Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans MUST DESTROY Carolina Panthers, Derrick Henry & Jeffery Simmons Masterclass Coming

Episode Date: November 23, 2023

The Tennessee Titans are finally back at home in Week 12 and will be going against the 1-9 Carolina Panthers. This is as much of a MUST WIN as the Titans could have the rest of the year. To get it, they need to get Derrick Henry going on the ground and Will Levis should be looking to do what he does best, throw downfield. On defense, the Titans' highly-paid defensive line, led by Jeffery Simmons, must dominate the matchup and cause chaos for Bryce Young. Finally, Tyler makes his prediction and puts a spotlight on Roger McCreary's matchup.Follow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitansFollow the show on Facebook @LockedOnTitansPodSubscribe to the Locked On Titans YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/c/LockedOnTitans/videosSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!DoorDashGet 50% off up to $10 value when you spend $15 or more on your FIRST order, when you download the DoorDash app and enter code LOCKED23. Subject to change. Terms apply.BetterHelpThis episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Make your brain your friend, with BetterHelp. Visit BetterHelp.com/LOCKEDON today to get 10% off your first month. PrizePicksGo to PrizePicks.com/lockedonnfl and use code lockedonnfl for a first deposit match up to $100!GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Last minute tickets. Lowest Price. Guaranteed.LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Terms and conditions apply.FanDuelScore early this NFL season with FanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook! Right now, NEW customers get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS with any winning FIVE DOLLAR MONEYLINE BET! That’s A HUNDRED AND FIFTY BUCKS – if your team wins! Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Tennessee Titans will blow out the Carolina Panthers this weekend, and I'll tell you how they're going to do it 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. I am your host, Tyler Rowland, Titans fans. Today's episode is brought to you by BetterHelp.

Find your bright spot this season with BetterHelp. Visit betterhelp.com slash locked on to get 10% off your first month today. Titans fans, it's a game plan Friday. A game plan Black Friday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. Hope you guys enjoyed your Thanksgiving. Hope you're out there having fun today or just relaxing as well. We got some ball to talk about. I think the Tennessee Titans destroy the Carolina Panthers this weekend at home. I'm going to tell you how they can do it.

We're going to talk how to attack zone coverages on offense. Going to talk pressure on defense. I'll reaffirm my prediction and talk about some individual matchups to finish out today's show. But we are going to start on the offensive side of the ball. Before we get into it, 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 long on all apps and always for free. You're not going to beat that anywhere else. Make sure you get subscribed. Stay subscribed. It's your team every day here on the Locked On Podcast Network.

With that being said, shout out to my everydayers. On Sunday, I'm going to be going live immediately after the game to break down everything that happened and then break down the rest of the action of the season as we continue forward. So make sure again that you get subscribed. Stay subscribed. Throw a thumbs up on the video right now. If you think the Tennessee Titans are going to win this weekend.

Because I think they're going to win big. And on offense. The big thing for me is. I think the Titans will be able to run the football. And when you look at it. If the Titans can run the football. Then they're look at it, if the Titans can run the football, then they're able to get into their play action pass game. They're in third and manageables. It's not so difficult for them. They don't got a pass block for so long. All of those reasons

right there are why running the ball is going to help the Titans offense. but specifically for me, against this Carolina Panthers defense. The Panthers allow 129.4 yards per game. That's bottom 10 in the NFL. The Titans are always better at home. They should be able to run the football. And if you're able to run the football, and you're able to open holes for Derrick Henry, this offense is going to be ignited. That's how it always works. The last two times that we've seen the offense

look really good against the Bengals, against the Falcons, they were able to get the ball rolling in the run game. Same thing, you go back to last year against Green Bay. So I think the Titans are going to be able to do that in this game and if it were me, I'm running outside because the Panthers don't like to tackle. This is a terrible, terrible tackling team.

All right? So get Derrick Henry to the outside, to the perimeter, against safeties, cornerbacks, and linebackers. That's what I want. All right? Don't let Derrick Henry get stopped at the line of scrimmage by big bodied guys. Get him into the second level. Get him to the perimeter where there are guys who do not want to tackle on a 1-9 football team.

So, that means I want to see toss sweeps this week. I want to see some pin pull action. I want to see outside zone headed to the B gap and the C gap. Attack the perimeter. Get Derrick Henry to the smaller players they do not tackle well on this team. If you do that, I think the Titans are going to have a ton, a ton of success on the ground. Big Derrick Henry game coming. You want to play in daily fantasy? You're worried about Derrick Henry in your lineup this week? I own Derrick Henry in a fantasy league. I'm worried about it.

No, this is a hammer spot for Derrick Henry. And if he doesn't have success this week, well, that would be incredibly concerning. But the Titans have to be able to get back to running the football, and this is a team that should allow them to do it if they attack the perimeter in their run game. In the passing game, the Panthers, it's just like last week against Jacksonville.

