Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans UGLY Offense in 16-15 Loss, Ryan Tannehill Blows It & Defensive Line Sacks Rack Up

Starting point is 00:00:00 Starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill was terrible, but there was a lot of ugly out there for the Tennessee Titans. We're going to talk about that and more 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 LinkedIn Jobs.

Starting point is 00:00:51 LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to faster. 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 do apply. Thank you guys for making the LockedOnTitans podcast your first listen each and every day. We got so much to talk about. Ryan Tannehill blows it, but there's a

Starting point is 00:01:14 lot of ugly going around on the Titans team, and we're going to talk about everyone who is to blame. We're going to talk Titan Up, Titan Down where we talk about all the Titans players who played well and all the Titans players and others who maybe didn't play so well. Before we get into all of that, make sure that you guys get subscribed, stay subscribed to the Locked on Titans podcast.

Starting point is 00:01:33 It's your team every day, and I'm here Monday through Friday breaking it down on all apps all year long and always for free. Throw a thumbs up on the video if you're watching right now, and again, hit that notification bell if you're watching on YouTube. Make sure you always know when the free content goes live. But Ryan Tannehill wasn't good enough. There's no way you could start anywhere else. There's no way that you could begin the conversation

Starting point is 00:01:57 of what went wrong for the Titans without starting with Ryan Tannehill. And I talked about it a ton in my live reaction that came out earlier on Sunday night after the game. Tannehill gets the most of the blame pie. If we're serving out pieces, he gets the largest chunk of blame pie is going to Tannehill. Less than 50% completion percentage, 5.8 yards per throw,

Starting point is 00:02:18 had three interceptions, could have had five if we're honest. He was that bad and made that bad of throws. And it wasn't just the turnover-worthy plays. He missed a wide-open Chigaconquo. He missed a wide-open Tajay Spears. He generally looked immobile and didn't have good pocket movement. Like, he looks like a 35-year-old quarterback

Starting point is 00:02:37 who is nearing the end of his career. That's what it looked like for the Titans out there. That's what Ryan Tannehill looked like. And that is a scary thing to see if you're the Titans with all the other question marks on offense. So let there be no mistake. Let it be wide out in the open. Ryan Tannehill is the most to blame.

Starting point is 00:02:58 But, but, I wasn't impressed by Tim Kelly's offense either. The Titans were 2 for 12 on third down. 2 for 12 on third down. That's despicable right there. In the red zone, the Titans were 0 for 3. You can't be 0 for 3 in the red zone and 2 for 12 on third downs and think you're going to win. I mean, that's despicable.

Starting point is 00:03:31 And it's Derrick Henry's limited usage. And listen, I am happy that the Titans are looking to not just go through Derrick Henry nonstop always. But he had 15 carries in a game that was close the entire time. Tajay Spears only got three carries. It's not like the Titans. I mean, the Titans ran the ball 22 times and three of them were Ryan Tannehill like escaping and scrambling. So really the Titans ran the ball only 19 times in a defensive struggle where it was completely close the entire game. completely close the entire game.

Starting point is 00:04:04 That doesn't make a lot of sense. And I just think, like, he got cute with the Derrick Henry Wildcat run that he tried to go with. How many times did the Titans come out and shotgun on first down? Like, again, I am okay with some evolution. I am okay with doing things a little differently.

Starting point is 00:04:22 But let's just not be silly. Like, there's a middle ground here where some people are going to be like, well, Tim Kelly does these things. You criticize him. Todd Downing did these things. You criticize him. There's a middle ground here of where Tim Kelly is doing things that we want to see, but the way he's

Starting point is 00:04:37 deploying certain things doesn't make a lot of sense. So, most of the blame goes to Tannehill no doubt about it but I didn't think Tim Kelly caught a very good game either I'm cool with running the ball with Tajay Spears on first down I talked in the preview episode

Starting point is 00:04:59 about running to the perimeter getting to the perimeter did the Titans do that? not really Tajay Spears did it one time and got about 10 yards on a game the Titans didn't attack the perimeter, getting to the perimeter. Did the Titans do that? Not really. Tajay Spears did it one time and got about 10 yards on a game. The Titans didn't attack the perimeter of the Saints' defense consistently enough. Not only that, but the Titans went five wide so many times.

Starting point is 00:05:17 How many of those plays out of five wide even got anything good? One or two? The idea that I was giving was you use multiple tight ends and you spread out the Saints base defense. The Titans said, screw that. We're just going to try to spread out the Saints normally. And I don't know why they were trying to do that. I didn't understand that. We didn't see a ton of at-snap motion. We didn't see a ton of bunch trips, all that stuff to help your guys get free releases. And in return, the Titans got smoked by man coverage all day.

