Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - TITANS SQUAD SHOW: Will Levis' LAST HURRAH, final roster cuts INCOMING

Episode Date: August 30, 2026

Tennessee Titans wrapped up the preseason against the Chicago Bears. It was the final chance for several players to make a last impression on the coaching staff before roster cut day, including quarterback Will Levis. We discuss head coach Robert Saleh's decision to sit the starters and debate who's in and who's off the roster. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Gusto Try Gusto today at gusto.com/LOCKEDONNFL, and get three months free when you run your first payroll. FanDuel Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. Join all the action at https://FANDUEL.COMto play Daily Dingers and make your free pick on who’s hitting a homer this MLB season.   KALSHI For a limited time,Download the Kalshi app and use code [LOCKEDON] to get $10 when you trade $10. Square Get up to $200 off Square hardware when you sign up at https://square.com/go/lockedonnfl! #squarepod Gametime Today's episode is brought to you by Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDON for $20 off your first purchase. Indeed Listeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/podcast. Odoo Great organizations win because operations matter. And that’s why you should get Odoo. Try for free today at https://Odoo.com/lockedon. 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) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Well, a football game happened tonight. Titan therapy session next here in the squad show. But look, it is preseason. And there's one thing that always gets overhyped, either pros or cons, and it's preseason. We'll tell you why you shouldn't just completely freak out. Yeah, but mono-e-mano, the Seattle Seahawks, showed us why they are the world champions.

We'll talk about that as well. Titan up. It's the Titans Squad. everything Tennessee Titans every week. Covering all the big hits and game-changing plays from the heart of Music City, the way only the locked-on podcast network can. Squad up. The Titan Squad Show starts now.

And welcome to the Titan Squad Show. I'm your host, Julian Minnesone, joined by Kayla Anderson and Brad Hopkins. Wanted to remind you today's episode is brought to you by Fandul. Join all the action at Fanduil.com to play. daily dingers and make your free pick on who's hitting a homer this MLB season. So the Titans get the win in the preseason game, their second preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks 19 to 16. I'm going to leave the floor to my trusty analysts here. How are you feeling? What's kind of your initial reaction? Ladies first, Kayla. What do you think? Yeah, I mean, it's so hard. I go back

and forth with preseason football, man. I mean, I know that there are a lot of anxious Titans fans and a lot of anxious media members who just want to see a team headed in the right direction. And I think we, a lot of times put a time limit or a cap on like when we're supposed to see that come together or what we need to specifically see out of every preseason game. and it's going to look like this if that means that we're gradually climbing up a hill. And unfortunately, that's just not what happens in the game of football. And with this team specifically, I think it is kind of a bummer in terms of seeing your first teamers,

your starters, and especially like defense tonight, right? You know, you have none of Seattle's starters in this game. You've got your starters on defense and they go down, Seattle, that is. and they score on the first drive. And so it kind of sets a tone in a way for, I think, the entire game. And then, you know, you've had chances with Cam Ward on offense to, you know, possibly get a drive going and end that in six. It's ended in some field goals.

But I think people are expecting more out of Cam at this point. Unfortunately, guys, like, this is new still. And things take time. And also, when you're just doing it. doing three series, there's a flow you get in, especially offensively. And right now, in preseason football, you don't really get into a flow. So I know it's me maybe making excuses, but I think it's also understanding like we can't get overreactive on just two preseason games. Yeah, that's a great point, Kayla. First off, football games are 60 minutes. And what we tried to

kind of, you know, condensed into a couple of periods, a couple of series is a true feel of what this offense is, and then have a chance to get into a flow. As a matter of fact, you know, I would say that the Titans this week had a slow start. I really never really did get started. And maybe that was because defensively, they were kind of put behind the eight ball a little bit. When you look at, this wasn't Zach Sharbonnet or Judarian Price. This was Jakarta Wright and Drew Locke. That were basically, you know, 103 yards through the air, 12 and 14 for Drew. Jakarta had eight carries for 81 yards, just the longest right down the middle of this defense for 69 yards.

It had to be a little disheartening. And then when you look offensively at, you know, some fingertips that could have maybe caught balls, feet in bounds when you're throwing off platform, things like that. You know, fumble out of bounds when you're not necessarily securing the football. So it really wasn't crisp. But this is preseason. It was a basic game plan.

They were going out to just go out and compete, see what guys can do. When we saw them more effectively taking advantage of downs one and two, dealing with positive yards, particularly when Julius Chestnut was in the backfield. My man was running boat tonight. There's the reason why he led this team with eight carries and 48 yards, six-yard average. Still wasn't what the Seattle rush was able to do, but still I think that he was actually the player of the game, and rightfully so.

