Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans Derrick Henry Slays Carolina Panthers, Will Levis Concern & Mike Vrabel's Future

Starting point is 00:00:00 Titans fans, it's time to appreciate Derrick Henry while we still can. Let's recap the Titans 17-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers on today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. Let's get it! You are Locked on Titans, your daily Tennessee Titans podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Welcome to the Locked On Titans podcast.

Starting point is 00:00:44 I am your host, Tyler Rowland, Titans fans. Today's edition, victory edition of the Locked on Titans podcast is brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs. Helps you find qualified candidates that you want to talk to faster. LinkedIn Jobs is the best place. You can post your job for free at linkedin.com slash locked on NFL. That's linkedin.com slash locked on NFL to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply. The Tennessee Titans win 17-10. The victory was

Starting point is 00:01:15 good. The real thing we need to talk about here is Derrick Henry and we need to appreciate the king while we still can. We'll talk about his performance. Also, we'll do Tighten Up, Tighten Down to talk about the good and bad performances. Roger McCreary shut down Adam Thielen. The Titans' defensive line came to play. Will Levis was a little up and down.

Starting point is 00:01:46 Also, big report over the weekend, Mike Vrabel's job status is not in jeopardy. So we're going to talk about all that on today's show. Before we do, thank you for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen each and every day. Remember, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content all year round, always for free. Make sure you get subscribed, stay subscribed. It's your team every day here on the Locked On Titans podcast. So the Tennessee Titans win 17-10. Let's be honest. It wasn't all that impressive of a victory. Now, a win is a win is a win.

Starting point is 00:02:16 But in this season when the Titans really aren't fighting for the playoffs, when they're not going to make any kind of run, what is a win? So I hate to just sully a win and a victory and be that guy of, you know, what's the win really for? But at the end of the day, for me, what this game was all about was appreciating Derrick Henry. Derrick Henry went over 9,000 yards for his career in this game. And look, it wasn't the most impressive day in the stat sheet for Derrick Henry at 18 carries, 76 yards, 4.2 yards per carry.

Starting point is 00:02:50 Had the two touchdowns, though, the only two touchdowns that the Titans scored on the day. Got loose a little bit at the end of the game. Was able to hit an 18-yarder there. I mean, had the stiff arm on the 10-yard touchdown run, his second touchdown of the day. Look, at the end of the day, for me, again, it's all about appreciating Derrick Henry while we still can

Starting point is 00:03:12 because these performances, even though they weren't over the moon, statistically speaking, are still performances that we may not get to see very much of going forward. It is obvious from watching this team, even in a 17-10 victory, this team is not very good. I hate to be a Debbie Downer, if that's what you want to call me. Go ahead. That's fine. But you watch the football. I watched out there, right? The team is not very good. So in the midst of all of that, I just want to appreciate these performances from Derrick Henry. Every run that he makes, the stiff arm, the move,

Starting point is 00:03:45 breaking a couple of tackles, getting into the second level, getting to the third level. Derrick Henry went over 9,000 yards rushing today. He is one of the greatest running backs of my lifetime. And today is one of those performances that we can look at and smile. I appreciated and enjoyed watching Derek Henry run today, even if it wasn't some magnificent 150-yard performance. It was still good to see that.

Starting point is 00:04:13 All right, so appreciate Derek Henry because who knows if he's even going to have a 70-yard game the rest of the way. Against who? Who knows if the Titans are going to win another game this year because I don't think that they will at this point. The Colts are a better team. So just appreciate this.

Starting point is 00:04:31 Appreciate Derrick Henry. Throw a thumbs up on the video right now as well if you appreciate Derrick Henry and his career with the Titans. Who knows how many games we have left. But some other thoughts that I had about this game while watching it outside of just wanting to make sure that we appreciate Derrick Henry while we can here

Starting point is 00:04:50 even though he has regressed some this year and all of that. The big takeaways. Tale of two halves for Will Levis. One of those drives in the second half where Will Levis missed DeAndre Hopkins and then almost threw an interception. That was the first time that I've really been like, man, Will Levis missed DeAndre Hopkins and then almost threw an interception. That was the first time that I've really been like,

