The Tennessee Titans have had a very fun and interesting offseason so far. New GM Jon Robinson has brought in big names that fit this team and he made a blockbuster trade to grab an extra first round pick in 2017.
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However, it is easy to forget that the reason Jon Robinson’s had the tools to make these moves is because the Tennessee Titans had the worst record in the NFL last year. That allowed them to make a splash in the offseason and set them up to have several new starters.
So, while there is a lot of room for optimism, fans need to be sure that they know what did and didn’t work last year and what Mike Mularkey might be looking at in terms of making changes.
I thought a good exercise would be to go back week by week and take a look at exactly what made each game. The good and the bad all coming together in one post where you get a snapshot of what this team should have done and who should have been replaced this offseason.
So, with that out of the way let’s take a look at the game film.
FanSided
Week 1 @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The good
-Marcus Mariota looks magnificent in his first start. His accuracy is amazing and when he is allowed to get in rhythm he is too much for the Tampa Bay defense to even slow, much less stop.
-His quick release and understanding of pre-snap reads made him impossible to stop on the goal line.
-Bishop Sankey showed some burst to the edge and soft hands that may keep him on the roster in 2016.
-Deiontrez Mount had an incredible interception of a screen pass after Jameis Winston thought he was cut. If he shows that sort of ability this year, then the Tennessee Titans will have five players they can play on the edge of the defense.
-Kendall Wright had a phenomenal game. He was aggressive and didn’t try to make people miss, he just turned upfield and trusted his speed.
-Jurrell Casey and Derrick Morgan really had great games. As pass rushers they were always giving their blockers fits. When they were stopping the run the read their blocks and made smart plays.
The bad
-Dexter McCluster offers little to nothing as a kick/punt returner in the NFL. At this point he doesn’t go upfield, he doesn’t have any deceptiveness, he isn’t initially quick, and he doesn’t read his blocks.
-There is some timidness from the safety position already that is concerning.
-Marcus Mariota did hold the ball a little too long and there was a pass that should have been intercepted over the middle. He needs to do a better job in 2016 of seeing defenses adjust to him packaged plays and finding another route.
-The theme of the year of no one wanting the running back job started here. No one really came out and took the job with David Cobb out with an injury. These backs should have been hungry to prove what they could do, but instead they just disappointed.
-The interior of the line and Jeremiah Poutasi all had their issues. Many struggled with the strength and burst of Gerald McCoy when they matched up. There were also a lot of missed assignments that hurt the run game.
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Summary
This was a great game for 90% of the team. The issues that plagued the Tennessee Titans throughout the year hurt them in this game, but their strengths were much more pronounced. They were surgical and efficient and while they didn’t have a devastating ground game, it got just enough traction to force the defense to respect them.
It was also a game where Marcus Mariota/Tennessee Titans fans breathed a sigh of relief as we saw just how great he can and will be.