Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - Tennessee Titans Will Levis BOUNCES BACK, Tyler Boyd Stirs the Drink & Major Injury Update
Episode Date: August 21, 2024The Tennessee Titans got back to training camp alone on Wednesday and while it was a slow start, Will Levis bounced back in a major way. He got some help from Tyler Boyd, who returned to practice, and... Calvin Ridley. Boyd is extremely important to what this team wants to do. Finally, we got major updates on a plethora of injuries on Wednesday and they are starting to mount for the Titans.Subscribe to the TicTacTitans Film Channel:https://www.youtube.com/@TicTacTitansTicTacTitans Merchandise: https://dixons-dream.square.site/shop/tictactitans-gear/C3AAPNWXSXA6SBYG3USV2I7R?page=1&limit=30&sort_by=category_order&sort_order=ascFollow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitansFollow the show on Facebook @LockedOnTitansPodSubscribe to the Locked On Titans YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/c/LockedOnTitans/videosFor your next listen, check out the Locked On Fantasy Football podcast. Get daily insight to the best Fantasy draft strategies so you can win your league this season. Click HERE to listen now. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network. Your Team. Every Day.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!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.eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit at eBayMotors.com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions 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.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms Apply.FanDuelFanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook. As playoffs wind down, the sports stop sporting like we want them to. But this summer, FanDuel is hooking up ALL CUSTOMERS with a boost or a bonus, DAILY! That’s right, there’s something for everyone, every day, all summer long! Visit FANDUEL.COM/LOCKEDON and add a big win to your summer bucket list!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)
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It was a slow start for the Tennessee Titans offense at Wednesday's practice,
but Will Levis and company bounced back in a major way.
I'll break down everything that happened on today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast.
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.
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It was a slow start for the Titans offense,
but Will Levis had a bounce back in the middle of practice and finished strong,
and that is exactly what you wanted to hear after what took place last week.
Also, a big part of that bounce back was Tyler Boyd,
who I think may be the straw that stirs the
Titans drink.
Also, we got a ton of updates on different injuries, and boy, the list is long.
Before we get into all of that, though, do want to 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.
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It's why the Locked on Titans podcast has been the number one
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With all that being said, let's dive into today's practice. So again, a slow start for
the Tennessee Titans offense in this one. According to Teron Davenport, there were a lot of incompletions
early. Also, we heard about a red zone interception. Will Levis was trying to jam one home to Calvin
Ridley and it kind of popped up in the air and Jack Gibbons was able to pick it off. So a slow start there. Let me just take this moment though to say
trying to figure out how small the windows
are in red zone is exactly what Will Levis should be doing. Hey,
can I hammer this home? Hey, do I have enough room to fit this in? Oh, I don't.
That was a little late. Oh, I can't get it in there. That's the type of stuff that you want
to see from your quarterback in practice.
When we talk about being able to experiment in practice and figure things out,
that's exactly what you want right there.
Those sorts of things is what you want to hear.
Not the misses downfield to an open receiver, different things like that.
But red zone, you're trying to slam it in.
Understandable there.
But after the slow start,
Levis started to cook.
Absolutely cook.
I saw a couple of people say this might have been his best day of practice
so far this year.
I don't know if that's the case.
I know there are a couple other good practices in there
during training camp,
but a really good bounce back from Will Levis.
The Titans worked in some 11-on-11 team periods.
They did a call-it period, which is basically like a game. It's a simulation
of a game, the call-it period. That's where the offense and defense
don't know what play calls are going to come in or what situations they're going to be in.
So, Levis hit three straight completions at one point
to bounce back and turn things around. Hit Tyler Boyd on an outside
pass in 11-on-11. Hit Tyler Boyd on an outside pass an 11 on 11.
Hit Tyler Boyd over the middle in red zone.
Had a nice sideline game to Tyler Boyd.
Also, Calvin Ridley was part of the picture.
On the call-up period,
Calvin Ridley hit a 20-yard banger
to Calvin Ridley to get things going.