Jacksonville was one of the most zone-heavy teams in the NFL. The Panthers are even more zone-heavy than the Jacksonville Jaguars. They're led by, I forget the first name. I think it might be Elijah, but it's Ivaro. It is the last name of the Panthers defensive coordinator. He is a descendant of Vic Fangio and like Brandon Staley. So you're going to see a lot of cover two. You're going to see a lot of cover four.

You're going to see a lot of quarters coverages. You're going to see a lot of cover six with a deep half and then two quarters on one side. That's fine. Where is that defense vulnerable? The Titans run some of those coverages. Where is that defense vulnerable? One, if you can get the cornerback in quarters in an isolated situation,

you're going to be able to hit posts. You're going to be able to hit go routes. Think about the double move that DeAndre Hopkins got on his final touchdown against the Atlanta Falcons. He ran that double move. The safety came forward, and then he ran by him. Well, when you're in a quarters coverage, if you're the deep quarter on the two deep quarters,

the safety and the cornerback, a lot of times in those coverages, there are role responsibilities where the safety, if the outside guy goes vertical, the cornerback stays with them. And then the safety kind of drops down into the middle. So you can match up in coverage rather than hanging back deep for no reason. Well, if you can get the safety on the inside to bite up

and then you run a post behind them, you're going to be able to have success there. It's worked on the Titans before. It's where the Titans have worked also. With them thinking that in their head, getting a couple of sit-down routes or some in-breaking routes at the 15-yard mark in front of that safety, hey, the safety's worried.

Got to respect the post deep. Can't come down too quick. Deep in as they're in front of him. Oh, okay, you're going to come in on the deep end. Then we sneak the post behind you. The Titans have to be able to attack those zone coverages down the field. Talking 15, 20 yards down the field, and that is why I think the Titans are in for a big game here

because this team doesn't tackle, and they don't stop the run well, which should help Derrick Henry more than anything. And then on the flip side of things, there are zone coverages that could be susceptible to deep routes, which is where Will Levis does his best work. So this defense, in my opinion, lines up exactly with what the Titans need. Now, there is some concern with the pass rush, of course.

You have Brian Burns on the outside at the edge rush, and you have Derek Brown on the inside. And Derek Brown is an excellent interior lineman, and Brian Burns is a good edge rusher as well. So the Titans are going to have to deal with that. But again, if you're able to run the ball, then you're going to be in third and short. You're going to be in second and short. And then if there is pressure on a play action, you can throw it away and you're still at third and one. If there's pressure, you can get the ball out quicker because it's third and short,

not a third and long. All right. Excuse me. So the Titans have to run the ball and I would like to see them run towards the perimeter with toss sweeps with outside zone and then they need to attack downfield against these zone coverages and it will be interesting to see because the book on the Titans is tight press coverage

crowd the line of scrimmage bring pressure Jacksonville did not do what they normally do last week they did what beats the Titans. So what will the Panthers do? Will they do what beats the Titans, even though it breaks their tendencies? Or will they stick with what they do? That'll be interesting to watch. But all you can do is plan for what you've seen, and if they do something else, then you adjust from there. But that's what I would do on the offensive side of the ball. With that being said, we're going to talk about the defensive side of the ball, and like most weeks, especially this week, though, it's all about the defensive line, because

this offensive line for the Panthers might be even worse than the Titans' offensive line. It's crazy, right? It's crazy, right? But it just might be true. We're going to talk about that in just a second. Before we do though I do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel Sportsbook. Look we're in the middle of the season here. Thanksgiving was yesterday. It is time

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locked on and get in on the action while the NFL season is still here. That's Fanduel, official partner of the NFL. Titans fans, let's continue today's Black Friday game plan preview edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. We just talked about the offensive side of the ball,

how I want to see the Titans attack there against this Panthers zone defense. Now I want to transition into the Titans defense and what they need to do against this struggling Panthers offense led by rookie quarterback Bryce Young. Before we get into it, thank you guys again for making the Locked On Titans podcast your first listen each and every day. Make sure that you check out Locked On Sports today. All right, Locked On has launched the first ever

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With that being said, Bryce Young has eight interceptions this year. The rookie quarterback and first overall pick has struggled mightily. Especially over the middle of the field. Alright? And he struggled when he's under pressure. When Bryce Young is under pressure,

his completion percentage drops from 72% when he's kept clean to 40%. When Bryce Young is under pressure, he literally cannot operate. All right? I think some of that is he's smaller, harder to see over the line of scrimmage in a crowded, traffic-filled situation. I also think that a lot of his success in college came off schedule. He got out of the pocket. He was playmaking. Vision is easier there.