Starting point is 00:05:48 I mean, it's just frustrating. It's just frustrating to see some of the same things that the Titans did last year pop up. And then at the same time, they got worse in certain areas that were good last year, like red zone offense. I mean, just not a very good game from Tim Kelly overall. It's week one, guys. It's week one.

Starting point is 00:06:07 This isn't an indictment. This isn't it can't get better. This, you know, Tannehill can play better. Tim Kelly can get better. Maybe these guys should play a little bit more in the preseason so that they can be ready because now it's three years in a row. Cardinals, Giants, Saints, Titans get beat by an NFC team in week one because they don't look ready to play.

Starting point is 00:06:27 Maybe these guys need to play in the preseason. Not only that, but I want to last finish. So, Tannehill gets the most blame. Tim Kelly gets some blame. The refs obviously get some blame. Some despicable stuff in the first half from the refs. Really ridiculous. But Mike Rabel.

Starting point is 00:06:43 There was a fourth down opportunity in the red zone early in the game in the first half. Should have gone for it. Settling for field goals. That's how you lose. Then, there's a play in the second half where it's third down and short. The Saints go for the first down with a run.

Starting point is 00:07:02 The Titans stop them. It's fourth down and one. There's a holding call. The Titans can push the Saints back, and if they do, it knocks the Saints out of field goal range. They would need to get a stop on third and 12, but they're out of field goal range. Instead, Mike Vrabel plays it safe,

Starting point is 00:07:19 declines the penalty, takes the fourth down, the Saints kick a field goal, and they make it. Tie the game 9-9. Then at the end of the game, less than what? Two minutes left? Three minutes left in the game? The Titans are in the red zone. Fourth and five. A touchdown puts them ahead. It's 16-12 and what do they do? They kick another field goal.

Starting point is 00:07:44 You have three timeouts. There's less than three minutes left. If you go for it and you don't get it, the Saints are backed up in the shadow of their own goalpost. You need to get a stop with three timeouts. If you kick a field goal, you're down, and you still need to get a stop with three timeouts. Except the difference is,

Starting point is 00:08:03 now the Saints aren't in the shadow of their own goalpost. You just kicked off and they get the ball. They actually had a return that got close to the 30. Mike Vrabel made some bad game decisions. His team looked less prepared than the Saints. They had penalties. I mean, Mike Vrabel was outcoached in this game. He didn't help the Titans win.

Starting point is 00:08:26 And that's something that's incredibly disappointing. So blame pie. Tannehill gets the most. Mike Vrabel gets some. Tim Kelly gets some. And of course, the refs can have their sliver too. But the Titans shot themselves in the foot enough in this game where I can't sit here and blame the officials.

Starting point is 00:08:40 But with that being said, we're going to move forward to tighten up, tighten down. Let me know down below, who do you think should get the most blame for this loss? 16 to 15, the Titans lose to the New Orleans Saints. Also, put your tighten ups and your tighten downs in the chat right now. We're going to get into the tighten downs first though. Before we do, I do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs. These days, every new potential hire can feel like a high-stakes wager for your

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Starting point is 00:09:52 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 do apply. Titans fans, let's continue today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. We're recapping the Tennessee Titans 16-15 loss to the New Orleans Saints. Just went over some blame pie in the first segment. Mostly Ryan Tannehill, but obviously Mike Vrabel, Tim Kelly, and the referees all get a little bit of a slice as well. We're going to continue today's show with Tighten Up and Tighten Down, though,

Starting point is 00:10:44 where I go over the good and the bad performances from the game. And I'm going to start with the tighten down. So let me know down below who are your tighten downs. Who do you think played the worst in this game against the Titans? And like I said, a tighten down for Mike Vrabel. That's where I want to start. Like I said, I thought he made a couple of terrible game management decisions for the Titans that really hurt them and prevented them from winning this game. Not only that, but I thought that Mike Vrabel's team wasn't ready to go. You look at some of the team stats here, at least in terms of the penalties. The Titans had six penalties for 45 yards.

Starting point is 00:11:21 The Saints had seven penalties for 45 yards. So the same amount. The Titans tied the Saints with penalties. It's not good enough. They need to win. You look at the turnover battle. Three to two. The Titans lost the turnover battle.

Starting point is 00:11:35 I talked about that being a key to victory for them this week. It was going to be a defensive struggle. You've got to give your team short fields. You've got to take away the ball from the other offense. The Titans gave up the only touchdown in the entire game with a turnover on offense. So Mike Vrabel's team lost at a punt block on special teams. Mike Vrabel continues to employ Craig Aukerman

Starting point is 00:11:56 despite Aukerman's special teams units being terrible every single year. That's a Mike Vrabel thing. So Mike Vrabel let his team down in this game, and he gets a Titan down. Obviously, game, and he gets a tight end down. Obviously, Ryan Tannehill, a major tight end down. I spent the majority of my immediate recap live talking about Tannehill. I talked about him to start the show.

