Locked On Titans - Daily Podcast On The Tennessee Titans - VICTORY MONDAY -- Titans Defeat Texans 28-25: Big Takeaways, #TitanUpTitanDown & AFC Playoff Road Map

Episode Date: January 10, 2022

The Tennessee Titans squeaked out a win against the Houston Texans on Sunday by a score of 28-25. It was a nail-biter, but some big plays by Ryan Tannehill got the job done. Tyler gives his big takeaways from the win including the plays in the second half that saved the Titans from themselves. Next, Tyler goes over the good and bad individual performances in #TitanUpTitanDown including a Julio Jones sighting!! Finally, Tyler resets the entire AFC and goes over the Titans potential path in the AFC after clinching the number one seed in the conference.Follow Tyler on Twitter @TicTacTitansFollow the show on Facebook @LockedOnTitansPodSubscribe to the Locked On Titans YouTube channel:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP3332GMOh4y5PX3q9NFybwSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnline AGThere is only 1 place that has you covered and 1 place we trust. Betonline.ag! Sign up today for a free account at betonline.ag and use that promocode: LOCKEDON for your 50% welcome bonus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the Locked on Titans podcast. I am your host, Tyler Rowland. Titans fans, it is a Victory Monday, number one seed Monday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. And on today's show, I'm breaking down everything you need to know about that rollercoaster of a victory for the Titans, 28-25 over the Houston Texans. We are going to start with my big takeaways from the crazy game,

then we'll zoom in, look at the individual performances and everybody's favorite segment, tighten up, tighten down. And finally, we'll take a look at the AFC playoff picture, what the Titans road could look like, and talk about the return of Derrick Henry. So all of that and more on a Victory Monday. Number one seed Monday 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 Titans, your daily Tennessee Titans podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Let's go Titans fans. It is a Victory Monday, number one seed Monday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast. And I do want to let you know that it is brought to you by OnlineGambling.com, the place to be for all the latest gambling news and tips throughout the NFL playoffs. Visit OnlineGambling.com slash NFL to get the edge over the competition you need throughout this year's playoffs. Also, want to thank you guys for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen every day.

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The number one Tennessee Titans podcast in the world on Apple iTunes. Make sure that you are locked in to the Locked On Titans podcast all year long. But with all that being said, it is time to dive into this insane game. A tale of two halves for the Tennessee Titans. And there were definitely some periods where the Titans were not playing their best football. It was genuinely obvious for the start of the game. And then, of course, the start of the second half. That's something that the Titans do have to work on.

But at the end of the day, we know exactly what happened in this game. And I'll get into it. Starting off, the Titans came out slow on offense, but the defense was just absolutely dominant against the Texans. The Titans offense finally gets some life, as they always do, in that third drive of the game. And from there, the Titans end the first half on three straight scoring drives. Touchdown passes to Anthony Ferkser, to A.J. Brown, to Nick Westbrook. Akina, the passing offense, really got going.

Ryan Tannehill had about 190-plus yards, three touchdown passes just in the first half. The Titans were really rolling. They had zero points allowed on defense. I mean, everything was going the Titans' way. But then, of course, in the second half, things got dicey. The Titans came out, weren't playing very good on offense, very conservative play calling, run, run, pass, all of that. The Texans

meanwhile, got hot. They went to their play action game in a heavy way and the Titans second level was really getting sucked up, leaving some big holes over the middle of the field. And when they weren't doing that, the Texans were spreading out and shotgun five wide and just saying, hey, whoever you got covering Danny Amendola, they're not going to be able to cover him. Elijah Molden just had a terrible time in the second half trying to stick with Amendola. Then after Elijah Molden was hurt, Chris Jackson comes in, gives up a touchdown. So just perplexing how the Titans weren't able to deal with Danny Amendola in that second half.

But as Kevin Byard said in the postgame press conference, the Titans really did come out sleepwalking in the second half. They did not come out of halftime ready to go. And we've all watched sports long enough to know exactly what happened here. The Titans got a 21-0 lead. They're like, hey, we're the number one seed. This is it. We did it, blah, blah, blah.

And then the Texans who are a team that, although they don't have a good record, they finished 4-13, still a team that's been playing really hard and playing well for their coach over recent weeks. So the Texans didn't go away. Davis Mills really got going, and it put the Titans in a tough spot.

And let's be honest here. We saw a couple of huge plays in the second half that saved this game for the Titans. Otherwise, the avalanche might have been too much for them to hold up against. Number one, Jeffrey Simmons gets the big sack on first down in the red zone and that put the Texans in second and 19. Davis Mills ended up scrambling on third down and getting about a fourth and nine. They were forced to kick a field goal. Without that sack, the Texans probably scored the field goal there. And it's 28-28 when the Titans get the ball at the end of the game instead of 28-25.

