Who helps Titans the most?
The Tennessee Titans face a dangerous opponent this week in the Minnesota Vikings, but they might get some help.
Just a reminder, the Minnesota Vikings started off the 2019 season poorly too going 1-1 in their first two games with a 97-yard passing performance by Kirk Cousins in their opener against the pitiful Atlanta Falcons.
Then in Week 3, everything started to click and they won 7 of their next 9 games as they got ready to knock off the New Orleans Saints in the playoffs. So, for everyone thinking that they might want to rest people for another week, think long and hard about whether or not this is a trap game.
It hasn’t shown up in the win-loss column, but the Titans have been pretty banged up. A.J. Brown and Adoree Jackson aren’t on this list because I don’t expect Brown back this week and I don’t even know if Adoree Jackson is going to be back next week.
Having said that, there are players who have probably taken an extra week or two off to make sure they are full go, but more on them in a minute.
Right now I want to look at the one player on this list whose health is still a question mark to me, and that is Derick Roberson.
Derick Roberson, EDGE
Pros
Despite my love for Harold Landry and everything he brings to the Tennessee Titans, the best pure pass rusher on this roster is most likely Derick Roberson.
Roberson has a blistering first step that forced All-Pro right tackle Ryan Ramczyk to play on his heels all game. Not only that, but one of Roberson’s two sacks on that game is the only sack allowed by Ramczyk all season, which is pretty impressive.
He isn’t just a one-trick pony though, he also had a sack against the Saints where he stunted inside into the A-gap and quickly found Drew Brees for a stop on 3rd down.
Roberson is the only electric EDGE in a group of EDGEs that win primarily through power and hand placement. That stylistic counterpunch may be something desperately missing from a front four that isn’t getting any help from the coaching staff on 3rd downs.
Cons
Roberson’s role on the Titans is going to be as a DPR on 3rd downs, but when your primary move is an outside speed rush, it leaves your defense vulnerable to screens. I think that Roberson has done a good job in the past reading and reacting to those but without any game experience this season I don’t know if he is going to be immediately ready to deal with that.
The Titans linebackers have struggled this year so far, so asking them to make those plays might be tough if he isn’t able to get back and help.
Darrynton Evans, RB
Pros
Evans is supposed to be the missing piece to the Tennessee Titans offense. Derrick Henry is a sledgehammer who can run for the tough 4-yard gains and who will break your defense in half if you don’t bring your best when you tackle him.
On the other hand, Evans was supposed to be the finesse of this offense. More in the mold of Darren Sproles or Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Evans was going to be a smooth one-cut runner who had the speed to make big plays and the agility to make guys miss after they had been trained (by Henry) that contact was coming.
Derrick Henry is never going to be someone you trust on 3rd downs and so far this season he got beaten as a blocker in Denver and he dropped a screen pass against the Jaguars. So if Evans can come in and help fill that void while resting Henry then it is a win-win.
Cons
Everything I said is true, and there are high expectations for the rookie, but we have to remember that Evans is coming into the season:
-With no real training camp
-From App. State which doesn’t face the toughest competition
-With a hamstring injury
-Very little time working with the first-team offense.
That has to temper expectations a little bit.
Vic Beasley, EDGE
Pros
Beasley has never had a season with fewer than 5 sacks, including in 2017 and 2018 when he missed a few games after his role on the defense was reduced.
So, it is fair to assume that he is going to bring some pressure with him to Tennessee and that the expectations for a passing grade should be somewhere in the realm of 5-7 sacks. Before the season that might have seemed low, but after the Titans have shown that they are going to ask their front-four to win quickly or give up chunk yardage, 7 sacks may seem like a Godsend.
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Cons
If not for Isaiah Wilson, it would be hard to remember a Titans player who was added in the offseason who had turned the fan base against him so quickly. Beasley was a no-show at practice for a week even though he knew it would cost him half a million dollars, and he showed up with a mysterious injury.
Fast forward two weeks into the season and the Titans second-biggest acquisition of the offseason has yet to take a snap in a Tennessee uniform.
There is a chance the Titans get a healthy Beasley and he has double-digit sacks, but there is an equal chance that he is unmotivated and disappointing.
My vote: Vic Beasley
Darrynton Evans just scares me too much for me to immediately trust him to pick up blitzes vs Harrison Smith or Yannick Ngakoue or to beat guys like Eric Kendricks in the open field. While I think his time is coming, I think he needs an adjustment period.
So, which EDGE helps the Titans the most? Well, Roberson is definitely the guy I trust to beat a tackle in a one-on-one situation on 3rd and 7. However, there is more to it than that.
The Titans need someone to help give Jadeveon Clowney and Harold Landry a breather on base downs and I think Beasley has a better chance to do that than Roberson given his experience and body type.
That means more juice from the starters when they are on the field, and there is also the hidden bonus of guys like Rashaan Evans and Jack Crawford not having to play out of position at EDGE to help get those other guys some rest.
It also opens up a much scarier four-man front where Clowney can line up inside or as a standup linebacker in the A-gaps on pass rush downs. For a team that seems desperate to drop extra guys in coverage, this makes their base rush a little bit less stomach-churning and hopefully helps lead to being plays on stunts and straight rushes.