Titans vs. Chargers: Reasons for optimism and concern for Tennessee
By Ravi Konjeti
Concern: Offensive play-calling
The Titans have been stagnant on offense this season and have shown almost no ability to move the ball. First-year offensive coordinator Arthur Smith has been abysmal calling successful plays all year long. While it has been tough to decouple bad execution versus bad play-calling, it’s hard to ignore the fact that the Titans cannot seem to get any third down conversions this year.
Many times, the Titans are stuck in third-and-long and have to fight against dropped coverages. The Titans have become extremely predictable when they run with Henry or when they run a form of play-action, and Smith continues to run screens when they have failed over and over again.
The Titans have slot expert Adam Humphries, but have wasted his skill set. Getting Humphries the ball on quick drag routes can really catch opposing defenses off guard. Smith, who was previously the tight ends coach, has perplexingly gotten away from using Delanie Walker and Jonnu Smith.
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When the offensive line is struggling, the solution cannot be to continue to try to find deep passes or run through the middle. The Titans need to quickly find new player packages and formations to get the dynamic playmakers the ball in the open field.