I mean, he was, you know, hard attack. at least getting positive yards, which then made third downs more completable. You know what I'm saying? Whenever you have incompletions, if you have penalties, you know, because Cleet, the, the, the, the official, you spent more time talking to us than something to broadcast. So I think at the end of the day, it just wasn't the cleanest performance. And Cam kind of touched on that in his post-game conversation with the media. They need more time on task, you know, to get the things, the timing of everything down.

You know, obviously going into a real concerted, intentional way of attacking the defense will make everybody look better. But what they put out there on the field tonight, obviously they know they need to get some. I ask you guys this, because I know it's still the preseason, and this is what it's for, right? You guys both made those points in your argument here. But is there any concern that what we're seeing in some of these practices isn't showing up in the game? because Bhoff, you were after the Seahawks' joint practice on Friday, and you and I kind of talked a little bit and agreed, like, they came to compete. Like, they held their own against, and those were against the Seahawks' ones,

like both defensively and offensively, they looked pretty good. And it wasn't the first time that in practice that they looked pretty good. So I ask you, when do we need to see that start to translate? And is it wait until week one until this thing needs to translate? Is it, you know, is it like this final preseason game is kind of the last straw before the real thing begins? Because I think that's where, at least from what I've seen across the fan base, is there's a disconnect between some of these practices that they're having and the actual game play. Yeah, I think it takes four walls to make a house, right? They probably got like two and a half right now.

So it's not a complete house. And nor should it be at this point. They're still trying to figure out what guys are going to ride out with the 53. they're going to make this roster in the next 10 days. Think about that. Cut day is coming quickly, and we're going to see exactly the nucleus of this team and what they're actually going to be able to have

as they really put together game plans, schemes, studying their opponent. One thing the Titans aren't going to do right now is show everybody what they're doing or showing everybody what they're trying to do. It's very vanilla right now. You know what I mean? They're trying to keep that powder dry.

They're trying to make sure. sure that, hey, look, they're not being game planned in week two of the preseason rolling out all their stuff. You know what I mean? So Brian Dayball is a master play caller, and he's going to obviously put this offense in the best position he can, but you've also got to take what defenses give you by what down in distance you have. If you're dealing with first and you can that turns into second and 10, the turns into third and 15 or third and 10 or whatever, I mean, the playbook only has sections that deal with that stuff versus. you being a third and five, you know, second and six, second and three, those kind of things.

The playbook is way more expansive, way more options. And it's easier to protect the quarterback that way. You know what I mean? So, Kayla, you can touch on this. First off, from your neck of the woods and your side of the country, Seattle doesn't have an option but to pretend like they are the baddest boy in the jungle because they won the damn Super Bowl last year. So they're going to come into it with a certain mindset,

and they're going to try to live up to an identity that anybody that won a world championship is going to have in this successive year. Yeah, and to that point, Brad, I think it's just, I hate to say this, like, because it seems so basic, but it's kind of common sense when you look at two different organizations in two completely different places. In terms of Seattle, like you said, just won a championship. They've kind of had that organization together for the past, you know, several years. And you look at this Titan organization that is.

is doing everything it can right now to get to that place. But you guys, we can't take away the sheer fact that it's been a bit of a mess. And there's been a lot of change. And when you have a ton of change like an organization like the Titans have had, you're starting to hopefully get that going in the right direction. And we think that this is the group to do with Mike Orgonzi and Robert Sala and, you know, Brian Daibel, even if he is here just a year. but it doesn't flip on overnight.

We're talking about everything is still very new. And preseason, you can't just look at a preseason game or two and say everything is peachy. That is not realistic. For Seattle, you're right. They're in the NFC West. Do you know how crazy that division is minus Arizona? So like their mindset is to go out day one and exactly Brad say like we got to defend. our title because we're in this division again that's going to beat the heck out of us and we're

just trying to go out and from day one prove that we're worthy of getting back there. The Titans are in a different situation and they're just trying to prove to themselves that they can get themselves together and re-collaborate and start off on the right page. And maybe that's not even in the first game of the season. Maybe that is a progression in the first few weeks of the season. And hopefully there's some wins in there. But it's just, just not the light is not just slipped on. Yeah. To that point, you guys, you guys make excellent points. Preseason, I think a lot of fans are, you know, they're facing the backups for a lot of these teams.

They want them to be a finished product right at the gate. And that's not, that's the Titans that we are getting now, the hope is that that's not the Titans that we get in week one, in week four, in week seven, and so on and so forth. They are not a finished product by any means. And so I think that that's where people need to temper the expectations a little bit, because this was a three-win football team in each of the last two seasons. Yeah, but you've also looking at Seattle, Mike McDonnell is going on his third year with this program.

