Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Locked On Titans- Oct. 21- Prediction Friday & more

Episode Date: October 21, 2016

It's Friday and we give you are predictions on who will win when the Colts visit Nashville Sunday. #BHop #TerryMc #GregA Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hi, it's Jamie, Progressive number one, number two employee. Leave a message at the... Hey Jamie, it's me, Jamie. This is your daily pep talk. I know it's been rough going ever since people found out about your acapella group, Mad Harmony, but you will bounce back. I mean, you're the guy always helping people find coverage options with the Name Your Price tool. It should be you giving me the pep talk.

Now get out there, hit that high note, and take Mad Harmony all the way to nationals this year! Sorry, it's pitchy. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates. Price and coverage match limited by state law. You are Locked on Titans, your daily podcast on the Tennessee Titans. Part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. And welcome to Locked on Titans, your daily source for all Titans news and information. With your host, Terry McCormick of TitanInsider.com, Greg Arias, and former Tennessee Titans Pro Bowl left tackle Brad Hopkins. It is Friday. A lot of things to cover today. As always, our current news segment will lead things off. We'll also have game analysis of Sunday's upcoming matchup

between the Colts, who will visit Nissan Stadium. We'll give you our predictions and our final thoughts. And as I say that, I bring in my co-host and partners in crime, Brad Hopkins and Terry McCormick. Gentlemen, another Friday. These days seem to be just clicking by as we have started this podcast and are getting in now to another week and another game coming up on Sunday. Yeah, it's really crazy.

We are already in week number seven of the NFL season, six weeks already in the books, and we're rapidly approaching the halfway point because the Titans will have a Thursday night game next week against Jacksonville. So that will be the halfway point of their season. It seems like they just got started. Yeah, I think it's crazy. Entering week six, you're talking about a division in the AFC South

that is completely wide open, and the Titans right now having the chance to kind of not necessarily take control with Houston sitting at the top at 4-2, but at least solidify their position more, maybe even slip into a wild card situation if the AFC South were to produce such a talent like that. So it's just kind of wide open right now, and it's a good chance that we get the Colts kind of vulnerable right now, right, Gary? Absolutely.

Absolutely. Let's jump right into our current news segment. We've got two things to talk about today, and neither one of them are bad news for the Titans, which is a good thing through six weeks heading into week seven this week. Guys, we want to start by talking about something that's a little bit unusual in the NFL, and that's something that Dick LeBeau is doing with this Titans defense, in particular at the safety position and the way that he is rotating guys. Now, Dick LeBeau has

been an inventor, an innovator in this game throughout his career. The zone blitz, we know about all of that, but now he is perhaps introducing something new with this rotation. Guys, and Brad, you played offensively, but you know obviously obviously, what it's like to be in the trenches in the NFL. Have you ever seen a team doing what the Titans are doing with the safeties? I know we see that with the defensive line. We see that with receivers. But the Titans doing it with safeties.

Yeah, you know, I was thinking about that just the other day, ironically, not necessarily in the back end, but why defensive linemen, you know, rotate in and out. Offensive linemen adversely, they never leave because you've got to have that kind of continuity, that kind of flow, so you see that interchanging the parts doesn't necessarily work well for the offensive side of the football. But when you look at what the defensive line's job is to do

is to apply pressure. You can apply more pressure if you can constantly have the same kind of, I don't know what you call it, like guys that don't get tired, basically, because they're being subbed out. You get to apply the same kind of pressure up front. So now let's take that to the back end. You've got guys that are covering fly routes and all kinds of stuff like that, and sometimes they get tired.

Well, then they rotate in and out just like the receivers kind of do whenever they pat the top of their helmet because they've done something that makes them tired. So it constantly gives them the ability to basically apply more pressure because they always have fresh bodies on the field. Yeah, and I was talking to DeNorris Searcy about it, among others, when I wrote the story about the safety rotation. He said that it's keeping them fresh because not only are these guys, you know, playing safety,

and they've got four guys who are pretty much interchangeable in Searcy, Rashad Johnson, Kevin Byard, and Damian Stafford, but he said they all play special teams. So if you've been running down 40 yards covering a punt, you know, it's good to go to the sideline and get yourself a breather before you have to go back in. It keeps you fresh and ready for the fourth quarter. It's certainly an interesting concept, and obviously I think it might be something that we continue to see now.