Starting point is 00:12:15 He's an obvious tight end down. Outside of that, Andre Dillard. Dillard got beat all game, it felt like. He settled in a little bit later in the game, but early on, Dillard was giving up so much pressure on Tannehill. I mean, just not good enough. I didn't think Harold Landry was very good. He obviously is coming back from the ACL

Starting point is 00:12:32 tear, so again, no indictment of Harold Landry, but he didn't have a very good game. He didn't consistently affect the quarterback. I thought when he was out in space and coverage, he got taken advantage of. That's another Mike Vrabel thing, Shane Bowen thing, though. I thought he overcommitted on a couple of plays

Starting point is 00:12:48 and got caught out of position. I thought he gave up contain on a couple of plays that allowed Derek Carter to escape the pocket. So I just didn't think Harold Landry just looked a little shaky out there, which, hey, it makes sense. He's probably nervous, first game back after missing a year. I understand all that, but still a tight end down nonetheless. I got to be honest.

Starting point is 00:13:02 Back after missing a year, I understand all that. But still a Titan down nonetheless, I got to be honest. Christian Fulton gets beat a couple of times early. Gets hurt again. Hamstring, repeat offender. Repeat offender. Say it again, Mike Vrabel. Another soft tissue injury for Christian Fulton.

Starting point is 00:13:24 Took one game. And also, who got beat down the sideline to end the game late? Christian Fulton. The Tennessee Titans continue to lose isolated situations on the sideline in one-on-one. They continue to. Once again, just like last year. Same scenarios. It blows my mind.

Starting point is 00:13:46 So, tighten down for Christian Fulton. Again, let me know your tighten downs down below. Aziz Alshair. Why are we forearm and a quarterback in the chin on third down? Overall, not a bad game for Aziz, but I had to point that moment out. That was just stupid. What are we doing here?

Starting point is 00:14:13 Sean Murphy bunting. Didn't impress me. I hate giving a Titan down to anybody on the Titans defense because none of them I thought played terrible except Fulton. But Sean Murphy bunting got beat a couple of times. And, you know, the problem is, is when the Titans offense is as bad as it is, every mistake on defense feels like a backbreaker. So maybe that's not necessarily Sean Murphy Bunting's fault

Starting point is 00:14:35 or Aziz's fault, but it's a reality with the offense that the defense is playing with. Also, Traylon Burks, false start, had the drop over the middle that really hurt the Titans. Didn't affect the game. Now, he wasn't getting a lot of targets either.

Starting point is 00:14:55 I think what Traylon Burks ended the game with two catches, I believe it was two catches on the day for 18 yards. Just wasn't really that big of a factor. Another tightened down. I'm not going to blame him entirely because it would be totally different if he caught it, but it's more about the expectations.

Starting point is 00:15:16 Chigakonkwo had zero catches for zero yards. Now, his day would have looked a lot different if Ryan Tannehill would have hit him for a long touchdown. It would have been, oh, Chico Conquo makes explosive plays, all that, but really it's a tighten down to the way that he was used and the opportunities he wasn't given. Tim Kelly, like I said, tightened down. I explained that.

Starting point is 00:15:38 Didn't like what he did on offense. Not an indictment, not a season-long panic button press, but just disappointing in the first game of the year. Finally, the refs. They were so bad in the first half. Now, as I said at the end of the last segment, and as my everydayers know, I'm never going to come on here and blame the refs for a loss

Starting point is 00:15:58 unless it's something that's really obvious. Titans may have had a touchdown on the Kevin Byard thing taken away. May have been some bad calls early on as well. But the Titans hurt themselves enough in this game to where you can't give all the blame to the refs. But the refs get a Titan down because they were pretty bad as well. But with that being said, I am going to get into the Titan ups because there were some good performances

Starting point is 00:16:21 that we need to talk about as well. There were some good in there. You know what I'm saying? So we're going to dive into all that in just a moment before we get into it though. Do want to let you guys know that today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel Sportsbook. So look guys, the NFL season here, and there is no better place to bet it than FanDuel Sportsbook. It's America's number one sportsbook, and right now, new customers can bet $5

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Starting point is 00:17:13 and kick off the NFL season with an offer that you won't want to miss. FanDuel, official partner of the NFL. Titans fans, we are going to cap off today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast, breaking down this 16-15 loss to the New Orleans Saints to start the season for the Titans. Before we get into all of it, I want to thank you guys again for making the Locked on Titans podcast, breaking down this 16-15 loss to the New Orleans Saints to start the season for the Titans. Before we get into all of it, I want to thank you guys again for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen each and every day. Remember, Monday through Friday, Tennessee Titans content all year round,

Starting point is 00:17:56 always for free. Make sure you get subscribed, stay subscribed to the Locked on Titans podcast. We talked about Blame Pie to start. We talked about the Titan downs. Now we're going to finish things off with something a little positive, right? Let's have a little positivity to end the show. It is just one week after all, ladies and gentlemen. So everybody just relax. But, tighten up.

