Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans NEED New Offensive Tackles, Will Levis' Worst Game & Treylon Burks is a Ghost

Starting point is 00:00:00 The Tennessee Titans need to find two new starting offensive tackles this offseason. I'll explain why 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 edition of the Locked on Titans podcast is brought to you by GameTime.

Starting point is 00:00:50 Download the GameTime app, create an account, use the code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase, last minute tickets, lowest price guarantee. We got a lot to talk about on today's Tick Tack Tuesday. We're going to dive into the film. First, I'm going to talk about how the Titans' offensive tackles performed in this game. Jalen Duncan and Dylan Radins. Then we'll talk about how we saw the best and the worst of Will Levis on the film. And then I'm going to do a little Roland's rant for you guys to cap off the show

Starting point is 00:01:20 about Traylon Burks and what Mike Grable had to say about Burks on Monday. Before we get into all that, thank you 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.

Starting point is 00:01:37 It's your team every day here on the Locked on Titans podcast. Throw a thumbs up on the video as well. Show's always free. All I ask for in return is the press of a button. Shout out to my everydayers out there tuning in Monday through Friday. Tomorrow, what's next Wednesday?

Starting point is 00:01:53 Going to look ahead at the rest of the season. Talk about what the Titans need to do going forward. Crossover Thursday with the guys from Locked on Colts and then game plan Friday right around the corner. But with that being said, do want to dive into what I saw on the film in Week 12. The most important conversation here is about the Titans' offensive tackles

Starting point is 00:02:12 because I feel like that's what everybody was excited to see going into this game. How will Jalen Duncan look in his second real extended action? He's going over to left tackle this time, getting a start. That was exciting. How's Dylan Radin's going to fare on the right side? And I'm just going to come out of the gate and be honest.

Starting point is 00:02:29 Neither of those players should be starting for the Titans next year. If you, yes you, listening to the show right now, if you want the Tennessee Titans to be a playoff team next year, if you want the Tennessee Titans to be improved, and you want to actually have hope that this team can make a playoff run, they need to go out and find two brand new starting offensive tackles, whether that be using the hundred million dollars in cap space that they're projected to have, whether that be eight, one of the eight draft picks that they use. Well, it needs to be in one of the first

Starting point is 00:03:00 two rounds, quite honestly, if you're hoping to get an immediate starter at the position. But for me, if you use some of the free agent money and you get a mid-tier veteran offensive tackle to go on the right and then you use one of your top draft picks, probably based on where the Titans are at right now, number 10 in the draft, you use your first round draft pick on an offensive tackle, now you have the ability to improve enough. The reality here is Jalen Duncan is going to need more time. Jalen Duncan had a 47.1 pass blocking grade. He gave up zero sacks, but he gave up three pressures, okay, in 28 snaps. His hands got moved by not even Brian Burns. Brian Burns is tough, yes.

Starting point is 00:03:49 But other pass rushers from the Panthers were able to move Jalen Duncan's hands away, get into his chest, and get pressure on the quarterback. There were a few missed opportunities in run blocking. Now, Jalen Duncan was better in run blocking than the pass blocking, if we want to be honest about it. He had some moments in pass blocking where he won one-on-one. But I'm telling you, if you want the Titans to be ready next year, Jalen Duncan's not going to be that guy again. Hand placement issues, which are technique-based.

Starting point is 00:04:15 He's got an issue with balance when he's trying to drive guys forward and run blocking. I've never been on board with the Jalen Duncan pick. Now, I am more impressed with Duncan right now than I expected to be when he was drafted by the Titans. But after watching, he's just not going to be ready by next year. You cannot expect Jalen Duncan to be one of your starting offensive tackles next year. If they bring him back as their third tackle, their swing tackle, or they bring him back as a fourth tackle, which the tackle, or they bring him back as a fourth tackle,

Starting point is 00:04:45 which the Titans probably want to be safe on that note and have four offensive tackles available, that would make sense. All right, that would make sense. I think next year you move Dylan Radins inside full-time. You bring back Nicholas Petit-Ferrer in his third season and expect him and Jalen Duncan to compete for that third tackle position. You bring in a high draft pick at offensive tackle. You bring in a free agent at offensive tackle

Starting point is 00:05:07 and let those guys all compete. Okay? I just don't think that at this point, and maybe the rest of the season goes a certain way, but at this point, you can expect Jalen Duncan or Dylan Radins to be either of your starting offensive tackles next year. Radins was better than Jalen Duncan, in my opinion, in this game. In pass blocking, he was better, 56.5 pass blocking grade.