We know that DeNora Searcy and Rashad Johnson getting a little bit long in the tooth, if you will. Byard, of course, being the rookie. Damian Stafford is a veteran, but he's not really played that much football over the course of his career. So it could certainly be something that the Titans look at replenishing these safeties, guys,

and keeping four guys to continue this rotation in the near future. Yeah, I was going to think about it. Go ahead, Brad. Well, just real quick, Terry, I just want to kind of mention the fact that, and you'll probably agree with this, that if you've got more guys that are actually able to play,

that adds a lot of depth. So if you were to, like, say, incur injuries, you've got more guys that are able to be field ready because they've been in rotation the entire time, you know? Right. We saw that a couple of weeks ago when Searcy missed a couple of games with a high ankle sprain. They just dropped the rotation down from four to three,

and they went on and did not miss a beat. And then the other residual benefit I guess there is to this is the fact that one of those guys, Kevin Byard, is a rookie, third-round pick out of MTSU. Now normally you wouldn't want to throw a rookie in there and throw them into the fire before they're ready. But this is allowing Byard to kind of get his feet wet, make some plays, get comfortable knowing what NFL life is like because him being in his first year

and being a third-round pick, they think he's the future at safety. He's already getting a little bit ahead, and by next year I would expect that they may still rotate at the other position, but my guess is Kevin Byard will have a lot of snaps. Now I want to throw this out to you guys because there's been some talk on social media, and I know that social media fans get upset, get ideas in their head, but some people have been a little bit down on Byard because he's not been the, quote, ball hawk that he was at MTSU. Granted, he's a rookie and he's playing in rotation,

but what do you guys feel about his game at this point in time in his rookie season? Well, I don't think he's doing anything to hurt the Titans. I think he's, you know, a guy that's kind of still learning the game. You know, how many rookies, you know, really, you know, come and take the league by storm, especially at a complicated position like safety where you've got to make the reads.

You're part of the process of communicating back there and letting the cornerbacks know what type of technique they need to be in and that sort of thing. So there's a lot on his plate as a rookie. I think he's played just fine. He's got one interception, and he's around the football a lot, nearly had a blocked punt on special teams a couple of weeks ago. So I have no problem with the way he's playing.

I think he's just going to get better. Yeah, I agree 100%. I mean, I will say this. His preseason, the exceptional play for such a late-round draft pick, kind of raised the level of expectation for this young man too. So let's not forget where he was drafted. I mean, he was a fourth-rounder. Admittedly, you will see those guys on the football field,

but this isn't like first-round, second-round expectation. So I think that he's kind of outkicked the covers a little bit and done a great job early on, and people kind of expect that from now on. But he will continue to make plays, and obviously he still has to make adjustments in his game because this isn't preseason. This is where you no longer will see the vanilla approaches. There's exotic approaches to everything single thing they're doing,

and he has to be able to keep up to speed with everything that's going on. I'm sure he's thinking more so than anything right now, which is probably taking away from some of his reaction. He'll be fine once he gets more comfortable as the season progresses. You're listening to Locked On Titans on the Locked On Podcast Network, the world's fastest-growing sports audio network. Football is back, and SeatGeek is the smartest, easiest way to find tickets for games you want to see up close and in person this season.

There's nothing like being in the stadium for the biggest plays of the year, and with SeatGeek, it's never been easier to get the seats you want for a great value. SeatGeek has the best never been easier to get the seats you want for a great value. SeatGeek has the best deals on every ticket in the house, wherever you want to sit, whether it's the 50-yard line, the club seats, or even the upper level. I have a SeatGeek app on my phone. Yes, it's true. I do. I used it this past weekend for the Tennessee-Alabama game, and it's by far the easiest way I've found to shop for tickets. I can be anywhere and with

just a few taps I can instantly find seats for this weekend or any game this season. With Seat Geek you always get the best deal on every ticket because Seat Geek prices compares for you by searching multiple ticket sites. Prices can vary depending on where you shop but Seat Geek will always find you the lowest of... Today's show is sponsored by Talkspace, the online therapy company. For a fraction of the price of traditional therapy, you can pick an experienced, licensed therapist you relate to and feel comfortable with.

