1. The Tennessee Titans may have their own version of ‘The Triplets’.
The short answer to the first question that was asked is this. The Tennessee Titans believe that they have found a scheme that emphasizes their best players and that allows the rest of the players to reap the benefits.
Without question, A.J. Brown and Derrick Henry are the transcendent talents on this offense, so it is only right that they get the lion’s share of the touches. However, it wasn’t until Ryan Tannehill took over that the Arthur Smith offense really exploded (more on that later).
Assuming that Todd Downing is going to replicate the Titans’ 2020 offense (which was the sole reason why he got the job), then you can assume more of the same in 2021.
In the 11 games where A.J. Brown and Corey Davis were healthy in 2020, A.J. Brown led the team in targets and was the focal point of the passing offense with around 8 targets per game. Meanwhile, Derrick Henry averaged 25 touches per game.
The Titans ran an average of 64 offensive plays per game last season, so if Downing runs the same offense in 2021 that means that 33 of the 64 offensive plays (52%) are already earmarked for the duo of Derrick Henry and A.J. Brown.
Meanwhile, Davis’s six targets per game during that stretch would make up just nine percent of the Tennessee Titans’ projected offensive plays. Instead of paying the annual salary that it would have taken to retain Davis, the Titans decided to take a risk and try to replace his production with the help of free agency.