Third down efficiency
The Titans have been abysmal in the first two games on 3rd down. On Sunday, the Titans finished 1-for-10 on third down, with four of the drives ending in a 3-and-out. For a team that relies on short passes and heavy runs, third down becomes a critical metric for success.
The Titans faced third-and-long over and over against the Colts, and had no answers. With the offensive line unable to protect the quarterback, Mariota threw many passes that didn’t even get to the first down marker. Whether Mariota faced actual pressure or not, it is clear this offense is struggling to find its rhythm due to the pressure Mariota is facing.
#Titans are 3 for 30 on third downs this season.
— Terry McCormick (@terrymc13) September 15, 2019
There were a couple of critical issues in the play-calling on first and second downs that led to this. When the Titans were successful, they called for power runs to Derrick Henry or play-action passes out of shotgun that converted for immediate first downs.
After an unsuccessful first or second down, the Titans seemed to roll over and settle for long third downs. Mariota and Co. need to stretch the field and attack opposing secondaries for the field to open up. The Titans will need to put Mariota in more short-yardage situations on third down to keep the playbook open.
The Titans were unable to chew up the clock and gave the Colts too many chances in the fourth quarter. The Titans need to sustain drives to limit the pressure they put on their defense.
Henry is a bruising runner and needs the carries to rack up yards and run the game clock. Henry posted 59 of his 81 yards in the second half. If the Titans want to stay in games, Henry needs to have more than 15 carries in a game, and more than nine in the second half.