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Titans vs. Patriots preview: Bad blood, fake QB drama, and A.J. Brown

By Michael Moraitis

STARKVILLE, MS - NOVEMBER 23: A.J. Brown #1 of the Mississippi Rebels catches a pass as J.T. Gray #12 of the Mississippi State Bulldogs defends during the first half of an NCAA football game at Davis Wade Stadium on November 23, 2017 in Starkville, Mississippi. (Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images)
STARKVILLE, MS - NOVEMBER 23: A.J. Brown #1 of the Mississippi Rebels catches a pass as J.T. Gray #12 of the Mississippi State Bulldogs defends during the first half of an NCAA football game at Davis Wade Stadium on November 23, 2017 in Starkville, Mississippi. (Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee Titans wide receiver, A.J. Brown.
OXFORD, MS – SEPTEMBER 02: A.J. Brown #1 of the Mississippi Rebels scores a touchdown during the second half of a game against the South Alabama Jaguars at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium on September 2, 2017 in Oxford, Mississippi. (Photo by Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images) /

Titans players to watch

Offense: A.J. Brown

While we won’t know if Brown is definitely playing until closer to game time, the arrow is pointing up for the rookie to make his preseason debut on Saturday night. Brown returned to a limited practice in his first action since Day 1 of training camp this week, and put in a full practice in the joint session with the Pats on Thursday.

There’s a lot to be excited about with Brown, and that’s especially true if you saw some of the nice catches he made over Pats corners on Day 2 of the joint practices. Brown has No. 1 receiver potential, and he’ll get his first chance to flash those skills in actual game action.

What can you expect from Brown? He’s a physical receiver with great hands who can make big things happen with the ball in his hands. The scary thing for opposing defenses is that he might be a third or fourth option in the Titans’ passing attack in 2019, which just goes to show the underrated depth this team has on offense.

Chemistry is important, though, and we’d like to see how he and Mariota connect once on the field. Not to mention, rookie receivers can be very unpredictable, so it’ll be interesting to see how quickly Brown can shake that normal rookie receiver label, if he can at all.

Tennessee Titans defensive end, Amani Bledsoe.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS – DECEMBER 01: Amani Bledsoe #72 of the Oklahoma Sooners reacts after a quarterback sack against Texas Longhorns in the second quarter at AT&T Stadium on December 01, 2018 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

Defense: Amani Bledsoe

A player who is seeing his stock steadily rise in practice is Titans defensive end, Amani Bledsoe.

The undrafted free agent out of Oklahoma has been one of the more promising Titans rookies we’ve seen in practice, and his strong training camp culminated with some first-team reps during Thursday’s joint practice.

Bledsoe really turned some heads after the first preseason game. According to Pro Football Focus, Bledsoe was the Titans’ top-graded player (84.2) on defense against the Eagles in Week 1.

From what we’ve seen, Bledsoe is earning himself a spot on the 53-man roster on a defensive line that still has some question marks. It looks as though he’ll have to beat out fellow defensive end, Brent Urban, if he wants a starting role, but could still secure his spot as a rotational player.

Regardless of how he makes the team, it appears general manager Jon Robinson may have found himself a diamond in the rough with Bledsoe.

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