So a big time play from Jeffrey Simmons in the second half to get that sack. Also, we got to talk about Ryan Tannehill's Houdini act. Just absolutely incredible. On the first drive of the fourth quarter, the Titans look like they're getting ready to have their fourth consecutive three and out, everything falling apart. Tannehill gets out of a sack in the backfield, runs around and fires a 36-yard pass to Nick Westbrook-Akina.

What an absolutely critical moment in the game. A few plays after that, Tannehill hits Ferkser for a 20-yard completion over the middle of the field. The Texans were playing a ton of cover three defense in this game, and the Titans hit quite a few seam routes up the middle, and Ferkser was one who took advantage there. Ferkser, a really good game there, but we'll talk about the individual performances, both good and bad, and tighten up and tighten down.

But just an incredible play by Ryan Tannehill, one of the best plays of the entire season, and a No. 1 seed-saving play, in my opinion, if Tannehill doesn't do that. I think the Titans end up losing this game. So just incredible stuff from Ryan Tannehill. And then finally, on the last drive of the game, third and two, the Titans give the ball to Dontrell Hilliard. He takes on contact. He reaches out and is able to extend the ball over the first down to gain line. First down Tennessee Titans. After that, they just run the clock down. Hilliard then gets another run where he's able to pick up a

first down and stay in bounds to completely clinch it. I mean, just what an excellent play by Hilliard to reach the ball across and get that first down for the Titans. So Simmons sack, Tannehill's Houdiniak, and then Dontrell Hilliard reaching that ball across. Three plays that saved the Titans in this game. But regardless of how it looked and how it felt, it is a victory for the Tennessee Titans who go to 12-5. As I mentioned, my season prediction for the Titans was 12-5,

and here we are. So a great job by the Titans wrapping up the No. 1 seed. It wasn't pretty, but it was beautiful, and we take those dubs. So a big win for the Titans, 28-25 over the Houston Texans. They're the No. 1 seed in the AFC. They will get the bye week, and Derrick Henry's return is right around the corner. Now, we're going to talk more about kind of the road ahead for the Titans, what the playoffs are looking like, the optimism for them going forward at the end of the show. Before we get into that, do got to do everyone's favorite segment, Tighten Up, Tighten Down, where we talk about the good and bad individual performances.

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number one seed Monday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast with a little tighten up, tighten down, going over all the individual performances from the Titans, both good and bad. Before we do, I want to thank you guys again for making the Locked on Titans podcast your first listen every day. Make sure you subscribe on whatever platform you do stream. Remember, you can find the Locked on Titans podcast everywhere

and always free. Diving into Tighten Up, Tighten Down. We're going to start with Tighten Ups, and no one deserves a Tighten Up more than Ryan Tannehill. We saw what Tannehill could do with competent receivers around him. A little bit of time. He was 23 for 32, 287 yards, four touchdowns, no interceptions, a complete reverse from the last game against the Texans

where he had four interceptions. And, I mean, once again, that play by Tannehill to get out of that sack, throw the ball to Nick Westbrook-Akina, extend that drive, hit Ferkser on the seam a few plays later. I mean, it just does not get bigger than that. And of course, hitting Julio Jones in the back of the end zone, just miraculous stuff. Put the Titans ahead when they needed it most in one of the scariest times I can remember all year long for the Titans.

Dontrell Hilliard, nine carries, 57 yards, had some catches as well. I mean, Dontrell Hilliard in the second half, the Titans realized, okay, Foreman is a bruiser, but the Texans are wrapping that up. We need some more speed. We need to get on the perimeter. The Titans went with Hilliard.

He had the big run to get the first down on third and two. Then he gets the run to really cap things off and get the first down and get down. Just a great job by Dontrell Hilliard in this game who got a big vote of confidence from the Titans when they waived Jeremy McNichols before this game. They said, hey, McNichols hasn't been very good in pass protection lately and he's not a good runner. Hilliard is a better runner and he's been just as good in pass protection and he can kick off for a turn. We're keeping Hilliard. So a great performance by Hilliard.

Well, not great, but he did a great job when the moment called for it. Then we got to talk about the receiving crew here. Nick Westbrook-Akina, four catches, 78 yards, one touchdown. Again, that huge catch by Tannehill. Nick Westbrook-Akina makes the play. A.J. Brown, four catches, 68 yards, a touchdown. Good game, but really, Julio!