Starting point is 00:05:08 man, Will Levis let the Titans down on that drive. Now, Will Levis was really good in the first half. I mean, on that drive, he went 7 for 7, 80-plus yards, led the Titans all the way down for a touchdown. We saw the best of Will Levis, and he had time in this game, was able to make some throws. We saw the best of what Will Levis he had time in this game was able to make some throws we saw the best of what Will Levis can do on that drive in the first half

Starting point is 00:05:29 but we saw some of the bad that Will Levis provides in the second half it wasn't all bad in the second half there were just a few throws a few drives but definitely some inaccuracy there so kind of a tale of two halves for Will Levis still really excited about what he did in the first half and I want to break down that drive

Starting point is 00:05:47 later on this week. But would love to have seen a better second half from Will Levis. This should have been a 24-27-10 victory for the Titans and they just laid an egg in the second half and a lot of that had to do with Will Levis just wasn't really playing his best football. You know what I mean? That's an honest assessment there. The offensive line was okay.

Starting point is 00:06:11 I don't like to talk too much about offensive line play until I'm able to watch the film. A lot of people want to know about Jalen Duncan. A lot of people want to know about Dylan Radins. They were okay. There was still pressure on Will Levis. He still had to move around quite a bit in the pocket. They didn't really block with a bit in the pocket. They didn't really block with any consistency in the run game.

Starting point is 00:06:30 The run game didn't really do a ton in this game. I mean, the Titans had 80 yards on 24 carries. That's 3.3 yards per carry. It's not like the offensive line was great here. Look, the Panthers are just terrible. They're terrible. And I've said all week that I thought that if the Panthers lost this game, Frank Reich was going to get fired.

Starting point is 00:06:53 Apparently, their owner, David Tepper, is cussing in the locker room after this loss. The Panthers look lifeless. I mean, this game, neither of these teams is a good football team. Period. This was not a good football game. It was ugly. But the Titans are the better team, and that's what I was saying all week.

Starting point is 00:07:12 And now I think Frank Reich probably gets fired. And he probably should, because they're lifeless and terrible. Alright? Again, even though a roster is bad, the coach can still do a poor job. And Frank Reich is right now with that team. The Titans secondary outside of Roger McCreary. I mean, Sean Murphy bunting was pretty good too, but Roger McCreary.

Starting point is 00:07:35 Shutting down. Shutting down. Adam Thielen in this game. Great job. Great job by Roger. Pass rush was good. The pass rush was good. But it's a terrible offensive line let's be honest here. So, you know, look, the Titans barely beat a bad team at home. They didn't look good either. But hey, Derrick Henry, two touchdowns, 70 plus yards. Let's appreciate the good. Roger McCreary, Will Levis on that drive in the first half. Let's appreciate the good. Roger McCreary, Will Levis on that drive in the first half.

Starting point is 00:08:07 Let's appreciate what we can. Who knows how many wins we're going to get to see the rest of the year. But now, I want to do tighten up, tighten down. Also, we got a major report on Mike Vrabel's future with the Tennessee Titans. So I'm going to go over that, all of that, on today's show. But before we get into it, do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs. When you're hiring for your small business, you want to have as many top tier candidates as

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Starting point is 00:09:41 Also want to let you guys know that today's episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Look, it's the end of the year and with that can come the seasonal blues. Holidays aren't easy for everybody even though it seems like a joyous time. This time of year can be a lot and it's natural to feel some sadness or some anxiety about everything that you have to do, it would be a great time to check out BetterHelp Online Therapy. I've worked with BetterHelp before. It's been very productive. You get matched with the right therapist. It's a good way to just be the best version of yourself and help you during some difficult times, which the holiday season can be

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Starting point is 00:10:52 And get 10% off your first month. That's BetterHelp. H-E-L-P.com. Slash. Locked on. Titans fans, we're going to continue today's victory recap edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. We talked about my big takeaways, appreciating Derrick Henry, some of the Locked on Titans podcast. We talked about my big takeaways, appreciating Derrick Henry,

Starting point is 00:11:27 some of the standout things for me, but now I want to get into the individual performances, both good and bad, with Tighten Up, Tighten Down. Make sure you guys let me know your Tighten Ups, your Tighten Downs, down below in the comment section right now. Before we get into Tighten Up and Tighten Down, though, thank you

Starting point is 00:11:44 guys for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen each and every day. Remember, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content all year round, always for free. Make sure you get subscribed, stay subscribed. Throw a thumbs up on the video right now as well. The show is always free. All I ask for in return is the press of a button.