Each and every therapist has at least a master's degree and has completed over 3,000 hours of supervised work. To match with a perfect therapist, go to Talkspace.com forward slash boom. And to show your support for this podcast, use code boom to get $30 off your first month. That's boom. Talkspace.com slash boom. B-O-O-M.

Available prices. And SeatGeek wants to help you get the most bang for your bucks. That's why every ticket on SeatGeek is given a grade based on value. You'll immediately see any underpriced seats and be able to find the best deals that fit your budget. Plus, every ticket you buy on SeatGeek is backed by their 100% guarantee. Best of all, our listeners get a $20 rebate off their first SeatGeek purchase. How do you do that? Well, you go to the App Store, download the SeatGeek app, go to your settings tab, and click add a promo code. Enter the promo code LOTITANS and SeatGeek will send you $20 after you've made your first ticket purchase.

Download the SeatGeek app and enter the promo code LOTITANS today. Hi, this is Maury Moreland-Morrison here to tell you Geico has more than just great savings. Much more. Yes, while Geico could help you rack up more moolah faster than you can say metamorphosis, Guys, as we continue on with the current news, say no other auto insurer has more more than Geico. Geico, expect great savings and a whole lot more. Guys, as we continue on with the current news, the big news coming out about this game on Sunday is the injury report as it pertains to the Indianapolis Colts, where pretty much the entire team, including Chuck Pagano, it looks like, is on the injury report, Terry. Yeah, it really is. Right. The Colts have 19 players listed on their injury report. Terry. Yeah, it really is.

Colts have 18 players with no injury report. Among the guys who didn't play today or practice today are Dante Moncrief, Phillip Dorsett, and T.Y. Hilton, basically their top three receivers, plus they're going to be without Dwayne Allen. Even Andrew Luck showed up on the injury report as limited today. Yeah, I think your dog left a couple of them off because there's so many of them on the list there, Terry and Greg. But I tell you what, that's going to definitely affect how they're able to do things during the week because if you've got limited numbers during practice,

they're not going to be as fluid on the field on Sunday because they haven't had, obviously, the reps. But what that does do is give younger guys a chance to get on the football field. And if they need to go on the call on those guys, then they'll be more battle-ready, more battle-tested. So it's probably a good opportunity for the Titans to catch a team like the Colts right now as they're ailing a little bit, you know, and jump on them early. Now, Brad, how much of this is fodder by the Colts?

And I'm not saying that they're fudging the injury report, but perhaps maybe a guy's got a nick, they know he's going to play, but they hold him out an extra day because he's a veteran, and it's really not that big of a deal that he missed practice on Thursday. I know usually Thursday's a big day as far as getting ready, but with a veteran player. Yeah, but, I mean, if you think about it, injury report basically is just information. You can read out of that what you want.

So if they're just telling you they held a guy out, I mean, it might just be precautionary reasons or it might be some legitimacy to it, but that's just kind of up to us to speculate. So they're just giving you the information, telling you who didn't come out there and practice. And, you know, if you think about it, if you can rely on a guy, regardless of him missing practice time, that's more advantageous for the club because they can just fully disclose who's on the injury report, and it's not going to really have that much of an effect because you really don't know if he's going to play or not at that point. Right, and you're right. A lot of it just depends on which day of the week it is

and how the team sets up their practices. Like the Titans, their padded practice for the week is usually on a Wednesday. So if they're going to go in full pads, it's usually going to be on a Wednesday. Yesterday they had a couple of guys who were a little nicked up, Anthony Fasano and Bryce McCain, with ankle injuries. They didn't go in the padded practice to give themselves time to rest and recuperate. Today they were out there practicing fully.

So I think, you know, there's plenty of signs pointing to the fact that both of those guys are going to play. So the same thing may be in play for the Colts where they're holding some of these guys out away from the padded practice to let them heal up a little bit, give them an extra day, and then as the week progresses you ease them back in. One thing's for sure, the Titans at least appear, guys, to be in better shape physically from a health standpoint

going into this matchup. All signs point to the Titans being a favorite, which they are according to the line. And let's jump over into the game analysis segment and look at this matchup on Sunday when the Colts come to Nissan Stadium. And Terry, I want to start by asking you about the quarterbacks. Obviously, Andrew Luck, one of the premier guys in name in this league,

he has played well. But Marcus Mariota is coming off perhaps his best game of the season, certainly his best game at Nissan Stadium. Can Marcus Mariota match him play for play in this game? Well, I don't think he needs to. I don't think the Titans really want him to for this simple fact. The Titans have the ability to be more balanced on offense because they have the better offensive line.