And then had a, I saw it, 25 yards,
30 yards, you know, yardage
of these practice plays can be a point of consternation. But I saw 25, I saw 30. Either way, it was a long touchdown pass to Calvin Ridley through traffic. as well. So really started cooking. Again, had a touchdown in 11-on-11.
Scored in red zone. Two-minute drill at the end of practice as well. The Titans went all the way down the field. Will Levis
orchestrating the drive, getting them all the way down the field.
And then he throws one to Traylon Burks at the end of practice. Burks jumps up, can't
bring it down. Almost catches it, according to all reports.
And then limps off, holding his back, lower back, hurt after practice.
That's the Traylon Burks experience in a nutshell.
I'll talk about that here in a little bit.
But overall, again, a good day for the Tennessee Titans offense.
And even with a slow start, Will Levis was able to get everything back on track,
start hitting all of his playmakers, spreading the ball
around, and more importantly than just having a good
day of practice. This is the type of bounce back that you
wanted from Will Levis after the struggles of last week. I talked
about it after Thursday's practice. Some people didn't like hearing it, and I understand
it, but the reality is that Will Levis struggled against the Seattle Seahawks.
Now, Mike McDonald should be one of the best,
is one of the best defensive coaches in the entire NFL.
That's why he got a head coaching job.
And Brian Callahan wanted to face them purposefully
because he knows that Mike McDonald is a good defensive coach.
That's why he wanted to get Denard
Wilson, someone who worked with Mike McDonald
who Brian Callahan struggled to game
plan against last year when he was
with Cincinnati going against Mike McDonald
in Baltimore.
So you want the Titans
to face the most difficult
defenses possible
in their joint practice
so that they're as ready for the season as
they can be.
So with all that being said and all those qualifiers, the reality is still that Will
Levis had his struggles in last week's joint practices.
There were a couple of missed deep passes to Calvin Ridley.
There were a couple of interceptions at times.
The Titans offense just did not operate extraordinarily well
in those joint practices.
So bouncing back from that, imagine having those joint practices
and then coming out at the beginning of Wednesday's practice
and struggling a little bit.
To still have the confidence to flip it on and make plays
and turn things around in the periods that are more simulations
of what a real game is going to be
like. That is exactly, exactly what you want to hear from your second year quarterback. No doubt
about it. And Levis talked about the confidence. He said, quote, talking about Brian Callahan,
quote, he's instilled a lot of confidence in me as a player. He knew that I could be a great player in this league.
To hear that from a dude who's leading the charge was cool.
So having that confidence, not looking over your shoulder,
not being so worried about a little mistake here, a little mistake there,
and being able to get things back on track and still go out and put points up.
I saw a report
somewhere where Tyke Tolbert was saying, you're going to need a calculator for all these points
because the offense was doing so well at certain points of practice. Again, things aren't always
going to be good. No matter who you are and what NFL season in life, things are not always going
to be good. But how do you bounce back from that? How do you get back on track?
Do you lead your guys?
Do you keep everyone involved?
And that is exactly what Will Levis did on Wednesday at practice.
And that is exactly, again, what you want to hear.
Perfection is the goal, but it's also ultimately unattainable.
You're never going to be perfect.
But being able to bounce back after you get knocked down,
that's what football and that's what life is all about.
And the Titans have a good one in Will Levis. So with that being said, I want to zoom in a little bit
and talk about the performance of the receivers in this practice
and talk about how Tyler Boyd is the straw that stirs this drink.
Before I get into that though,
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Titans fans, let's continue today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast.
We talked about Will Levis' performance and how he bounced back in practice
and why that's exactly what you want to see from your quarterback,
especially a young quarterback.
But now I want to zoom in to the wide receivers who made that performance possible.
The return of Tyler Boyd at the top of that list. Before I get into it, do want to thank
you guys again for making Locked on Titans your first listen each and every day. Tomorrow, I'm
going to recap Tennessee Titans practice on Thursday. Then on Friday, I'm going to have a
preview of what's going to be taking place against the Saints on Sunday. What to watch for,
expectations for the final preseason game. After Sunday's game against the Saints on Sunday. What to watch for, expectations for the final preseason game.