Starting point is 00:05:30 And I'm not saying he was better solely because of the grade. I'm talking about what we saw on tape too. But Braden's gave up a sack. Braden's gave up two pressures. Braden's slipped off guys in run blocking and wasn't able to drive guys off the ball consistently. Braden's is solid in run blocking, but it's just not good enough. Again, just because the Titans were better in pass blocking

Starting point is 00:05:52 yesterday, only gave up one sack. They were better in pass blocking against the Panthers. Doesn't mean that these offensive linemen are good enough. At the end of the day, I would be fine if the Titans replaced everybody except Peter Skowronski. Also, I do want to say this. There are some people that go into my comments and say, they drafted a guard at number 11.

Starting point is 00:06:15 How dumb. Blah, blah, blah. Peter Skowronski did it. So, Daniel Brunskill's been the best offense. In the last three games, Peter Skowronski has given up zero sacks and two total pressures in three games. It hasn't been perfect. He's had some struggles in run blocking, no doubt about it.

Starting point is 00:06:36 But Peter Skowronski is the best offensive lineman on this team. And he has the potential to be a pro-ball level offensive lineman for the next decade, maybe even better if you put some help around him that he can trust. So there are people out there trying to hate on the Peter Skowronski pick. I'm sorry, but you're crazy. Skowronski's been good. And if you take away having an emergency appendectomy in the middle of his rookie season and then losing a bunch of weight and strength and then coming back and trying to get back into it. If you take away

Starting point is 00:07:08 some midseason struggles because of an emergency appendectomy and surgery that caused him to lose weight and power and strength, he has by far been the most consistent and best offensive lineman on this team. So, I just think it's hilarious that some people choose to hate on Peter Skowronski. Out of all of the things that are going wrong for the Titans this year, you're going to hate on Pete? Sad. Sad. Sad is all I have to say. But, again, really what I

Starting point is 00:07:39 want to end on here is just my first point. Dylan Radins is not a starting offensive tackle. He's not going to be next year. Jalen Duncan is not going to be ready to be a starting offensive tackle by next year if you want the Titans to have an improved offensive line. Find two brand new tackles. And Aaron Brewer was awful in this game. I don't care how tough he is, $2 stake, this and that. Aaron Brewer should not be slated as the starting center on this team next year. He has good moments in run blocking, but what he loses

Starting point is 00:08:11 in pass blocking, what he loses against the stronger defensive tackles in the NFL, what he loses with the bad snaps, I'm sorry. There has to be a real competition at center next year. Are we going to fix this offensive line or are we not? That's the question because you're not going to take one of the bottom three offensive lines in the NFL, bring back a bunch of guys from it and expect improvement because that's just not the way that it's going to work. But with that being said, we're going to talk about Will Levis because while there was a lot to like,

Starting point is 00:08:44 this honestly was the most concerning performance for me when you talk about Will Levis and his development. So I'm going to tell you what I saw on tape from Levis, the good and the bad. Before we dive into that though, I do want to remind you guys that today's episode is brought to you by GameTime. Look, GameTime is the best place to buy tickets, but especially if you're looking to get some last-minute tickets. They have killer last-minute deals, all-in prices.

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Starting point is 00:10:22 Guaranteed. Titans fans, thank you for making Locked On Titans your first listen each and every day. Remember, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content all year round on all apps, always for free. Make sure you get subscribed, stay subscribed. It's your team every day here on the Locked On Podcast Network. Speaking of that, Locked On has launched the first ever, first ever National Sports 24-7 streaming channel on YouTube. Locked On Sports Today is what it's called, and it is here for you 24-7

Starting point is 00:11:09 covering the top sports stories of the day with analysis from local experts like me with Locked On Titans. Also coverage from our national shows. 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 we talked about the offensive line. Now I want to move into Will Levis because while we saw a lot of good

Starting point is 00:11:34 and there was a lot to like from Will Levis, especially in that second quarter in the first half, this was probably the most concerning game that I've seen from Will Levis so far. There were a lot of turnover worthy, well, up there with the Pittsburgh Steeler game where he made a lot of turnover worthy decisions and plays. That's on the road, second start, all that. But this, you're at home against a bad team with more time than you've ever had in any of your five starts from the offensive line, and there were just some misses. Okay, so