They have the better running game with DeMarco Murray plus Derrick Henry when they choose to use him. The Colts are basically a one-dimensional team. They've got a patchwork offensive line, the right side, that they've had issues on. They're running back. They've got Frank Gould, but he the right side, they've had some issues on. They're running back. They've got Frank Gore, but he's still effective, a little longer than two.

And then wide receivers are hurt. Dwayne Allen is hurt. So it's all on Andrew Luck's shoulders to try and win this game. And I think the Titans are really, and Mariota, are in a much better position because they've got extra things that they can utilize. They can run the ball. They can throw the ball.

They should have a lot more balance and a lot more weapons coming into this game. A lot more healthy weapons than what Andrew Luck has to work with. What I'm going to try to do is avoid this sounding like a trap game for the Tennessee Titans because of all of the things that you so eloquently laid out about the injury situation involved in the Colts. What that does do is alleviate pressure because it lowers the expectation. If you think about an injury-riddled team that's on the road already struggling when

they haven't won a game or two, it just kind of says that the Titans right now, which are a favorite, they should be. So anything that happens is basically falling on the Titans' shoulders. But I think that, you know, obviously when you look at them being able to get themselves together, I mean, this is a team that can strike with a guy like Andrew Luck. Injuries are going to play a huge part of this game, but I think that ultimately we just got to play the game out

rather than looking at it on paper and seeing what this team should or shouldn't do. Ultimately, they have to be consistent like they did last week, not make mistakes. They'll ultimately end up shooting themselves in the foot, and it should be okay. Now, defensively, guys, in this one, the Titans seemed to have an advantage in that area as well. Terry, you talked about the balance on offense, but what they've been able to do with the sacks and the pass rush pressure they're getting against an offensive line

that you mentioned is patchwork. everything seems to figure the Titans. So why do I feel like that this could be, as Brad said, a trap game? Well, there's one reason. That's because the Colts have dominated this series. It's kind of a Tennessee-Florida type situation, if you want to put it in the college vernacular. You know, there have been several times over the last few years that a lot of people thought that the better team in the Tennessee-Florida series didn't always win, but Florida always found a way to get it done.

There have been a couple of times in this series, not a lot of times the Colts have been the better team. There's no doubt about that. But there's been a couple of times lately that maybe people felt like the Titans could have beaten the Colts, could have beaten the Colts, should have beaten the Colts, but yet they lost nine in a row, 14 out of 15. This Sunday, most people believe the Titans are probably the more talented team, 1-53. The question is, do the Titans believe that enough,

and can they overcome any adversity that might come their way that would allow the Colts to catch a break and be close and have a chance to win this ballgame at the end like they have a lot of times in the past. That's the key for the Titans. They have to play this game confidently and not make mistakes at critical times. And even if they do make a mistake here or there, not let that affect their thinking that, oh, no, here we go again.

Is this a mental thing, guys, when it comes? And, Brad, obviously, as a veteran player, is it a mental thing with this, with the Colts, that the Titans just have to overcome that more so in this game than they do the physical part in playing the game? Well, I think that when you look at the things that have played the Titans, it kind of goes hand-in-hand with what was going on with Marcus Mariota, putting more pressure on himself to live up to that expectation.

The expectation has definitely increased when you look at all of the new things that have kind of lent to a different atmosphere over at 460 Great Circle Road. You know, they're saying right now is the time for us to change what has been going on, you know, around here lately. People are excited about the program and they want to see it continue to flourish. And when things happen dysfunctionally, it kind excited about the program and they want to see it continue to flourish. And when things happen dysfunctionally, it kind of feels the opposite of that.

I think ultimately this team will continue to grow and not make the mistakes because they'll ultimately not feel that pressure that has been innately put on them because they've been doing so well early on. It's time to change gears and jump to the part that everybody's been waiting for, the predictions, where we tell you who we think. And guys, I've got to admit, I'm still torn right up until I make my prediction here in a few minutes. But let's start with you, Brad.