He's changed the culture. You know, matter of thinking, change it because, you know, Pete Carrot was doing a tremendous job of establishing an identity up there. But Brian Fleury has never called plays, right? Yeah. The defensive coordinator, sure he's running Mike's defense, but this is, you know, a very talented roster. Sam Darnel, throwing for back-to-back,

4,000-yard seasons heading into this year, you know what I mean? obviously he did it once in Minnesota and then backed it up, you know, taking the CFCO Super Bowl. But there's been a lot of change. You know, Clint Kubiak is now the head coach in Las Vegas. You know, he's not calling place or running this offense, but yet they found a way to be efficient. I think that we saw that really in the way that they practiced. You know what I mean? They had a very professional approach.

They were intense enough, but we didn't see too many dustups, too much wasted in fighting and getting frustrated and things like that. because you know what they didn't have to prove anything yeah that's one of the reasons why they almost walk with an air of confidence because they did walk through the valley of the shadow of death there you go we got it we got it love love love love that love that um well all lies are on cam lord of course in the preseason and we're going to talk about cam's performance what did we think Was he better? Did you want to see more? That's next year in the Titan Squad Show. Don't go in. Running a small business means wearing a lot of hats and payroll, HR, and benefits can quickly become some of the most time-consuming tasks on the list.

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if Gunner Helm, toe taps and those drives are sustained, we could be talking about a much different day for Cam Ward. You know, I think there are times where he did take what the defense gave him. But I think it was just part of it was missing that big play. And, you know, I know earlier this week, there was a concerted effort to give him some layups to kind of get them in a rhythm. But still left a little bit wanting more sustained drives in that offense, at least to put a drive together to put into the ends of.

Kayla, what did you think? Yeah, look, this is where, and you know me, I'm a big Cam Ward fan. You know, I have been since day one. I understand, though, a little of the frustration with fans because he was the number one overall pick. and people when they think of number one overall pick they think of like hey he needs to be at this point at this stage he needs to be at this point in year two and i don't completely disagree with fans for feeling that way um but with cam i think again with another offensive coordinator coming in and him learning new receivers again and just just everything in terms of the playbook, it's just new. And so timing is a part of that as well.

And I think that he spoke a little bit about that in the post game as well. But I think you're right, Julian. If you just would have seen a couple more connections with those guys. And they were so close, then maybe we wouldn't be talking as poorly about the performance. And I'm not speaking poorly on the performance. I'm saying what other people I'm here. I'm hearing like, well, this is Cam's national stage on the preseason. And he just, you know, was disappointing.

And I don't really agree with that. I think that we're thinking he has to be at a certain level because he was the number one overall pick. He was not spoke of as a generational talent. He was not spoke of as a Caleb or a Trevor. Like he is in a different category. And right now he's on a team that isn't a different, you know, state of. their organization. Again, he's growing with the organization. I think the one thing that

frustrates me with Cam sometimes, and I've seen it all the way back since like times at Washington States, it is protecting the football sometimes. It's not being kind of careless with it at times. And that is something if I'm Brian Dayball, I am just editing that in his brain. Like you have to protect and be cautious and conscious of what you're doing with the football. You can't just have it, you know, lightly in your arm. Like, it will be knocked out. And that's one thing of Cam that I will say that's something, a bad habit that he's got to try to break because that's not going to help either in this narrative of what Cam is

supposed to be at this point. Yeah. Yeah. I like Cam's mentality. He knows there's a lot more meat left on that bone that he has to eat. He knows he has to develop and grow and be better in this offense. But he's not going to sit there and show you the poker face of his frustration and basically say, I'm not where I want to be and listen to everything because I got rabbit ears and all the stuff.

You know, if at all anything, Brian is working with him trying to instill that confidence with the more reps that they get playing against very, very talented defenses. okay they ran up to san francisco last week i mean now they're no slouch seattle the dark size will got them to the super bowl in the first place and and the bears are not going to be any walk in the park either so i like this sort of baptism by an open fire you know i mean so because that's going to make the two new york games uh philly will be tough you know i mean uh but just running through the schedule

little bit of that, who our preseason was rubber than this. But with it being what it is, now we'll say this, if we still see some of the slow developing stuff after week one, if we still see some mistakes being made, if we still see the lack of productivity in downs one and two, because that's really what it comes into, right? It's not just third down conversions. Third down conversions are definitely more completable if you're dealing with positive yards in the first and second attempts.

You see what I'm saying? So, and where that comes is, you know, really, and I'll say this, you know, we talk about Cam Ward and his ability to go to football, explosive plays, getting a ball downfield. But it starts with number 20. It starts with number two. It starts with 36. It starts with the big boys up front because you got to win up front to create a pocket in a management. down a distance that allows you to continue to drive because you want to have nine, 10, 11, 12 play drives to basically wear down a defense and that's how you win ball games.

You know, it's one thing to go out there and just be able to chuck it up a couple times put it in the end zone. That's a luxury that most teams don't have. You know what I mean? Because not everybody's got a Jackson Smith and Jigba. Not everybody's got, you know, Justin Jefferson, you know, these dudes that can just run up and win one-on-one. And then I'm going to be on one-on-one anyway.