Starting point is 00:12:08 I'm just going to go through some of the plays that I didn't like before we get to what I did like. Right before halftime, before he completes the pass to NWI, spikes the ball, gets a position for the field goal. Overall speaking, that last two-minute drill at the end of the first half to get that field goal, that is a good drive. Good execution. Get the three points. They got the job done. They could have had a touchdown. Because there was a throw at about midfield or a play at midfield where

Starting point is 00:12:40 on the right hand side, the Titans run a dagger concept. We've talked about that on the show. My everydayers probably recognize what that is. It's where the outside receiver does a deep in route and the inside slot receiver runs a vertical seam route. Okay. The Panthers ran cover two and Kyle Phillips was in the slot running the vertical seam route.

Starting point is 00:13:03 The safeties got really split and there was a huge hole in the middle of the field. Kyle Phillips ran the seam route vertical and he started to bend it away from the right hand side safety. He was wide open. And I mean if Levis lets this ball go, it's a touchdown. There's a little bit of pressure, but Levis climbs the pocket and has a ton of time. Ultimately, he decides to throw a quick pass to Chika Conquo that's broken up for an incompletion. A couple of plays later, they hit the NWI, they get the field goal, whatever.

Starting point is 00:13:40 But I was just shocked that Levis had so much time, climbed the pocket, was looking to the right-hand side, and didn't throw that seam right to Phillips, wide open running down the middle of the field. I was just disappointed. Now, what I would say is, first game against the Falcons, Will Levis throws the deep pass to NWI on third and four at the end of the half, and everybody's like, decision-making, situational awareness, can't throw that ball. So maybe Will Levis is thinking, hey, I can't throw that. That's a

Starting point is 00:14:12 waste. If it's not complete, we need to move the ball down the field and get a field goal. There's no timeouts. Maybe if you complete it, it's hard to get up on the ball and spike it. I don't know what his decision making process was, but I was just shocked that he didn't throw that ball. And I thought if he let it go and he had time to, it's a touchdown. You go into the third quarter, the miss to Hopkins on the crossing route where he throws it behind him. That's obvious to everybody.

Starting point is 00:14:37 There was another one where Hopkins runs a deep post, and it's him one-on-one, and he literally flies past the cornerback to the inside. I believe that, if I'm recalling correctly, the Panthers are in a quarters coverage. The Hopkins side safety bites inside, leaving Hopkins wide open over the middle on the post. Levis doesn't see it. Throws it elsewhere.

Starting point is 00:15:01 He almost throws the interception on the sit-down route to Hopkins where he's trying to force it in on third down. There's an inaccurate throw to Chris Moore down the left-hand sideline where Chris Moore's wide open, and Levis is trying to kind of backpedal into the throw rather than setting his feet and just delivering it. There's a little bit of pressure, but he didn't have to throw it while backpedaling. He could have taken one backpedal step, set his feet,

Starting point is 00:15:24 and make the throw to Chris Moore down the sideline accurate, but he sails it left and out of bounds. That's how Traylon Burks got knocked out against the Steelers. We've seen a few misses down the sideline in that manner where Levis is just not setting his feet and having a good base. He's moving while he throws. While I recognize the pressure is there, there are some times where the pressure isn't as bad. And he needs to just set his feet

Starting point is 00:15:50 and make a strong, solid, accurate throw rather than trying to throw on the move. Okay? So, some of these things are just concerning. You're missing open people for big plays. You're inaccurate, making bad decisions. Like, there was, again, maybe the Pittsburgh game is in there, but considering circumstances,

Starting point is 00:16:14 this was the most concerning Will Levis performance so far for me. Now, again, on the flip side of that, we saw some really good stuff. That drive where Levis goes 7 for 7, he's accurate. He's finding the right place to go with the ball. Making good decisions. That throw to Chigaconquo on the wheel route down the sideline that went for 25 yards that set the Titans up at the 1 yard line for their first touchdown. Excuse me. Levis barely got that ball down the sideline to Chig

Starting point is 00:16:45 because he was under immense pressure from Brian Burns, I believe. And he barely is able to toss it out. The ability to play under pressure and not blink and throw the ball. I believe personally that if Levis

Starting point is 00:17:01 has a better team around him, not even an elite all-star team around him, has a better team around him, not even an elite all-star team around him, just a better team around him, he is going to consistently be a game-winning player. And we see flashes of it. But I think some of the pressure and some of that, hey, we need to get the ball out quick, and hey, make sure you're taking profit

Starting point is 00:17:20 and not forcing it downfield too much. I think some of that coaching could be showing up in these ways too. And I want to say this. We saw some RPOs where Will Levis could hand it off to Derrick Henry or throw a quick out route. We saw quite a few quick out routes. Teams play cover three and man coverage against the Titans because that allows them to have eight people in the box.

