ESPN’s Matt Bowen says Titans should make this personnel shift
By Will Lomas
Where do the Titans lead the NFL?
13 Personnel (1 RB, 3 TE, 1 WR)
Who is usually on the field?
RB: Derrick Henry
TE: Jonnu Smith, MyCole Pruitt, Anthony Firkser
WR: A.J. Brown
What does Bowen say:
"The Raiders and Titans tied at No. 1 with 94 snaps each in 13 personnel. Last season, the Raiders averaged 6.38 yards per attempt and 4.72 yards per rush, while the Titans’ play-action passing game boosted their yards per attempt to 8.94. However, Tennessee posted 2.96 yards per rush, surprisingly low given the offensive line talent in front of Henry on zone schemes."
It makes sense that the Tennessee Titans wanted to go heavy upfront because so much of their offense is based around forcing the defense to believe every play is going to be a run.
Another thing that makes this formation so enticing is because you are basically daring the defense to either play their best players (which likely means four defensive backs) or you are forcing them to use less talented players who have the size to deal with tight ends in the passing game and power in the run game.
However, A.J. Brown, Jonnu Smith, Anthony Firkser, and even Derrick Henry are viable options in the passing game and if you don’t have the athleticism out there to cover those guys then you are going to pay for it with an explosive play.
That is the mentality behind this formation and the Titans are right to use it often, but it isn’t quite what they are best at.