You don't have a dude covering the top of it to make sure they don't get behind you. But in essence, I think this is a developing offense and actually developing defense too. Kind of rare to say with all the free agency acquisition and like, you know what I'm saying? Because they got gashed on another more of instances. Like I said, that was Giacardi O'Roy, Mount Jadarian Price, that ran for 69 yards down the heart of this defense. I mean, that was actually Seattle being smart with the aggressive pass rush and the quarterback way, back waiting for everybody to run by him and then he takes off for 18 yards or 16 yards or whatever it is you know i mean so they're smart with you know navigating rush lanes and taking advantage of what the titans

wanted to give them this wasn't a blitzing wide scale everything you know there were they were a couple instances where they caught them stunning and out of position next thing you know it's a gaping hole you know that's what good teams do so you know there's a lot that they can develop there's a lot from that tape that they can get better from. Let's just say that. How much do you guys think that the new age quarterback that's coming in and the success that a lot of these top picks have been having altered expectations for guys like Cam? Like for example, like CJ Stroud winning rookie of the year, Jane Daniels winning rookie of the year, Bo Necks coming in, Caleb Williams going to the playoffs and getting a deep playoff run there. How much do you think that alters the

goalposts for the expectations for somebody like Cam who, Not everybody is always on the same time long. That's, well, that's, that's the kind of point I was trying to make earlier. And let's be real, though, like even an organization like Chicago, how many times do they get it wrong? Yeah. And they even got it wrong in Caleb Williams for a first year. Like, they fired that head coach, right? And then they had to go back to the drawing table.

And they had to bring in a guy that they thought could really take Caleb to the next level. even though Caleb was considered a generational talent. Let's be clear on that. Much different from Cam Ward and what he was labeled. But they also, in Chicago's case, look what they did that that offensive line. They completely granted him with like people, like guys in front of Caleb that were going to protect him. I mean, they did everything to improve that line in the offseason. They got Caleb weapons.

They did a lot in Chicago for that second year for Kemp. Caleb to really shine. And he still needs to improve, right? And, you know, you can go down the line with these quarterbacks. Everybody's in a different organization and on a different timeline. And I think that people are so anxious to see it happen now, you know, and with Carnell Tate, too. I mean, people are frustrated because right now, you know, Cam's 0 for five with Carmel in the preseason. And they wanted to see more out of the rookie that was the, you know, fork overall pick. But again, It's everyone's on their own time. And I think that, like Brad said,

they're not going to just show you everything that's going on right now with this offense. I think that once the season hits, we're going to see some things come together. It's just about having a little bit of patience. But I understand the frustration too, because it's easy to look around and say, well, why don't we have that? Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

Well, I mean, Amani Hooker said it one time when I was walking by the plack, by the sideline. during practice, it was a big play that came through to Cardinal Tate. And we saw a lot of that in the mini-camps, right? He said, that's what they want to see. That's what everybody wants to see. You know what I'm going to. So if our defense knows that, you know the other defense knows,

that that's what Kim wants to go with football. You know what I mean? And also, they want to see, you know, the pressure-tricker building, you know, if Carnell Tate goes O-for-O with no yards for consecutive weeks, all of a sudden things you start heating up, like, man, what the hell is going on. You know what I mean? Our first pick ain't doing nothing.

It's not like, you know, he can go take the ball from game, start running with it. They just got to find ways to be smart. But with that attention that he's drawn, you've got to be able to take advantage of the other assets. Win the one-on-ones. That's what everybody always says, right?

Because if you've got a good enough player that deserves double coverage or double teams up front, that kind of thing, the other guys need to be able to take advantage of their one-on-one situations. That's receivers. That's Juan Dale Robinson. That's Calvin Riddle. We saw Cal, put it this way, if Calvin didn't get the pass and clearance call,

this all, you know, I don't know, we might have been another three and out. You know what I mean? Something like that. So, but Gunner Helm, didn't have many attempts. You know, don't catch us either tonight, you know what I mean? So like, but like Cam said, he'll go back to Gunner time and time again. And they'll make those countries. How many plays did we see those two nights?

late last year. You know what I mean? So it's going to happen. You know, this is the preseason. And I know that we get excited because this is football that looks like football. But like Cam said tonight, he said, let me go get his quote after. He said, we're getting game reps, not in a real game. Think about that. That's the truth. It's game reps, all right. But they don't count for anything. Right. Titans go to 3 and 0 in the preseason. Are you going to all of a sudden say yes we're going to the football that's probably what would happen they've done pretty well in the preseason record wise the last couple of years too that doesn't mean anything right exactly just like on the flip side if they went 0 for three you can't be you know right and at the

building just ready to just do a swan dot you know what I mean yeah cam I think said it perfectly in the in the interview during the game that it was a little better but there are certainly things that he needs to clean up and get better at. I think Cam is very self-aware of that, too. We'll see how that goes as they get to Bears Week this coming week of the final preseason game next weekend. All right, we're going to talk about the defense. Brad talked about it a little bit.

