Tennessee Titans Have to Figure Out Defensive Problem

Nov 25, 2012; Jacksonville FL, USA; Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Cecil Shorts (84) runs away from Tennessee Titans defender Michael Griffin in the first quarter of their game against the at EverBank Field. Mandatory Credit: Phil Sears-US PRESSWIRE

Hopes of the making the playoffs are all but dead after the Tennessee Titans loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. That doesn’t mean they don’t still need to focus on their issues. The Titans had a great day of getting to the QB Sunday against the Jaguars, totaling 7 sacks as a team, a season high. But the secondary looked awful.

And when I say secondary, I’m really saying the safeties.

The CB’s were by no means superstars, but Michael Griffin and company gave up play after play. Jordan Babineaux had a play that is burned into my mind, one that you could say cost the Titans the game, when he ran right buy WR Cecil Shorts and gave up a 59 yard touchdown. The Titans lost by 5 points. It was poor plays like that all day that cost the Titans the game.

Overall, when compared to other performances this season, the Titans did all right. That’s not saying a lot though. A good defense plays lights out consistently, though they are forgiven for a few lapses here and there. The Titans defense has been letting opposing offenses score around 30 points a game all season. That’s not the sign of a good defense.

I digress though.

The Titans still have some games to pull things together. After OC Chris Palmer’s firing last night, Gray should be giving it all to fix this Titans defense. Adams isn’t afraid to fire people and while I don’t expect to see Gray fired during this season, once this season comes to an end there could be a big target on his head. And there should be. This defense has talent galore, from the young LB’s to an incredible group of young DT’s. He has to figure out what isn’t working with his scheme and fix it.

Some interesting defensive notes from the Jaguars game, posted both for the fans eyes as well as Jerry Gray’s:

"– Six of the seven sacks Chad Henne took came on the 13 plays the Titans blitzed.– The Jaguars missed nine tackles while the Titans missed 11.—Courtesy of ProFootballFocus.com"

We’ve all struggled to understand the Titans struggles on both sides of the ball this year. Then again, none of us are getting pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to do so. If we were, I’m sure we’d be able to come up with some competent suggestions for improvements.

The clock’s ticking, Gray.

You can find me on Twitter @JustinLStewart