Starting point is 00:12:01 Tomorrow, Tic Tac Tuesday, diving into the film. Going to go over what I saw from Will Levis, Roger McCreary shutting down Adam Thielen, all of that. Wednesday, we're going to look ahead to the rest of the schedule, what the Titans need to be concerned with, draft pick, and then, of course,

Starting point is 00:12:17 crossover Thursday and game plan Friday. Your team every day here on the Locked on Titans podcast. But I'm going to start with the Titan ups. And, of course, I'm going to start with Derrick Henry. Derrick Henry had 18 carries, 76 yards, two touchdowns, 4.2 yards per carry. 18 yards was the long rush on the day. Went over 9,000 yards for his career. Great performance by Derrick Henry, but we talked about Derrick Henry quite a bit. We got to talk about the defense, all right?

Starting point is 00:12:42 Because while there were some ugly moments in this game, there are some players who deserve recognition. Number one, Danico Autry, Jeffrey Simmons, and Arden Key on the defensive line. And honestly, Danico Autry and Jeffrey Simmons, number one and a close number two. I mean, both those guys were excellent on the day. Totally disruptive. Danico Autry had three tackles. All three of his tackles were for loss.

Starting point is 00:13:10 He had two quarterback hits, two sacks. Jeffrey Simmons, five tackles, one sack, three tackles for loss, one quarterback hit. Both of them were in the backfield all day. You start at the beginning of the game where Danico Autry stopped the pitch. You go throughout the game, whether it be Arden Key, whether it be even Harold Landry got some pressure and looked pretty solid,

Starting point is 00:13:30 chasing down Bryce Young. But Jeffrey Simmons just dominated the game, held the Panthers to three. Another four-point tackle by Jeffrey Simmons this week. Another four-point tackle where he tackles a guy on a play that saves the Titans points. I mean, Jeffrey Simmons was a $100 million player today, and he should be. He should be. The Panthers are terrible.

Starting point is 00:13:53 This is a terrible football team. Jeffrey Simmons better look like a $100 million player, and he did. And Danico Autry did as well, and Key and Landry helped out. The defensive line was great. Outside of that, Roger McCreary. Adam Thielen, Adam Thielen, the Panthers' leading receiver, had one catch for two yards on three targets. Roger McCreary got to go back in the slot in this game

Starting point is 00:14:20 because Sean Murphy Bunting was back, and you have Fulton and SMB on the outside, and McCreary gets to go back in the slot. McCreary is a slot corner. He is too small to play outside. So it makes sense that Roger McCreary looks bad for a couple of weeks when they're trying to play him outside. He goes back into the slot and he's incredible and shuts down Adam Thielen all game. Shout out to Roger McCreary. He is the, out of all of the things that we talk about this year, I'm excited about Will Levis going forward.

Starting point is 00:14:49 I'm excited about Peter Skronsky going forward. I'm excited about Roger McCreary going forward. Those are like the top three things for me that I'm excited about going forward. Roger McCreary has been great this year, man. He has really been solid. Really good by Roger McCreary. So the D-line and Roger McCreary, good. The pass catchers. The pass catchers

Starting point is 00:15:11 did good today. Hopkins, three catches, 49 yards. Should have had another 20 yards and another catch when Will Levis threw it behind him. Chigga Conquo. He showed up finally. Four catches, 45 yards. And I thought NWI and Chris Moore continued. If NWI and Chris Moore are your wide receiver four and five, you're doing okay. You're doing okay.

Starting point is 00:15:36 But when Traylon Burks is your wide receiver two, Kyle Phillips is your wide receiver three, now it makes it tough. The Titans need two new wide receivers. That's what they need for sure. But, NWI, four for 41. Chris Moore, three for 41. Just solid performances.