What went wrong and what they need to build off of going into next week as well. That's next here in the tight squad show. Don't go anywhere. Life gets busy and figuring out what's for dinner every night can quickly become another thing on the to-do list. Home Chef takes a stress out of meal time by delivering fresh ingredients and easy to follow recipes right to your door. Whether you're looking to eat healthier, save money on takeout, or simply spend less time grocery shopping and meal planning. Home Chef makes cooking at home simple, convenient, and enjoyable.

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Go to HomeChef.com slash Lockdown NFL. That's homecheft.com slash Lockdown NFL for 50% off your first box and free dessert for life. Homechef.com slash locked on NFL must be an active subscriber to receive free dessert. All right, you were talking about the defense a little bit in the last block. Jacaradier Wright obviously had a huge run. They also had the busted coverage with Elijah Royale for the touchdown early on. And I think one of the big question marks that rose after this game was why does the

defense, the starting defense, particularly for a Robert's solid team, look like that against the Seahawks backup. So do you have an explanation? Well, I think it was just certain situations that they caught them in. Like when you look at the scramble that Drew Locke had, I think it was for, I don't know, how many yards that was. Let's see, eight yards scrambled. It got the first down, yeah.

10 yards, got the first down, right? And then it was on the next play that we saw a Jakarta take off right down the middle of that defense. But what they were doing is they caught them in a stunt situation. And just like the parting of the Red Seas. That was Lyman staying on their box, you know, but also taking advantage of the aggressive nature that we had up front. I don't want to say that this is the type of defense that basically stops to run on the way to the passer, but it did seem like that in some instances, maybe because that's what they were trying to do was apply pressure to the quarterback and really get him on the ground.

But coverage and pressure are correlated to one another. They're definitely related. If a quarterback doesn't have pressure, then he pretty much has all day to pick a part of defense. eventually a receiver will make himself open. And if we've had issues in coverage, like the one big play that turned into an interception, but it was called back because of the holding, you know, those are things that you just, you know,

you got to be able to get off the field. We did see Big Jeff putting on some pressure, though. You know, he did get in. I think almost disrupted a play, you know, almost got to the quarterback as a matter of fact, and we'll see more of that. Now, there's a comment in the comments that really is actually kind of telling.

And it plays right in what Robert Salah's philosophy is with the rotation of four. Is it this one right here from Ultra Hemethe? Ultra Hemethe says, what's outstanding is our second team and third team D-line playing like starting D-line. So when our starting front four starts playing normal again, this rotation, the prophecy will be fulfilled with the number one D-line. 1,000%. I mean, think about that. If Big Jeff and Jermaine and J.F.M, they go out there four plays hard, and they go. to the sideline. You've got guys that are very capable with what they're showing us in preseason

that they can continue that level of play and pressure until the big boys get back. And he's back and forth, back and forth. So almost like the level of pressure and intensity never really goes below like a certain level. You know what I mean? Quarterbacks will be under the rest no matter who's in there. And you want to be able to have that depth. So I like what twos and threes are doing, taking your fans. You also think about this, twos and threes are going up against other twos and threes. So it's not like. You know, you There's nothing with a confidence booster.

There's nothing against the confidence booster. I'm not, listen, I'm not poo-pooing or anything. Jordan Elliott, you know, Solomon, Keldrick, Muhammad Diabate, these kind of, yeah, I get it. Femi had a facemask, ah, you wish you could take that back, you know, that kind of stuff. But, you know, Malik Herring was doing great. I think we lost Jalen Harrow. I think he's, he got. Yeah, he's out for that.

the season. What was that? He was having a longer. You want to see more from Keldrick Faw? You know, but, you know, don't sleep on guys like Jacob Martin. You know what I mean? These guys can make plays. And ultimately, you want to be able to carry that past the first unit.

But nobody's questioning Big Jeff's ability because that guy is going to always command the double team. And the guys around him will feed off of that. And you got guys like Anthony Hill Sr. That were trying around making tackles. Cedric Gray, making tackles. You know what I mean? So in essence, when the big bodies up front, the front floor are occupying people in gaps and whatever.

And you've got to have guys that can fly around playing sideline to sideline and not giving up those bravulses that sometimes offense can take advantage of. Yeah, I first of all, you brought up Anthony Hill. And first of all, I love seeing, you know, when these other guys come in. I think we forget sometimes, too, guys. Like, I know it was the Titans first team defense in a way. and I know that you probably shouldn't think this way. But in a way, you know, they're out there.