If you make Bryce Young throw from the pocket right now, while under pressure, he's going to make mistakes. They're not going to have success on offense. It's that simple. And at the end of the day, there's no way, there's no way that the Panthers are going to be able to run the ball on the Titans. No way. No way. So that's going to mean third and long. And that's going to mean exotic twist stunts. That's going to mean blitzes. That's going to mean pressure fronts. They're going to be able to get pressure on Bryce Young. And when they do,

they should be able to make plays. Now, this team has, what, three interceptions all year? It's like last in the NFL. So I'm not counting on the Titans to get a bunch of interceptions, but I am counting on the defensive line to sack Bryce Young. Jeffrey Simmons is twice Bryce Young's size. He is going to eat him alive. So it may not be interceptions,

but turnovers nonetheless. The Titans should be able to get the ball out of Bryce Young's hands. Strip sacks. They should be able to do that. Alright? And if you get him running and you get him worried enough early on, he may just throw you the football a couple of times. Especially over

the middle of the field. Six of Bryce Young's eight interceptions have come within the hash marks. He does not throw well there. So if I'm the Titans, I'm protecting the outside, and I'm forcing you to throw into the middle. I'm going to run cover too. I'm going to have deep outside, underneath outside. Throw it in the middle. Throw into the middle of the field. I'm squeezing to have deep outside, underneath outside, throw it in the middle.

Throw into the middle of the field. I'm squeezing you in. Squeezing you in. And that's where the help is going to be because who's the one wide receiver that you're really worried about on this team? Adam Thielen. And where does Thielen do his best work? Over the middle of the field.

So, I am squeezing the outsides, pinching the outsides, and forcing the action into the middle of the field where Bryce Young doesn't throw very well and where you'll have additional help for Adam Thielen. That's what I would be doing. And if you're not running cover two, then for me, I'm running cover one man. I'm going to have man coverage across the board,

and I'm going to have a deep middle, and I'm going to have an intermediate hook defender. And we're squeezing you on the outsides with outside leverage, and we're forcing everything inside to where our zone defenders are. And then we're rushing with four. We're doing twist stunts up front. And let's see if Bryce Young can pick us apart over the middle of the field. Let's see it.

That's what I would do. And honestly, at the end of the day, this offensive line for the Panthers is terrible. Like, they're terrible. Chandler Zavala has like, Zavala, I don't know if I'm saying it right, sorry. But he has like a 7, yes, 7 grade in pass protection per pro football focus. He hasn't played a ton.

But like, Austin Corbett, Bradley Bozeman, Jeffrey Simmons should absolutely cook. I mean, T.R. Tartt should absolutely cook against this offensive line. They should dominate them. All right? The Panthers' offensive line may be worse than the Titans. Other than Taylor Moten, their right tackle, who's pretty good. Everyone else on the line, not very good.

Including Ikiakonwu, former first-round pick, high first-round pick, offensive tackle. So, we could sit here and talk about coverages. We could sit here and talk about stopping the run in nickel. We could talk about whatever we want. But at the end of the day, this offensive line is bad. The Titans' defensive line is good. And even, we talked about Jacksonville's offensive line

not being great last week, okay? And the Titans still didn't do very much against them. But the bad that Jacksonville's offensive line is is a different tax bracket than the bad that the Panthers' and the Titans' offensive lines are. You know what I mean? We're talking about different levels here, okay? Alright?

You know what I mean? We're talking about different levels here. Okay? Alright? So, my least favorite appetizer at a five-star restaurant is still better than the best appetizer at Applebee's. You see what I'm saying? There are levels to this.

So, with the Panthers being a full level below, the Panthers, the Giants, the Bears, the Commanders, the Titans. Those are the worst offensive lines in the NFL. But I even think the Titans are a little bit better than the Panthers.

And that is crazy to say. So if Jeffrey Simmons and Danico Autry and Harold Landry, who's been playing a lot better lately, but he'll probably get Taylor Moten, so toughest matchup. Arden Key, Rashad Weaver, Taylor Murphy even, Tierra Tart, Danico, like, if they don't dominate, every single one of them, one-on-one, to dominate this game, it's going to be an utter disappointment.

Now, I think the Titans win, even if the defense sucks. It'll just be like Atlanta, where it's 26-22, or or 26-23 or whatever it happens to be, 27-21. It'll be something like that. I think the Titans win because they're able to score, which is crazy. But this should be a dominating win, like 27-3 win, because this defensive line should eat this offensive line alive. And I could talk scheme. I could talk philosophy. None of it matters. What matters is the pressure that the D-line gets. And if they get it,

they're winning this game. It's that simple. So with that being said, though, I do want to kind of drill into some individual matchups that I'll be watching in this game that I think matter most. Talk about one on the defensive line that I already kind of teased already. I'll reaffirm my prediction here for what I think happens in this game and talk about where the Titans go from here. So we're going to dive into all that

in just a moment. Before we do that, I do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you by BetterHelp Online Therapy. The show is sponsored by BetterHelp. Look, guys, at this time of year, it is fair if you feel some end-of-the-season blues, right? Some seasonal issues.

