A dreadful year is just about over for the Tennessee Titans, as they sit at 3-13 Sunday's Week 18 finale with the Houston Texans awaiting them. There is no sugarcoating how bad of a failure this season was for the organization, but if you are looking for tangible reasons why everything went wrong, lack of experience across the board is a huge reason why.
The Titans had a first-year head coach and first-year coordinators on both sides of the ball, a sophomore GM and quarterback, and an offensive line with no players having accrued more than four years of experience.
That is not even accounting for the little experience the roster had playing together, as the Titans replaced well over half of their starters from the prior season. Of course, better results were still expected, but you can understand why a team would struggle mightily given all the overturn.
Defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson appears to have felt the lack of experience over the course of this season. His unit has had several good moments, but they have also had just as many struggles, and he recently offered clarity on why they've struggled.
Dennard Wilson knows he could have gotten more out of Tennessee Titans defense
Wilson recently reflected on how his first year has gone, mentioning a specific weakness that he learned about and intends to fix next year.
.@Titans DC Dennard Wilson: The biggest thing I learned this season is how hard it is to hide deficiencies when injuries take a toll
— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) January 2, 2025
That comment by Wilson is eye opening for many reasons. First of all, we are all but certain on one area where Wilson has failed to hide deficiencies as the personnel underwent changes, and that is stopping the run. That's been a huge disappointment for the Titans this year, as prior to Sunday's tilt with the Texans, they rank 22nd in the NFL, allowing 129.4 rushing yards per game.
There is arguably no better example of what Wilson is talking about than their Week 16 game against the Indianapolis Colts. The Titans got absolutely gashed by Jonathan Taylor and company. It was an inexcusable performance by NFL standards, but when you look at what the team had available to them that day, it makes a little more sense.
Their linebacker room, which is below average to begin with, has been ravaged by injuries and especially that day, as they were forced to play rookies Cedric Gray and James Williams. They even lost T'Vondre Sweat for a good chunk of that contest, making the run holes even bigger for the Colts.
So yes, two things are true at the same. While the Titans were lacking notable talents that day, they were also far from good enough. There have been other instances this year where the defense has missed tackles and assignments in the run game, and it sounds as if Wilson realizes that he has not done a good enough job coaching and preparing his guys to be better in those moments.
One area where Wilson can pat himself on the back has been against the pass. The secondary has been known to be his specialty as a coach, and that has been on display this year, as the Titans rank second in the NFL, allowing only 177.9 passing yards per contest.
The secondary, especially the cornerback room, was supposed to be a strength this year after acquiring L'Jarius Sneed and Chidobe Awuzie, but even that has not gone according to plan. Both missed the majority of the season with injuries, but it has not stopped Wilson and the secondary from getting good results defending the pass.
Players such as Jarvis Browlee Jr. and Darrell Baker Jr. have stepped up and played good football. That is notable because Brownlee is a fifth-round rookie, and Baker was a waiver claim right before the season started.
The Titans have also felt the injury bug at safety as Quandre Diggs suffered a season-ending Lisfranc injury in November, and Amani Hooker has dealt with various ailments. Heck, in their first matchup on the year against the Texans, they were down every starter in the secondary except Roger McCreary, and they still held CJ Stroud and company in check.
None of that is even getting into the terrible edge-rushing room, and they have still held up against the pass. It seems crazy to say given how horrible the team has been overall, but Wilson has done a tremendous job in this one area, and you can also point to him as part of why Hooker has played so well when healthy.
Wilson has lots of improvements to make in terms of coaching the front seven, but it is pretty clear that he knows what he's doing when it comes to the third level. Who knows how long this coaching staff and regime last, but if Wilson gets a sustained opportunity with the Titans, there is reason to believe that the defense could become dangerous under his watch.