They're playing three series. And it's like, okay, like they know they're out there against twos. But who's saying that these twos aren't all starting, they're all trying to win jobs. These guys are trying to do whatever they can and have the motivation that they're going against this Titans number one, you know, one defense. And they're trying to fight for jobs too.

So everybody on the field is fighting for an opportunity to make a roster. I think sometimes we forget the other side of that. But in speaking of that, I love what the Titans, you know, guys did down the stretch. You mentioned Anthony Hill. I mean, he had some really good plays in their fourth quarter there. You had some guys, you know, Big Jeff coming off the sideline with the sack that he was, you know, who was it that got the sack was doubled up on the sack of, of Jalen Milro

late in the game. Oh, Anthony Hill got a sack tonight. And then, who was it? I wrote it down. Oh, Diabate. And Truman Jones, yeah. Who doubled up for the sack. And Jeff came out there, everything.

And you got to love that because I think that kept everyone in the game. And that's what you got to like about this Titans team is that it wasn't ever quit for them. Even if it was the guys at the bottom end of the roster, Like, everybody was still in the game. Yeah. No, and you were right.

It was my bad. It wasn't Anthony. You were right. Truman Jones had the sack and a half tonight. Yeah. And Diabate with the half-sac. Taylor, let me ask you something. You were on the sideline for a long time.

Is it customary for the players' families to be in that little section of the sideline before the game starts? Yes. Yeah. A lot of times it is customary that either mom, or the girlfriends or the wives. Some of them will come down their kids sometimes. Yeah. Funny you mentioned the girlfriends before wives.

That's funny. But they got separate sections, Bhop. They got to be in separate sections. Separ sections. And I thought they're supposed to be on the other side of the stadium. Yeah. They're in the back. I'm joking.

Tell the joke. I saw, I mean, it's a terrific moment. I got to see, Austin Slotman. you know, with this little baby. He's got a little baby. The baby's like probably six months old. It's beautiful, you know? And I saw, you know, Big Jeff getting cooled off by his daughter with the fan.

I looked at Ben Jones because Ben Jones and I were staying on the silent. I said, I didn't do that. If I'm going, now this is preseason. The reason I'm asking if it was regular season, if they did that in the regular season, because if this was the regular season, just the way I got ready for a game, I didn't want to talk to my family in front by a regular off for the game. I wasn't even in the mindset. to love on my kids and whatever else.

First off, I don't want my kids to see me like that. I'm not scared a hell out of them, you know, because I'm way I'm just a right. Now, it's pretty season. Maybe going into it, I know I'm only going to get three serious and then where the sunflower seats. That's what my mentality is. So am I going 60 minutes, right?

And that's probably also part that plays things in this whole situation that we're seeing here in preseason. They know it's preseason. I know that it's preseason. I know that at the beginning of this game, I'm going to play 60 minutes of wall-to-wall football, having prepared myself all week, it's almost like night and day. These guys know that what they're asked, what's being asked of them. And guess what?

The backups, they know too. They know that they're going to get a chance to get in there and prove whether they belong on this team or not. And most of it's going to be catered towards them. You know what I'm saying? Never will they ever again get as much playing time as they're getting it right now. you know what I mean and never will the starters have as little playing time as they're getting right now because this is preseason yeah their jobs are on the line this two's and three

their livelihoods are on the line check they're the food on the table oh oh all on the line hey they got to play for the next two weeks like their lives depend on it because that's why I said to guys like what put your I'm just putting myself in here I don't I'm a freaking competitor I mean I'm ruthless if I'm out on the field then I'm going up against Jeffrey Simmons and crew. And I'm trying to make a name for myself. I'm on a natural TV. I'm doing every single thing I can to show out, right,

in those whatever series opportunities you get. If Jakarta, if there wasn't a wall there, Giacardi might have ran through and kept running. For sure, man. You'd be in the Cumberland right now, probably. Yeah. So something to keep in mind, obviously, you want to see more from the defense.

but there is some stuff on tape to look forward to the next game for the Titans. That's for sure. We have a couple questions in the live chat. We'll get to them on the other side of the break here in the Titans Squad show. Kayla had to go, but we have a couple questions in the live chat for Bhop and myself. One of them comes about the guy that had an interception tonight, Anthony Hill Jr. comes from informed watcher three. When do you think Hill can get his job from Cody Barton, Bhop?

