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Tennessee Titans: 3 biggest concerns vs. Cleveland Browns in Week 1

By Michael Moraitis

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - AUGUST 25: Head coach Mike Vrabel of the Tennessee Titans looks on during the second half of a preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Nissan Stadium on August 25, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - AUGUST 25: Head coach Mike Vrabel of the Tennessee Titans looks on during the second half of a preseason game against the Pittsburgh Steelers at Nissan Stadium on August 25, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Frederick Breedon/Getty Images) /
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Cleveland Browns QB Baker Mayfield
CLEVELAND, OHIO – AUGUST 08: Quarterback Baker Mayfield #6 of the Cleveland Browns warms up prior to a preseason game against the Washington Redskins at FirstEnergy Stadium on August 08, 2019 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Miller/Getty Images) /

Getting pressure on Baker Mayfield

The Tennessee Titans invested some money into their pass-rush this offseason with the signing of Cameron Wake, but he isn’t the biggest key to success for a Tennessee pass-rush that finished tied for No. 16 in the NFL last season with 39 sacks.

That key would be second-year pro, Harold Landry. The Boston College product finished with 4.5 sacks in 2018, two of which came in his only three starts near the end of the year. He was the team’s in-house solution to improve an area of need, and the Titans need to see improvement right away.

As we saw during the preseason, the Browns’ line can be beaten. The team lost a key cog in the wheel upfront when it traded right guard Kevin Zeitler to the New York Giants. That move has left the right side of the Browns’ line vulnerable, and it’s a spot the Titans should hammer on Sunday.

You can also point to left tackle Greg Robinson as a player upfront the Titans can exploit, as he finished with an overall grade of 59.6 in 2018, per Pro Football Focus.

Another issue for the Titans in 2018 was getting pressure up the middle, and stopping the run. Tennessee will hope that DaQuan Jones and Brent Urban can get it done, with a little help from linebackers Rashaan Evans and Jayon Brown. We already know what Jurrell Casey brings to the table, so no problem there.

The Titans have to make sure Nick Chubb isn’t able to bust game-breaking runs, but more importantly that Baker Mayfield doesn’t have all day to throw to Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry. The Titans have a talented secondary, however you can only expect them to last in coverage for so long.

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