We saw one of the best Julio Jones games that we have seen all year. Probably his best game besides that performance against Seattle all the way back in Week 2. Week 18, he finally gets his first touchdown catch as a Titan. Five catches, 58 yards, and here's what's most important. He can do it. He can make an impact for the Titans. Yeah, he probably believed that.

Yeah, Tannehill probably believed that. But we had to see it. And in this game, when you have some good pass blocking, you have A.J. Brown out there. Tannehill's feeling it. Julio Jones showed his value to the Titans. And that touchdown put the Titans ahead and won them that game. So, yes, the trade wasn't great all year long.

Yes, the Titans gave up the second-round pick, have to pay the money, all of that. But if Julio Jones can make big plays in moments that matter, he did it in Week 18, he does it in the playoffs and gets the Titans to a Super Bowl, then the trade was completely worth it. And there's at least one Nashville media member who's absolutely punching air right now because Julio Jones is doing what he was supposed to do for the Titans. Anthony Ferkser showed back up and big shock here. Ferkser has real NFL receivers around him. Has time for Ryan Tannehill. And Ferkser's getting open and making plays.

Shocker. The return of big game Ferkser and sure-handed Ferkser would just be massive for the Titans. So the Titans passing game. Probably the biggest tighten up of the entire game. Getting that rhythm going. I thought Nate Davis had a pretty good game as well. Jeffrey Simmons. Not a big box score game,

but two tackles, a tackle for loss. Had the sack, and the sack was just one of the most critical moments the Titans needed one of the entire season. Danico Autry had three tackles, had a pressure, knocked a pass away at the line of scrimmage in the first half. Bud Dupree, I thought made a big impact, was putting pressure out there with his three tackles andage in the first half. Bud Dupree, I thought, made a big impact, was putting pressure out there with his three tackles and pressure in the backfield.

Kyle Pecco! Kyle Pecco impressed in training camp. I thought he would for sure make the roster. He ended up getting hurt, went on IR, had an injury settlement, rejoined the team. He's had two sacks, one in each of the games in the last two weeks. Thought he really stepped up with Ty Year Tart

and Naquan Jones out of this game. Zach Cunningham, nine total tackles, two tackles for loss. Had a big hit on special teams on the punt coverage team as well. Amani Hooker, I thought, played very well in this game in the back end with this coverage. Had two tackles, had a tackle for loss where he blitzed in on a run play. Thought Hooker had a very good game. Brett Kern as well. Another good game for Brett Kern. He had four punts, averaged about 50 yards on his punts, put one inside the 20. So a good game there. As for the Titan downs, Jeff Swaim, awful in this game. One catch for two yards, but it was his blocking that stood out to me. He did a terrible job in this game on the edge, setting it for the Titans run game. I thought Ben Jones

had a really tough game. He was really struggling to reach some of those defensive tackles and interior linemen that he would normally get to. He was banged up throughout the game as well so maybe that had something to do with it. Elijah Molden probably the biggest Titan down of the entire game. He was just getting roasted and targeted over

and over again by Danny Amendola and there was a reason that Elijah Molden would come off the field on third downs for the Titans for the majority of the season and be replaced by a buster screen or be replaced by a Chris Jackson. Chris Jackson didn't do any better in this game. He's also a Titan down, gave up the touchdown pass to Danny Amendola. But Molden and Chris Jackson in the slot just did not have great days. And the Titans are going to have to sure that up.

We're going to need more buster screen. The Titans actually went with Molden as the dime extra defensive back instead of Dane Cruikshank in this game. Maybe it had to do with Cruikshank being a little banged up throughout the week, but hopefully they flipped that back. The Texans were going with Brevin Jordan out there. He's more like a wide receiver, so maybe that's why the Titans didn't want Crookshank on Brevin Jordan

and wanted to go with Molden out there and then screen on Jordan, but I'm not 100% sure that was the right decision, obviously, by taking a look at the results. So Titans got to show up that slot cornerback spot immediately. Randy Bullock, he made all four of his extra points, but missing that field goal, just not the momentum you want. His last field goal attempt before going into the playoffs was a miss. You just never like to see that. And then Jayon Brown was a healthy scratch in this

game. I don't know if maybe his conditioning is a problem coming off of COVID. He did have COVID, and maybe there are still some effects there, and they just weren't comfortable with him going out there and playing. But either way, I thought that was very surprising. I mean, David Long is pretty solid on third downs and pass coverage as a linebacker, but not having Jayon at all for those situations, pretty wild stuff. So not good for Jayon Brown. That's a tighten down, even if he didn't play in the game. But that's going to do it for tighten up, tighten down.