I mean, Cody had two tackles and they were, you know, they were combos. They weren't solos. Anthony had five tackles, you know, by himself. You know, I mean, I think that at the end of the day, his performance is showing his value already in a short period of time, you know. Cedric Hill took James Williams' job last year. You know, we can say, and Cody did have some moments last year where we, you know, we saw a veteran guy that knows how to read offense, knows where to be. be on the football field. I think you had a couple of picks early in the season. I think he led the team in interceptions last year actually. He's an assignment driven guy. Exactly. Now, you need

athletes. Yeah. I need guys that get, you know, that quick twitch muscle stuff and good hips. And that's what Cedric Gray, who was a tackling machine last year, that's what he brought to the table. That's what Anthony Hill and a short, excuse me, senior is in a short period of time, you know, proofs in the pudding at the end of the day. Everything will sort it. out because this isn't a talent kind of this isn't a popularity contest you know what have you done for me lately stands out in any of these conversations so I think it will be more obvious than we're starting to think especially as they start to cater towards more of the regular season and preparing in that vein right yeah you know the bears are the final dress rehearsal you know

just probably to get an indicator who's going to back up the best boys but don't think they're not going to be sprinkling some stuff in there getting ready for week one You know what I mean? Because that is really when you have, you know, the team, in essence, built together and what you feel comfortable with putting on the football field more often than not in 2026. There might be some wrinkles as a season progresses. You know, obviously injuries are going to have an effect, which is why you need more than just 11 guys on each side of the football. For the most part, I think that Anthony Hill will not be.

denied on this football field and if it costs Cody Bart on his job part of it. I think they look years down the line be off and that's why they drafted them. And look, I don't know if you agree with this or not, but like, you know, a lot of people made a big deal about how he wore the green dot helmet at Texas and he was the communicator there for that defensive side of the ball and how soon could he maybe get that when he comes to Tennessee. But I don't know for what you've seen in practice, what I've seen, he's looking like he's starting to play a lot faster and more like instinctual. lately.

Yeah. Over these last couple of weeks. There was a switch that flipped, it seems, over these last couple of weeks. I don't know. It was a switch or just him getting more comfortable and familiar with what he needs to be and what he's doing. I mean, he's getting used to the pace and speed of the game. When they say there's a complete adjustment that needs to happen from the collegiate level to the professional level, that's no joke. You know, I mean, it's real.

You got grown-ass men out here flying around, you know, that are 10 years older than you sometimes, and they're playing at a high level, and you've got to get yourself acclimated to that. pace immediately. And it sounds like Anthony and some of the other younger players are starting to get a hold of that idea, right? Yeah. But they need to get out there and compete and play at the same level that the guys who are left and right are playing. I did that left and right back. Either way, you see what I'm saying? They're actually, he's understanding more of the scheme. He's understanding more of what he's required to do in this defense. And that, therefore, he's able to play at a pace that allows him to play fast. That all gas, no,

break mantra that the Titans have taken on this year. I mean, that's by putting less on their table, on their plate, and allowing them to think less. I'm not saying to be mindless, but, you know, just allow them to, you know, hone in on their responsibilities and be where they're supposed to be. And that way they can confidently play the game of football at that pace at that level. FLG Caboos asks, we keep hearing that teams are in simplified offenses and defensive packages currently. With the secondary issues tonight, do you think that they'll be ready for week one?

Of course, that was the big question coming out of the Niners game, too, and we saw the secondary kind of get carved up a little bit. Based on what you've seen the last two games, you have a little bit of a sample size B-hop. What do you think of the secondary and how ready they'll be for the Jets? Well, I mean, obviously there was a concern heading into the offseason about, you know, the issues that they had in the secondary last year. And it seemed like with Alante and with Cordell coming to the roster as the free agency cornerbacks that we got, that it was going to help. And they're still adjusting. They're still learning to play with each up.

You know what I mean? But it also, you've got two offenses, offensive systems that have had a lot of success in the past. I'm not saying that they had their number one dudes out there, their best players out there. We didn't see Brock Purdy. We didn't see George Kittle. We didn't see Christian McCaffrey. We didn't see Sam Dernel.

We didn't see Jackson with the Jigba. Exactly. We didn't see Jackson with and Jigba. So I'm in practice. My man, look nasty in practice. Yeah. But I think that these are, they're new to this team. They're new to this roster. You know what I'm saying?

So also, like I just said earlier, the pressure packages play hand in hand with secondary. You know, if a guy has no time to throw in the pocket, you don't see the, you're not going to see the secondary stressed near as much as it can be. But any time a guy has, has time to navigate the pocket and just roll around and go through one, two, three progressions,

but you find somebody, you know, then that's going to be an issue because at the end of the day, I don't care if you got Dionne Sanders, the ghost of him and anybody else. If you give a quarterback that's in the national football league four or five seconds to throw, he will find somebody, period. Yeah, I think maybe people's expectations change when Alante Taylor tweeted out that he and Cordell

are going to be a, you know, top cornerback duo in the NFL. But he did say in that tweet, Behop, by season's end. And this goes back to what I'm saying, they're not a finished product right now, just yet. Like, he did say by season's end. So we're not there. We're not even at seasons beginning yet. All I want to ask, Julian, all I want to ask Titans fans is to do this over the next couple weeks. Just watch this team like this.