Starting point is 00:17:43 If teams are going to play that, you're going to have opportunities in one-on-one outside, to the outside. So seeing the Titans attack the sideline a little bit more and mixing in some RPO and some quick hitters to the sideline, that is going to help Will Levis get in a rhythm. So I like to see all that. So we saw the good. We saw a lot of the bad though, which is a bit concerning. And next week against the Colts, I think it's going to be a tougher game for the Titans.

Starting point is 00:18:10 But I would like to see some more consistency from Will Levis as well. Someone who we have seen zero consistency from is Traylon Burks. And we talked about the offensive line and the future of the offensive line. We're talking about Will Levis right now. I want to talk about the future of wide receiver and talk about what Mike Vrabel had to say about Traylon Burks on Monday. Before we dive into that, though, I do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you

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Starting point is 00:19:37 There is no better time to get in on the action. Go to fanduel.com slash locked on and kick off the NFL season or I guess get in on the NFL season. That's Fandle, official partner of the Locked on Titans podcast and talk about how neither of the Titans' young offensive tacklers played all that well against the Panthers, and the Titans shouldn't view them as starters next year.

Starting point is 00:20:22 Talked about how we saw the worst of Will Levis, honestly, but got some of the best as well, and the coaches can help him there too. But now I want to look forward at the wide receiver position. And speaking of looking forward, tomorrow is What's Next Wednesday. I'm going to talk a little bit about what I want to see from the Colts, talk about the Titans' schedule the rest of the way, look at maybe some draft pick stuff as well, which the Titans need to start paying attention to.

Starting point is 00:20:45 Titans dropped from the sixth pick to the tenth pick in the draft this weekend. Tough one if you're on a tank-a-thon watch as a fan for the Titans. But either way, we're going to look at a lot of stuff on tomorrow's show. Make sure you get subscribed. Stay subscribed. It's your team every day here on the Locked on Titans podcast and the Locked on Podcast Network. But I want to talk about wide receiver and kind of use Traylon Burks' situation as a jumping off point.

Starting point is 00:21:11 Mike Vrabel was asked how hopeful he was to get Traylon Burks back in practice this week. Mike Vrabel's quote, quote, I'm hopeful for a lot of things, quote, end quote. What? I'm thankful for a lot of things, or I'm hopeful for a lot of things. You know what that means? Mike Vrabel isn't very hopeful that Traylon Burks is back this week. That's how I read that statement. I'm hopeful for a lot of things.

Starting point is 00:21:47 Like, yeah, you know, that's like when someone's saying, well, if they do this, well, if I do that, I'm winning the lottery, okay? You know, the reality is you shouldn't expect Traylon Burks back, and I tweeted it a couple of weeks ago, and I'm hammering it home now. Stop thinking about Traylon Burks at all. He is a ghost. He is a ghost. He is a ghost, okay? Stop thinking that the Titans have Traylon Burks when you start talking about wide receivers next year. But Burks has played in 16 of 28 games.

Starting point is 00:22:16 He has 41 catches for 556 yards and one touchdown in two seasons. He has missed 12 possible games so far, and the odds are it looks like he is going to continue missing games for a long time. He had the bad concussion against Philadelphia. You add that in with the bad concussion against the Steelers. It has always been my opinion that Burks isn't the type of guy who wants to push through things. He needs strong coaching, strong motivation, strong pushing to get him to do what you want. He's a guy who, in my opinion, based on some of the comments he's made,

Starting point is 00:22:50 doesn't really know the plays very well, doesn't know the playbook very well. Mike Rabels talked about wishing Will Levis could get Traylon Burks lined up right in the future at a game earlier in a press conference. Traylon Burks himself talked about how he used to ask people, you know, what he's doing on the play and stuff like that last year. And now he feels like he knows it better. Look, to me, it's obvious that Burks is a guy who just doesn't work hard enough. And you can talk about the injuries. I'm talking about when he's on the field and he's healthy and he's playing. His route craft isn't there. It doesn't look like he has a full grasp of what he's supposed to do in the offense. Honestly, the Titans had a little bit of fool's gold, and I fell for it too.

