Tennessee Titans O-line given extremely generous ranking by PFF

Somehow, Pro Football Focus ranked the Tennessee Titans’ offensive line No. 6 after three weeks.

The Tennessee Titans offensive line has been just about as bad as one could possibly imagine to start the 2019 season, but somehow Pro Football Focus sees it differently.

According to Michael Renner of PFF, the Titans’ dreadful unit ranks sixth in the NFL, with the highest-graded lineman through three weeks being center Ben Jones.

"Center Ben Jones has been the anchor for the Tennessee line for the first few weeks of the season. His 76.2 overall grade currently ranks third among all centers in the NFL. The biggest surprise for Tennessee has been the relatively ineffective play of free agent signing Rodger Saffold, who has already allowed three sacks so far this season."

Jones, who signed an extension prior to the season, has earned his share so far. His 76.2 overall grade puts him as the third-best center in the league. Sadly, he’s been about the lone bright spot upfront for Tennessee.

The reason why this ranking is puzzling is because the Titans have been historically bad blocking for quarterback Marcus Mariota this season.

As we’ve pointed out numerous times, the Titans have allowed 17 sacks through three games — including nine sacks and 12 QB hits in Week 3 — which is the most one quarterback has taken in that span of games since 2002.

In case you were wondering, here’s how PFF comes up with this list.

"We are now through Week 3 of the 2019 NFL season, and it’s time to revisit PFF’s patented offensive line rankings. With new information – like losing starters to injury or young players making a leap in performance – comes new rankings for us at PFF. Let’s dive into the top performer so far for each offensive line around the league."

Yeah, that didn’t help at all. I mean, I could see this ranking if we’re talking about what this Titans O-line has the potential to be, but if it’s based on current performance, this ranking is wrong.

Rodger Saffold allowed two sacks in his first two games with the Titans, which is how many he allowed in 16 games last season. Furthermore, Jamil Douglas posted what has to be one of the worst pass-blocking grades ever, with a 12.4 last Thursday night.

Coming into the season, PFF ranked the Titans as having the No. 4 unit, so this is definitely a downgrade; however the downgrade simply doesn’t do justice to how bad this offensive line has been. In fact, it’s not even close.

On the bright side, there is help on the way. The Titans should get Nate Davis on the field to replace Douglas this week, and Taylor Lewan will return in Week 5. That should stabilize things, although the Titans might be 1-3 before that happens.