The Guest Spot: Tennessee Titans Team Preview
By Jason Peters
Sorry we missed you guys last week, but we’re back with a new one for you. This week’s edition of The Guest Spot comes courtesy of Peter Clarke. You can reach him on Twitter @Pacman453323
Tennessee Titans Team Preview
What is working on Offense:
Chris Johnson has been in camp all offseason, and the Titans have let go of OG Jake Scott and acquired one of the best Guards in the league in Steve Hutchinson from Minnesota. With star WR Kenny Britt, expected to be back week one after suffering a torn ACL last year, 1st rd draft pick Kendall Wright and Nate Washington (coming off a career year), this should be the best Titans WR group since the Oiler run and shoot days, as long as the right person runs the offense. The only question is which person will it be: Matt Hasselbeck or Jake Locker?
What is not working on Offense:
The interior of the offensive line is the huge problem for the Titans. Eugene Amano started at Center last year and was rated by pro football focus as the worst center in the league. Tennessee tried to bring in Scott Wells, Chris Meyers, Dan Koppen, Jeff Saturday, Jeff Faine, and even Jamaal Jackson, so the issue is known. They failed to sign all of them and will be going into camp with Amano, 2nd year pro Kevin Matthews, son of the o-line coach, Bruce Mathews, and undrafted rookie center William Vlachos, none of which are too appealing.
What is working on Defense:
The Titans only gave up 224 yds passing per gm (14th best in the league) and they were 14th in the league in the takeaway/giveaway stat, so in a heavy passing league these stats are extremely important. The Titans had the 9th best red zone TD percentage in the league, only allowing a TD 47.92% of the time, and these are key factors in the defense only giving up 19.8 ppg, which was 6th least in the entire league.
What is not working on Defense:
The biggest problem with Tennessee’s defense was not getting enough pressure on the QB. They had the 2nd least amount of sacks in the league with 28, and they’re not deep at DE. They lost their #1 CB, Cortland Finnegan, and they still have not fully recovered on the d-line from the unbelievable duo they had in Kyle Vanden Bosch and Albert Haynesworth. If they want to continue to improve, they have to get as lucky with their defensive draft picks as they did with Ayers, Casey, McCarthy, and Klug last year.
Overall Summary:
The Titan are very young at all spots on offense and defense and they only have one starter on either side of the ball that is over 30. They are very talented and the sky is the limit for this team if Locker turns out to be as good as they hope. With one more added pass rusher on defense and one more interior offensive lineman, this team could be a Super Bowl contender. They already surprised people with their record last year and this year I expect them to be better and much faster. This is a sleeper team to look out for.
Peter Clarke