Not. or even, yeah, you know, don't get, don't let the highs get too high, and don't let the lows get low, because right now, like you said, this is a simple offense, a simple defense, and just ways of seeing if guys can just put their hand in the dirt and compete. That's what they're trying to establish right now. They're not trying to, honestly, it sounds crazy. They're not trying to win a ball game because at the end of the day, they don't matter.

You know what I mean? You don't see them onside kicking. You know what I'm saying? You know what I'm doing? Now, do they want to see situational football where I like to see what this looks like on fourth and one? You know what I mean? Not in my own territory, but at least somewhere where if I do, don't convert it, I don't give them an easy short field to work with, that kind of stuff.

You know, so I think that in essence they're just trying some things out, maybe things that they wouldn't even normally do because this is a preseason situation. I will say I did like Alante Taylor, the joint practice. I mean, he had the pick six. He had another interception that would have been, but he dropped. it had a pass breakup or two, and he was probably the best player on the field or one of the best players on the field defensively for the Titans in the Joint Practice this past week against Seattle. So something to take away there. Last question of the night, and I think it's a fun one, Draven's show comes in and says, looking for an NFL team to support because I live in Kentucky so I don't have a pro team.

Why should I be a Titans fan? Bhop. Yeah, that's a good question. I mean, Bengals would probably be closer to Cincinnati is not that far. I forget borders Kentucky somewhere. Pitch the squad, B-Hop. Pitch your boys. You know what?

Because when you're building a house, it's nice to say that you were there watching this thing get built. You know what I'm saying? Don't be trying to get a room when this thing's already put together. You know what I'm saying? Those are my boys the whole time. I ain't what your boys. This mansion looks nice. You got a room for it.

Exactly. Exactly. So that's the way I view because to me, I want to be able to celebrate the growth. You know, I don't want to inherit a winner. I want to say that from the very beginning, I saw Cam Ward as a rookie, you know, trying to grow, going into his second offense. You know, I saw J.C. Latham developing into this Pro Bowl right tackle that I know he's going to be. I saw Pete Skaronsky become a damn near all pro, you know what I mean, going into his third or fourth year. I watched Dan Moore getting better, you know, is a fifth year guy heading into a sixth year. He got big money and I think they're going to reinvest in the guy.

You want to be able to say that I saw the foundation being built versus waiting for the damn thing to be built and then trying to jump on. Because sometimes that bandwagon is going faster than you think and you end up falling off the back. You know what I mean? So if you're looking for a team, it's new, you're seeing a new culture, you're seeing a new identity, you've got new coaches. Everything's new here, right?

which means it's not going to be perfect because of the newness. So come on in, you know what I mean? Don't get that FOMO. Don't have the fear of missing out when this thing, when it doesn't left the tracks. You know, not the tracks, but when that train closed left the tracks. Good God. Hopefully it's not leaving the tracks be hot. Hopefully it's not leaving the tracks.

Don't listen to that last one. Yeah, that last part. You know what I'm trying to say. I guess you're saying. Man, we should have got you a pipe with like a robe, like a playboy robe for that little pitch that you had right there. You're a swivel chair. All I'm saying is, well, first off, you said you're looking, why should you be a Titans fan? Not a Titans observer.

You know, true fans, they know the ebbs and flows, the ups and downs. If you're a fan, you understand that you don't always win everything. You don't always lose everything. but you're there with your team. You know what I mean? It's almost like family. Fan probably has the two same similar as FAA and both of them,

fan and family. But family, I mean, sometimes you love your brother. Sometimes you want to punch them in the mouth. You know what I mean? But at the end of the day, that's your brother. You know, or your sister. I'm not trying to be sexist. But the point is, I mean, not for brothers fighting sisters.

I'm not approved of that. Be hands off your city. But if there's two sisters, you know, what go ahead. You know what I mean? At the end of the day, that's your sister. You don't anybody else pick on your sister. It's like, that's my brother.

You know, I can whip your ass. I can book my brother's butt, but you ain't going to work my brother's butt. That's true. That's true. So as a family, you live with those ebbs and flows. Everything's not going to be perfect. At the end of the day, you ride out with your family. Right out with your family.

And you get to watch and listen to the Titan Squad show with Brad Hopkins, too, if you are a fan as well. So that's reason for admission right there. And a couple people in the comments were saying the Music City Miracle. And Bhop knows that play all too well. Well, that'll do it for the Titan Squad show. Another edition, thank you for listening, wherever you may be. Make sure to like, comment, subscribe all of that fun stuff, and get the Locked on Titans podcast every single day with Tyler Rowland.

And I'll see her in the Titans Squad show twice a week now that the season is upon us. But for now, I'm Julian Minneson. That's Brad Hopkins and Kayla Anderson, who joined us on the show as well today. Thank you for listening, and we'll see you later this week.