After Sunday's game against the Saints,
I will be live here on the Locked on Titans podcast
with a full 30-minute recap.
And then next week, it's time to start doing some preview episodes.
My predictions for the Titans record,
certain awards for the team superlatives,
fantasy previews, stuff like that.
And we're right around the corner from the NFL season kicking off.
Also, over on the Tic Tac Titans film channel,
I have my Malik Willis breakdown from Tuesday.
My Jet Jackson, Jaquan Jackson breakdown is up from Wednesday morning,
which was a fantastic breakdown in my own opinion.
And then my Jalen Harrell breakdown from Saturday's preseason game
will be on the Tic Tac Titans film channel on Thursday morning at 8 a.m.
Now for your second listen, check out Locked On Fantasy Football.
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It's part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.
All right, with all that out of the way, let's talk about these wide receivers.
Tyler Boyd was back, all right?
And going back to our conversation
about Will Levis' struggles in joint practice last week,
a couple of different things.
Number one, no DeAndre Hopkins.
Number two, no Tyler Boyd.
So it should be no surprise, I guess,
that without the other two top wide receivers on the team,
Calvin Ridley had his struggles, getting more attention,
having to run more routes, do more work.
Will Levis would struggle, not having his safety blanket,
his security blanket, his other underneath guy, Tyler Boyd,
and then not having the guy he has the best chemistry with in DeAndre Hopkins.
So just want to circle back to that and keep that in mind
when we talk about Will Levis' struggles.
But now that Tyler Boyd is back, he made a huge impact.
It was Easton Freeze who said that Tyler Boyd had three big memorable plays
on the day.
Jim Wyatt said he had four catches total
on the practice.
Tyler Boyd may be the straw that makes,
or, you know, the straw that stirs the drink.
That's the phrase that I'm looking for.
Tyler Boyd is the straw that stirs the drink.
Alright.
So you're going to have Calvin Ridley
who's going to be able to make big explosive plays
from the Z-wide receiver position.
You're going to have DeAndre Hopkins
who's going to be able to make contested catches
and win one-on-one in a physical X role.
Those guys you know what you're going to get.
But the down-to-down consistency,
the, hey, it's first down,
and instead of taking a loss or taking a zero gain,
we're getting four yards, we're getting five yards.
Now we have second and five.
We could take some shots and still have third and five if we don't get it.
And then when it's third and five,
I can hit a little six-yard pass underneath,
keep the chains moving,
and give yourself an opportunity to get to those explosive plays,
that down-the-field back shoulder for DeAndre Hopkins,
that deep crossing route to Calvin Ridley where he catches it in stride
and uses his speed to get upfield.
You have to find a way to get to that.
I would say that I would compare it to my eating habits.
So what I generally like to do is graze during the day,
you know, eat a couple of grapes and a strawberry or two.
Then in a couple hours, eat a couple celery sticks,
some carrots with a little deli meat and cheese and crackers.
And then maybe have a little afternoon snack of, you know,
peanut butter and jelly or, you know, some additional fruit, some of, you know, peanut butter and jelly or,
you know, some additional fruit, some peppers, you know, things like that.
Maybe a bag of chips on a good day, you know, get myself a little bag of chips in there
for the afternoon snack and then have a bigger meal at dinnertime.
Now, I will tell you that is probably not the best dietary advice.
You want to have your biggest meal earlier to work it off.
Advice you want to have your biggest meal earlier to work it off. I'm aware but everybody loves having a nice big Hardy dinner at the end of the night after you've worked hard all day
So I would say that the titans offense needs to work in that way like yeah
You know, eventually you're going to get to the big meal to the big payoff the big explosive play
But you have to be able to graze throughout the day.
Little four yard, little five yard, little six yard,
little dump off underneath on a drag route
that Tyler Boyd takes up field for a bigger gain than expected.
The Titans need to have the little snacks in their diet
to be able to get them to the big meals.
I would say to keep the comparison going,
last year in the Titans offense, they fasted.