Starting point is 00:23:31 I'll admit it. Saw Burks on the quick screens and running down the field or catching. If you go back and look at the college tape, it was quick gadget plays where he just out-physicaled men who are smaller than him in college, or it was vertical routes where he was able to use that physical advantage to just jump over top of guys and catch the ball. In the NFL, you don't have such a physical advantage. You have to be more dedicated with your routes. You have to have a better understanding of what to do in the offense and understanding of defenses.

Starting point is 00:24:01 You have to have better hands that are more reliable. You have to have better body control because you're not just going to go jump over top of everybody because you're bigger and stronger and faster. Burks has broken two tackles in his entire career. He was supposed to be a yards after catch threat. Catch the quick slant over the middle, take it to the house like AJ. He has broken two tackles in his entire career. So again, my point here is Burks is a ghost.

Starting point is 00:24:28 When you talk about the Titans wide receiver position next year, do not mention Traylon Burks. A perfect offseason for me, if you want to revamp the Titans wide receiver group, you go out and sign T. Higgins or Brandon Ayuk in free agency. One of those guys. You add a wide receiver

Starting point is 00:24:43 in the first and second round of the draft should be offensive line and wide receiver. Maybe if you get the 10th, 9th, 11th pick, you don't get one of the top offensive tackles or whatever. You look at a Malik Neighbors. You look at a Keon Coleman. You look at a Roma Dunze. You look at someone like that because you're not getting Marvin Harrison Jr., obviously. And then you follow that up with a tackle in the second round. Or you take the tackle in the second round,

Starting point is 00:25:10 and you get one of the many good second round options that are going to be available in a deep wide receiver class. You add a top-tier free agent wide receiver. You add a top pick in the draft. And then you have free agent, top pick, and DeAndre Hopkins, Kyle Phillips is your wide receiver four, Chris Moore and NWI is five and six, and you trade Traylon Burks for a fourth round pick. That would be an ideal offseason at wide receiver for me.

Starting point is 00:25:42 Again, Traylon Burks is a ghost. And if you're relying on Burks or you're factoring in Traylon Burks into any conversation about the wide receiver position for next year, I think it's fool's gold. And the Titans got destroyed on the A.J. Brown trade, which we already knew and we already understood.

Starting point is 00:26:07 Holding on to Traylon Burks, hoping to look less dumb for doing that would be the biggest mistake. When you make a mistake, the best thing you could do is realize you've made a mistake and remedy it as quick as possible. Trade Traylon Burks for a third or fourth round pick. Accept that you're going to take a loss on the trade.

Starting point is 00:26:24 Get yourself an extra top 100 pick to give Traylon Burks for a third or fourth round pick. Accept that you're going to take a loss on the trade. Get yourself an extra top 100 pick to give Traylon Burks away. Sign a top tier free agent wide receiver. Draft a wide receiver high in the draft. Have the draft pick and the free agent with DeAndre Hopkins for $15 million next year. Trade Traylon Burks. Kyle Phillips as your situational wide receiver four who can play in the slot, and NWI and Chris Moore as your depth wide receivers who can play on special teams.

Starting point is 00:26:50 That would be a good wide receiver group for the Titans. I mean, imagine like T. Higgins, DeAndre Hopkins, and Xavier Leggett. T. Higgins, DeAndre Hopkins, and Xavier Leggett. T. Higgins, DeAndre Hopkins, and Emeka Edbuka. Like, we are cooking, ladies and gentlemen. Imagine T. Higgins, DeAndre Hopkins, and Xavier Worthy. We are cooking. We are cooking. So, forgive me if it's insensitive or rude.

Starting point is 00:27:25 I'm just ready to forget about Traylon Burks. He's a ghost. He doesn't exist. And the Titans would be wise to build their wide receiver group next year without him in mind. Do not bank on Traylon Burks for any reason whatsoever going into next season.

Starting point is 00:27:40 Act as if he doesn't exist. And if it's possible to get anything for him, I think you do that and you move on. But with that being said, we're going to move on from today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast because that's going to do it for me. I'll be back with you guys tomorrow

Starting point is 00:27:55 for what's next Wednesday. But as always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland. And this was Locked on Titans.

Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans NEED New Offensive Tackles, Will Levis' Worst Game & Treylon Burks is a Ghost

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