Starting point is 00:15:56 Solid performances. Also, Ryan Stonehouse. Down performance last week, but whoa. 53 yards per punt had a 71 yard punt that set the Titans up they get a turnover they get a touchdown

Starting point is 00:16:09 five of his punts inside the 20 yard line five of seven I mean Ryan Stonehouse was great in this game Nick Folk hit his one field goal from 53 yards

Starting point is 00:16:23 I think that's as long on the year hit both Nick Folk hit his one field goal from 53 yards. I think that's as long on the year. Hit both. Good job. I mean, hit all the kicks that he was asked to hit. I thought even Eric Guerrero, good job returning. 16 yards on two returns.

Starting point is 00:16:42 He's not a real returner going forward, but I thought he did a pretty good job in this game. I thought Amani Hooker, while he's had some struggles in coverage, not getting a lot of help around him as well, he had 11 tackles on the day. I thought he made some good plays. I thought he was around the football.

Starting point is 00:16:58 Amani Hooker, pretty solid. But other than that, I don't have a lot of other tight nuts. So you let me know if I missed one because, again, the Titans won this game, but it's not like it was a great performance. It's not like they played super well

Starting point is 00:17:16 and there were a lot of standouts. So, moving forward to the Titan downs, let me know your tight nuts if you thought I missed any. Also, let me know your Titan downs. Christian Fulton's just not getting the Titan downs. Let me know your Titan ups if you thought I missed any. Also, let me know your Titan downs. Christian Fulton's just not getting the job done. I said before the season that Christian Fulton would not be back.

Starting point is 00:17:36 And I cannot wait for him to not be back. He's the best that they have right now, so they have to play him. But week after week, he commits penalties and just can't handle it. He just isn't a starting cornerback for the Titans. Shouldn't be. Aziz Alshire, I don't care that he's made a lot of tackles. He has missed a lot of tackles. And a lot of his tackles, when he makes contact,

Starting point is 00:18:00 he doesn't drive anybody back and they drive forward through him and it leads to additional yards. Aziz Alshire is not a starting linebacker in the NFL. If he is, he is a low-level starter and shouldn't be your number one linebacker. I've just had it watching him miss tackles and be in the wrong spot. I've had it. Aaron Brewer. Look, I tried to give him benefit of the doubt throughout the season

Starting point is 00:18:21 and say, hey, if Aaron Brewer is the fifth best offensive lineman on your team, maybe you'll do alright. But Aaron Brewer just cannot get it done. He had a tough matchup with Derrick Brown, but he's just too small, man. He's just too small. And he missed a block on the reverse to Chris Moore that if Aaron Brewer makes that block, that's a big game. And he just can't miss blocks out on the perimeter when you're the size Aaron Brewer is. That is what you're expected to do for a living. Daniel Brunskill as well. I feel about Daniel Brunskill how I feel about Aziz.

Starting point is 00:18:55 If he's your fifth best offensive lineman, maybe. But at the end of the day, he's just a borderline starter who is not an actual starter. Brunskill isn't terrible, but he's just not good enough, and the Titans should aspire to have better. They should aspire to have better. The penalties, and the penalties on the Titans, eight penalties, 53 yards. The Titans continue to give teams penalties on third downs. Some of them were ticky-tacky. Some of them weren't great,. Some of them were ticky tacky.

Starting point is 00:19:25 Some of them weren't great. But some of them were the right call. And the Titans are just having dumb penalties. It's so annoying. And then finally, my last Titan down is for the refs. The refs were terrible in this game. I am not somebody who comes on here and blames the refs very often for anything, but terrible job in this game.

Starting point is 00:19:49 Terrible job by the referees in this game. But, man, with that being said, with that being said, time to talk about Mike Vrabel. Because we got a big report about Mike Vrabel over the weekend from Diana Rossini. And it looks like Mike Vrabel is not on the hot seat. So I'm going to go over the recent report from over the weekend here in just a moment. Before I get into it though. Do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you by PrizePix.

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Starting point is 00:21:33 for a first deposit match up to $100. It's PrizePix. Daily fantasy sports made easy. Titans fans, let's cap off today's victory recap edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. We talked about my big takeaways from the Locked on Titans podcast. We talked about my big takeaways from the game. Appreciate Derek Henry.

