh so yeah another safety safety safety for jimmy so that's right he might just get his wish yeah i mean again i i don't think that's obviously the highest need on their board but if the best player that they have rated on their board is there and they can't get out at 25 then I mean I think

it should be in the conversation alright so that'll do it for us tonight again you can follow us on Twitter I'm at jmorrismcm Terry's at tlembertfb podcast at locked on titans check all that stuff out. Like I said, if you're new, go back and check out the episodes we've done in the last couple of weeks because that will give you a ton of information

on what the Titans need, what they could be thinking, and then different players that we've seen in mock drafts and stuff. We've kind of broken all that down. So go back and check that out. Like I said, subscribe to the podcast so that you don't miss any episodes going forward for Terry this is Jimmy saying thanks for listening to Locked on Titans and we will talk to you next week

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