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Titans fans, let's cap off this Victory Monday, number one seed Monday edition of the Locked on Titans podcast by just kind of taking a look at the big picture here. Just all of it. All of it in totality. And we're also going to have some fun as well. Before we get into it, I want to thank you guys again for making the Locked on Titans

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Network. But the Titans are the number one seed in the AFC for the first time in over a decade. It's crazy. They're going to get a bye. And remember, Mike Vrabel is 8-0 with extra preparation in season. So

he's yet to lose when you give him a bye week, when the Titans play Thursday night football, the game after that. I mean, given Mike Vrabel extra preparation time, he doesn't lose. Also, not only do the Titans have the number one seed, the bye,

Mike Rabel's experience, Derrick Henry will be ready for the playoffs. The passing game is getting positive momentum. I mean, everything is set up perfectly for the

Titans. Number one seed, got the bye, Henry's returned, they're as healthy as they've been all year. What else could you ask for? If we started before the beginning of the season, I said, hey, the Titans are going to go 12-5, they're going to have the number one seed,

they're going to experience injuries, but they're going to be fully healthy at the end of the year. I mean, it's just the ideal scenario. And not only that, but the other results around the NFL were about as ideal as they could possibly be as well.

The Indianapolis Colts lost to the Jacksonville Jaguars and they are out of the playoffs. Eight pro bowlers, an MVP, and they're out, and they gotta pay a first-round pick for Carson Wentz, who looked like a bum all day.

We are laughing, everybody, collectively. Let's have a laugh Indy you bums you bums man Indy sure could use another receiver they should use their first round pick they can all play in the Pro Bowl now. The Jacks fans were in clown suits. And they lost.

Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man.

Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man.

Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man.

Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Indianapolis Colts. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Oh, man. Rest in piss. Indianapolis Colts. Okay. I got to collect myself. Pull it together. But let me say this on a serious note.

This is great because I know we can clown on the Colts because the Jags are the Colts. Oh, man. It's rich. It's so rich. Anyways, the Titans probably wouldn't want to play the Colts again just because we saw what happens in these division games. They know each other so well. So the Titans probably wouldn't want to play the Colts again anyways. So this is just great. Now the Pittsburgh Steelers are probably in the playoffs unless the Raiders and the Chargers tie, which I know you're watching this on Monday, but I'm recording on Sunday night,

so I don't know what happened in Sunday night football. I'm thinking that the Chargers are going to win, but here's the crazy part. If both those teams just kneel every single play, they would both end up in the playoffs on a tie. So I'm past Tyler in the future right now, so that game's already decided when you're watching this and hearing this, but either way,

what's most likely to happen here is the Titans are the number one seed. Then you're going to have the Chiefs at the number two seed, the Bills at the number three, the Bengals at the number four, the Patriots at the number five, the Raiders or the Chargers, whoever wins at number six, I'm going to say it's probably Chargers, and then Pittsburgh at number seven,

which means the Titans are going to play in that first playoff game, either Cincy, New England, the Raiders or the Chargers, or the Steelers. I mean, that's a perfect draw for the Titans. The Bengals, a little bit worrisome. They could throw the ball all over the field. That is a little bit worrisome, but their O-line's bad. I'm not entirely scared of their defense either and them to stop the run consistently. So, the worst matchup out of all those would be the Bengals, and I still feel pretty good about the Titans in that game. If the Titans got to play the Patriots or the Raiders, the Chargers do scare me a little bit because Justin Herbert's a freak,

but the Steelers? Oh, my God. That would be absolutely ridiculous. That would be incredible. I would love a rematch with New England. I would just love that. That would just, oh, that would be a joy. It really would.

Watching Buffalo against the Chargers would be awesome as well, so I can't wait for that game. But either way, the Titans don't have to play next weekend. So we'll worry about all those games when we see it. But the path to the Super Bowl for the Titans, just, it just looks ideal. It looks like it's possible.

They got to clean some stuff up. They got to play their best ball. But we're here, folks. We're here. 12-5, number one seed. AFC's top spot. A potential good road to the Super Bowl in terms of the draw that the Titans got. I mean, team getting healthy.

Henry coming back. Everything just set up perfectly for the Titans. So I'm very excited to break down this game throughout the week. Talk about things coming up going forward. The Titans will have a bye. They are the number one seed in the AFC, and I am going to be back with you guys on Tuesday. Make sure you follow me on Twitter,

at TicTacTitans, for my TicTac Tuesday film breakdown thread, going over all the game film, the X's and O's, all that. You won't want to miss it, but that's going to do it for me today, folks. As always, I am your host, Tyler Rowland, and this was Locked on Titans.