Go ahead and tell us who you think is going to win the game on Sunday. Well, all the injuries that we've been talking about pretty much throughout the show, the fact that already they didn't have much of a pass rush, they don't have much stability running the football, Frank Gore's getting a little bit older, and Andrew Luck just isn't on target with everybody that he needs to be for this team to have deep down the field threats. So this is an excellent opportunity for that ground game that has been already established with Tennessee Titans to keep the ball, move the chains, and win possessions.

So I expect the Titans to win big by a couple of touchdowns, at least 28-14 Tennessee. Terry? Well, I agree with a lot of what Brad said. I do think the game, though, will be close. I don't think the Titans will blow the Colts out, even though they are certainly capable of that, and they, I believe, are the better team right now.

I think it will be a battle, much like it was last week against the Browns, that there are still those demons that have to be exercised in the way that the Titans are trying to go about this season and put their past failures right there in the past. I think I'm going to say that the Titans do use their running game to get it done, and that the pass rush makes it a rough day for Andrew Luck. But they're going to have to withstand a late comeback try and a late rally by the Colts.

I'll say 27-21 Titans. Well, Terry, I just wrote down my score as I was listening to you and Brad talking. You and I are one point off on our final score. I'm going to take the Titans to win 27-20, but I'm nervous about it, and I'm nervous about it because what we saw a week ago from Cody Kessler and the way he, as a rookie with very limited talent at wide receiver, no disrespect to the guys from Cleveland, but the way he was able to throw the football around against the Titans in that game.

Now, granted, they got to him, sacked him six times, but Cleveland still able to make a comeback and have to make the Titans sweat it out at the end. Andrew Luck certainly very capable of doing that and more, but I'm going to take the Titans in this one. I think they can run the football and shorten the game enough that they win this thing 27-21, the final score.

Those are our predictions for the week, guys. It's now time for the final thoughts. Terry, lead us off on that. Well, kind of along the same lines of what we've been talking about, and I've been harping on this all week. This is another step for the Titans. This is a chance to exercise another demon, to get rid of a team, you know, in their mind that has dominated them. And, you know, one of the things that's on the wall out at St. Thomas Sports

Park this week, it says focus. And it says you can't, if you chase two rabbits, both of them will get away. So that means that Mike Malarkey is wanting his team to focus solely on the Indianapolis Colts and then try to take care of business Thursday night against the Jacksonville Jaguars. I think they know that if they can get on some kind of roll here, that they can make some noise in this division, that they can get to 5-3, but you can't get to 5-3 until you get to 4-3,

and that's the message that Mike Malarkey is sending the team this week. Brad? I think that, you know, when I made the prediction of 28-14, that's going to be kind of the mindset inside the Titans locker room. The reason why I say that is because, speaking by the Colts, this NF

right now is not going to make anybody feel that much better, but a dominant performance, one that we haven't seen from the Titans in years almost, that would set this team in a different direction. That would almost catapult them into another stratosphere when you talk about their abilities and living up to that. So I expect them to go out, jump on this team early, and really start throttling them to show that this is a team that needs to be reckoned with.

28-14 is a final for real. Brad, I have to agree 100% with what you said about jumping on them early, throttling them. I think the Titans are the better team right now, obviously. As Terry said, 1-53. But this still scares me, and it's the Andrew Luck factor, and it's that mental factor with the Titans. They've got to come into this game. They've got to jump on them early. They've got to put them away early on in this ball game and not

have this thing come down to a fourth quarter where Andrew Luck potentially has the football in his hand with a chance to win it. I think they need to dominate it, start to finish, and if they can do that, as you guys have said, certainly it changes the dynamic moving forward because four and three for this team at this point in the season with a chance with Jacksonville coming in to get to five and three could really be a huge thing. And once again, I said this earlier in the week, it comes back to the fans.

This Titans team got the fan support on Sunday against Cleveland. They affected two plays. I think we're going to have to see more of that on Sunday. If the Titans fan base can affect some plays with the Colts, cause some issues and help the team out, that's even better. The Titans, I think, win the game, guys. Again, as I said, 27-20. We'll find out if we're right on Sunday.

That's going to do it for us on this Friday edition. We'll be back with you on Monday where we'll talk all about this Colts contest. Until then, enjoy the weekend and enjoy the game. You are Locked on Titans, your daily Tennessee Titans podcast. Part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day.