Like, they were just like,
hey, we know that we're going to get stuffed on this run and get nothing.
We know that if we do a quick drop-back pass,
there's no way that we're going to have success consistently
with how bad the offensive line is
and how the wide receivers don't separate quickly. So the Titans were basically just like, screw it. We're going to fast all day. Like it's
Ramadan or something, you know, like I I'm not eating until very, very late. Like I'm not eating
throughout the day. And I'm sorry if I'm misconstruing Ramadan or anything like that.
My understanding is that it's you fast during most of the day.
I've heard a lot of athletes go through it. So if I messed that up, sorry, I'm not like
some religious educational guy. So I might've, but I think that's the general point.
So the Titans were fasting on offense last year, and then they would hope for their big meal at
the end and maybe make one big explosive play so they could put up 20 points and maybe win with a defensive showing.
That's what the Titans were trying to do.
Now they're healthier.
They're like, look, we're still going to have a big meal at the end of the night.
We're still going to get our explosive plays,
but we need to have some snacks in between to get us there.
And that's those little short passes to Tyler Boyd,
keeping the chains moving, keeping ahead of the schedule,
keeping out of situations
where you're first and 12, second and 12. That's what Tyler Boyd's going to be for this offense.
And that's going to be so critical because they don't have the offensive line. The Titans
offensive line should be improved, but it's still not going to be one of the best offensive lines
in the league right away. So having a guy like Tyler Boyd to keep you on schedule, like I've
been talking about, so, so critical. So it makes sense Will Tyler Boyd to keep you on schedule, like I've been talking about,
so, so critical. So it makes sense. Will Levis would maybe struggle without that in the arsenal and would be better once that's back out on the field. Okay. So Tyler Boyd may
be far more important than maybe we're all giving him credit for. I do want to mention
Calvin Ridley because the connection is starting to come together.
Brian Callahan said it last week that the connection and the improvement between Will Levis and Calvin Ridley would not be linear.
That means that it's just not going to start at point A or start at one,
gradually go two, three, four, five, six, and get better.
Sometimes it might be good day, bad day, good day, bad day,
good day, good day, good day, bad day, good day. You know, it's going to go like that.
It's going to look like a mountain peak or a mountain range. Is that, you know, I'm not also not an outdoor specialist, as you guys probably can tell. I spend a lot of time indoors watching
football. Anyways, it's just not going to be like a clean, gradual increase.
It's going to be ups and downs.
And seeing some of the downs last week,
but seeing them get back on the same page today,
Wednesday's practice, that's, again,
that's exactly what you want to hear.
So the Calvin Ridley connection coming together,
they connected with a ton of 20-plus yard plays.
But Tyler Boyd is the snack that gets the Titans to the meal that is Calvin Ridley explosive plays.
So, good to have Tyler Boyd back, and I think the reports
that we got out of training camp on Wednesday kind of lend themselves
to what we're talking about here with Tyler Boyd being that guy to get the
Titans through some of the times when
it wouldn't have been so good in previous situations
without him. So, with that being said,
we got to talk about injuries.
There are a couple other defensive
updates I want to get into as well, but
we'll hit on a major
injury update. And I don't mean major injury
like an injury is really bad, but
we just got a lot of injury updates
on Wednesday, so I'll dump those all out
to you guys as well.
We just got a lot of injury updates on Wednesday,
so I'll dump those all out to you guys as well.
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and take advantage of this great offer. Titans fans, let's cap off today's edition of the Locked on Titans podcast,
recapping Wednesday's training camp practice for the Tennessee Titans.
I guess it's still technically training camp,
but I mean, the Titans are doing a normal practice week
like they would get ready for a Sunday game
because the game against New Orleans is on Sunday.
So it's really kind of like a game week
in the way that the Titans are practicing.
But with that being said,
we got a lot of injury updates on Wednesday,
which we'll get our first injury updates of the week every week on Wednesday for the Titans
during the regular season. But before I get into the injuries, do want to 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 that
you get subscribed, stay subscribed. It's your team every
day here on the Locked On Titans
podcast. For your second listen,
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Network, your team every
day. Couple of defensive notes here.