Starting point is 00:18:19 Jeffrey Simmons, Danico Autry, Arden Key. Dudes were absolutely awesome. Autry had a sack and a half. Key had a sack and a half. Simmons had a sack. Two tackles for loss for Jeffrey Simmons. Five tackles. Autry had a tackle for loss.

Starting point is 00:18:37 Five tackles. Key had four tackles. One tackle for loss. They were awesome. I mean, they were awesome. Arden Key knocked that ball away that should have been a fumble as well, which would have been another sack, two and a half. I mean, Arden Key, Jeffrey Simmons, and Danico Autry were fantastic in this game. They were everything that we would hope they would be.

Starting point is 00:18:59 They were awesome. Not only that, but hey, I told you guys, I told you guys Imani Hooker would have an interception. That very first play on the kickoff where he ripped the ball away from the returner was absolutely insane. Absolutely insane to make that play. Now, the sad news is Imani Hooker got a concussion maybe at the end of that game. He's in concussion protocol, so he's probably not going to play next week.

Starting point is 00:19:24 Mike Vrabel doesn't play around with concussion. So, Imani Hooker immediately comes in, makes a ton of plays on the ball, creates turnovers. That's what he always does. And then leaves with an injury, and who knows if he's going to play next week. I mean, oh man, the Titans are back, baby.

Starting point is 00:19:38 The Titans are back. But big tighten-ups for Hooker and the three guys on the D-line. T.R. Tartt as well. T.R. Tartt as well was a monster. Five tackles, tackle for loss. I thought he was fantastic. The Titans D-line was so good in this game.

Starting point is 00:19:53 I mean, they gave up 16 points, and the one touchdown they gave up was immediately after an interception. So, Titans defense doing what they do. I thought Jack Gibbons was pretty good in this game. He had eight tackles. Had a tackle for loss. Thought he was pretty good in this game. Kevin Byard didn't make a play on the ball necessarily, but nine tackles led the team. Safety leading the team in tackles, never a good thing. But gotta give a shout out to Kevin Byard there. Would have had a fumble return for a touchdown if the refs weren't

Starting point is 00:20:23 fools. So that's unfortunate. Also, DeAndre Hopkins, seven catches, 65 yards. I thought Hopkins was really good. Hopkins was excellent. Also, Nick Westbrook-Akene, four catches, 58 yards. He was like the most explosive wide receiver all day. That's not good news. But NWI gets a tight nut.

Starting point is 00:20:50 He played pretty good. Tajay Spears, again, imagine if Tajay Spears catches that pass at the end wide open for a touchdown and runs for 60 yards. He deserves a tight nut. He was good enough. And he broke off that big 17-yard run. He only got the ball three times on runs. So, didn't get a screen pass thrown to him.

Starting point is 00:21:12 Disappointing. And then Derrick Henry, 15 carries, 63 yards, two catches, 56 yards. Derrick Henry doing Derrick Henry things. He only got the ball 17 times. Tighten up for Derrick Henry. Anthony Kendall, I thought was good. And then finally,

Starting point is 00:21:30 Nick Folk. Who would have thought that the Titans kicking situation, he went 5 for 5 and hit a 50 yarder. Nick Folk was fine in this game. That's a tighten up for Nick Folk. So, overall, very disappointing loss.

Starting point is 00:21:47 It just feels like 2022 is the saddest thing. That's the most disappointing thing is feels like 2022 where the Titans offense is terrible. The defense is fantastic. The only problem here is Tannehill and Mike Vrabel let the Titans down in this game. And that's not normally what we're used to even in 2022. Mike Vrabel and Ryan Tannehill usually helped the Titans. They did not in this game. They were problems in this game. So when you have the issues that we're used to, and then you add in that the coach wasn't a plus and that Tannehill wasn't a plus, Derek Carr was the better quarterback by far. Looked way more mobile. Looked way more spry.

Starting point is 00:22:27 And Dennis Allen was the better head coach. And when you lose coaching quarterback and you're the Titans, it's never going to be good enough. Never going to be good enough. But with that being said, that is going to do it for me today. I'm going to be back with you guys tomorrow.

Starting point is 00:22:44 I'm going to be breaking down what I saw on tape. We're going to go over the all 22. What's next? Wednesday, crossover Thursday, game plan Friday coming ahead. That's going to do it for me, though. This was Locked on Titans.

Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans UGLY Offense in 16-15 Loss, Ryan Tannehill Blows It & Defensive Line Sacks Rack Up

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