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And I like that because to me in therapy, the most important thing is having a therapist that I trust and that I can work with and that I feel comfortable with. So they make that really easy at better help. So find your bright spot this season with better help. Visit better help.com slash locked on today to get 10% off your first month. That's betterhelp.com slash locked on. Titans fans, let's cap off today's Black Friday Game Plan Preview Edition of the Locked on Titans podcast.

We talked about the offensive side of the ball. The Titans should be able to run the ball. They should be attacking the Carolina Panthers' zone coverages down the field. We talked about defense. The Titans should absolutely swarm this offensive line up front. Absolutely. And with that being said, it's time to get into my prediction. I'm going to reaffirm my prediction here,

talk about some individual matchups as well before we get into all of that. Thank you for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen each and every day. Make sure that you tune in on Sunday immediately after the game. I'll be going live here on the Locked on Titans YouTube channel. But I have the Titans winning this game 28-13. I think that they win pretty handily. I think that the defense gives up some explosive plays here and there

and allows the Panthers to get some points. But I think the Titans score multiple touchdowns. I think they win this one handily. I think this is one of those, like the Bengals game, where it's like 21-3, 28-3 at halftime. And the Titans kind of just coast to a win. That's what I'm thinking is going to happen. This team is obviously not great.

So I'm sure some of you guys are like, you're insane for thinking that's going to happen. This team is obviously not great. So I'm sure some of you guys are like, you're insane for thinking that's going to happen. But at the end of the day, they're at home. They're the better team with a better coach. Home, better team, better coach. I'm sorry, they're going to win. They're going to win. There's no way that even me as the most pessimistic Titans fan you know, there's no way that I can expect them to lose this game. No way. No way. And that's why I said,

if the Titans lose this game, Mike Ray will not get fired because that's how embarrassing it would be for the Titans to not win this game at home. They have to. They have to win this game. And honestly, if you look at the schedule, it's their last chance to get an easy victory. I mean, they play at home against the Colts and the

Texans, but the Texans are good now. And the Colts may not be good, but they beat the Titans once already this year. So, who's to say they couldn't do it again? This is the last chance for an easy home victory. And I think if the Titans won big here, it would be enough for Vrabel to keep his job going forward the rest of the season. And honestly, if the Titans finish with four wins on the year, it may not be the worst thing ever.

All right? So just saying, I think the Titans win big here. That's been my prediction all week. That's how I felt all week. And I haven't felt any different. So hopefully they don't let me down. As for individual matchups in this game, Roger McCreary in the slot on Adam Thielen. Adam Thielen plays in the slot.

He's by far the best receiver on the Panthers. Their leading receiver. If you shut down Adam Thielen, you have a great chance to eliminate the rest of the offense. So Roger McCreary has been the Titans' best cornerback this year. I know he's struggled a bit on the outside, but when he's been in the slot where he's supposed to be, McCreary has been really good. And I think he'll shut down Adam Thielen in this game. Hold him to under 70 yards. That's my prediction. Jeffrey, sorry, it gets me so excited when I talk about Jeffrey Simmons against these guards.

Jeffrey Simmons against Austin Corbett and Chandler Zavala, rookie. Um, I mean, Simmons just has to absolutely eat those dudes alive. That, you're getting paid $100 million. You should win every single play. Literally every play you should win. Every play. And then finally, Derrick Henry. Derrick Henry's got to have a big game here. He said at his press conference on Wednesday

that it's surreal for him when the fans are chanting, Henry, Henry, Henry, at home. And that he appreciates it and all that. Well, he may not get very much more of that. Let's be honest here. Those chants may be few and far between and they may be going fast. So this needs to be a big Derrick Henry game. Big Derrick Henry game. I am predicting Derrick Henry 150 yards.

Derrick Henry 150 yards. That is Henry, 150 yards. That is my prediction for this game. I think Henry busts a big one in the first half for a touchdown. 50, 60 yards, something like that. And I think they just hammer him throughout the third quarter until we get to the fourth and the Titans are winning 28-7, 28-10, something like that. That's how I see this game going.

Big Derrick Henry performance, and they need it. And it might be the last vintage Derrick Henry performance that Titans fancy. So just appreciate it. Appreciate this weekend, all right? And if the Titans lose, well, then heads are going to roll. But I'll be here to break all that down with you guys too when it happens. But that is going to do it here for our Black Friday game plan preview edition of the Locked

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