Starting point is 00:22:12 Some standout performances on defense. We did tighten up, tighten down to go over the good and the bad again. Let me know your tighten ups, your tighten downs down below. Now I want to talk about this big report from Diana Russini that came out over the weekend about Mike Vrabel's future as the Tennessee Titans head coach. Before I get into it, thank you guys for making the Locked On Titans podcast your first listen each and every day. I do want to let you guys know that Locked On has launched

Starting point is 00:22:36 the first ever national sports 24-7 streaming channel on YouTube. Locked On Sports Today is here for you 24-7 covering the top sports stories of the day with local experts like me from Locked On Titans, plus national coverage from our national shows as well. Go to Locked On Sports Today on YouTube and subscribe to the first ever National Sports 24-7 streaming channel be a part of history. But with that being said, we got to get into this report about Mike Vrabel from over the weekend.

Starting point is 00:23:12 Diana Rossini had this to say, quote, frustrated New England Patriots fans can stop hoping owner Robert Kraft will trade with the Titans, Tennessee Titans, and replace head coach Bill Belichick with his former player, Mike Vrabel. It's not happening.

Starting point is 00:23:32 Angry Tennessee Titans fans can stop hoping Amy Adams Strunk fires Vrabel. It's not happening. Based on multiple conversations with high-ranking Titans officials, the franchise strongly and collectively believes it has the right coach for long-term success. Is the Titans leadership thrilled with losing right now? No. Who is?

Starting point is 00:24:06 But they are fully aware the foundation and identity of this team is reflective of their head coach. He does it his way and gets his players to believe that is the way. While the Titans are trying to figure out if rookie quarterback Will Levis is their quarterback of the future, the clearest vision this team has is who will be their leader for years to come.

Starting point is 00:24:35 Ready, steady, Vrabel. End quote. They're not firing Mike Vrabel. They're not. They're not going to do it no matter how many games that the Titans lose the rest of the way. They're not going to do it this offseason. It's funny because earlier in the year, in September,

Starting point is 00:24:59 and then in October as well, I've said that I don't think the Titans are going to have Rabel in the hot seat unless he loses next year. After you use the $100 million in cap space. After you use the draft picks that you'll have, which will probably be high. But if the Titans lost this game to the Panthers, I thought the embarrassment might force ownership's hand. But the Titans didn't lose to the Panthers, and this report came out a couple of days

Starting point is 00:25:27 before the game. So, at this point, the one drama that we may have the rest of the season, Mike Vrabel's job status, will he be fired? That drama is over now. Now, listen. There are people who will point out that there were reports that the Titans were in on Mike Malarkey before they ultimately fired him a couple of weeks later. There are people who want to point out that Mike Vrabel said, we're never trading A.J. Brown, and they traded A.J. Brown.

Starting point is 00:25:56 So just saying that reports in the media, I will say Diana Rossini reported that it was a long shot that the Titans got Julio Jones, and they ended up getting him. So there are examples where you could say, hey, I don't believe this report. The Titans could still fire Mike Vrabel. But I'm just here to tell you my opinion. That's what this show is.

Starting point is 00:26:18 That's what my job is, is to give you my opinion. I believe this. The Titans aren't firing Mike Vrabel. He will get the opportunity to use this offseason to build the team that he wants. Alright. So,

Starting point is 00:26:37 take that for what you will. I think that there's a good chance the Titans don't win a game the rest of the year. I think that's a definite possibility. Next week at home against the Colts, probably their best chance to get another victory the rest of this year. But you guys let me know down below.

Starting point is 00:26:55 Would it be a good thing for the Titans to win next week against the Colts? Interesting conversation worth having. But we're going to break down the tape on tomorrow's show. We are going to talk a ton about the rest of the season ahead on Wednesday, Thursday, crossover Thursday, Friday, game plan Friday, setting up for a divisional matchup at home against the Colts next week. So the Titans win 17 to 10. Appreciate Derek Henry.

Starting point is 00:27:22 Hope we get some better play from Will Levis in the second half than we saw in the second half going forward. But with that being said, folks, that is going to do it for a victory recap edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. As always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland, and this

Starting point is 00:27:40 was Locked on Titans.

Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans Derrick Henry Slays Carolina Panthers, Will Levis Concern & Mike Vrabel's Future

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