Big day for Jeffrey
Simmons.
According to Jim Wyatt, he made a bunch of plays.
I saw, according to Toronto Davenport, Jamal Adams actually got some reps on defense.
He rested most of last week, although he was involved in the practices.
So it's kind of limited participation there as he deals with soreness.
And then Jalen Harrell.
Jalen Harrell came in for two plays with the first team offense. Got a sack
against J.C. Latham and then immediately got a tackle for loss
on one of the running backs. Back-to-back plays. I'm telling you guys, my Jalen
Harrell film breakdown is coming out 8 a.m. Thursday morning.
He's good.
He's a good player.
Like, I am allowing you all to get hype.
Get hype about Jalen Harrell.
The Titans found a gem in the seventh round.
But with that being said,
one of the reasons that Jalen Harrell got work
is because Arden Key got a little banged up.
I believe,
I want to make sure,
oh, it was Terry McCormick
who reported that
JC Latham blocked Arden Key
in one-on-ones.
Key was wearing a sleeve
on his left leg
and got up limping
and seemed to be favoring
his hamstring.
He didn't go inside,
but he didn't participate
in the team drills.
So, Arden Key
back from suspension, not getting suspended. One is appeal, but
let's monitor that injury. Jalen Harrell may be a starter before we know it.
Outside of that, Traylon Burks, like I said, jumped up
to catch a pass at the end of practice. Didn't catch it.
Came down favor in his back. Hope he's alright.
Haven't heard anything as serious about it,
but just, you know,
could Traylon Burks go one day,
one practice,
one catch without getting hurt?
Like, I've mentioned it before, guys.
He just has balance issues.
He doesn't fall right to protect himself.
He loses himself and loses his body control in
midair. I don't know what it is. I compare it to a baby deer whose legs are too long for their body
to understand. And they're just kind of like they're fast and they're long and like, but they
don't have control of themselves. And that it just seems like that with Traylon Burks. Um, but again,
we don't know that it's serious or anything. He could be back out there tomorrow.
Who knows?
As for other injuries that are maybe a little more serious
than those ones at practice,
I saw a report before practice
that Caleb Farley was going to practice on Wednesday,
but Jim Wyatt from TennesseeTitans.com
included him and the people who didn't practice.
So not 100% certain with that one.
DeAndre Hopkins still didn't practice, although the Titans expect him back for week one.
Chito didn't practice, but again, they're hoping to get Chito back soon before week one.
LeJarrius Sneed still resting.
They're just not playing him in training camp at all.
JoJo Doman still out.
Cedric Gray with the shoulders still out. Again, we talked
about maybe putting him on IR after the 53-man roster is set and then adding someone else.
Josh Wiley still out with a concussion. TK McClendon. I had him making the roster just because
there aren't a lot of bodies on the interior defensive line right now, but TK McClendon has
turf toe and he may be out a few weeks. Kyle Phillips still out with a hamstring injury.
Jabari small was in concussion protocol after Saturday night's game.
He still is.
Otis Reese,
same thing.
Concussion protocol.
Caleb Murphy cut his hand before practice and wasn't out at practice.
Karis Jackson with a knee injury.
And then Treshawn Harrison still not practicing.
Don't know what the injury is. May not. He's not going to make the team anyway. So Treshawn Harrison, still not practicing. Don't know what the injury is.
May not.
He's not going to make the team anyway.
So Treshawn Harrison's still out.
So those are the injury updates.
Titans will be back out on the practice field on Thursday.
I'll be here with you guys to break that down.
Again, check out the Jalen Harrell film breakdown
I'm putting out at 8 a.m. on Thursday.
Check out the Jett Jackson one I put out on Wednesday too.
They're both really good young rookies from the late rounds
who the Titans could use as pretty heavy contributors this year.
So check those out.
But throw a Titan up in the chat.
Throw a thumbs up on the video.
That's going to do it for me today, folks.
As always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland,
and this was Locked on Titans.