Tennessee Titans rookie QB Will Levis looks sharp in loss to Pittsburgh Steelers
By Jackson West
The Pittsburgh Steelers escaped with a 20-16 victory over the Tennessee Titans in rookie QB Will Levis's first primetime action. In what was at times a low-scoring game, it came down to the final play when Levis was picked off at the goal line to seal it.
Despite a lackluster stat line (22/39 for 269 yards and 1 INT), Levis looked poised in his road debut. The performance was impressive considering Pittsburgh's notoriously stout defense, the short week for preparation, and how treacherous of an environment Acrisure Stadium is to play in.
Injuries were commonplace throughout the affair, with four of the Tennessee Titans starting offensive linemen (Nicholas Petit-Frere, Daniel Brunskill, Andre Dillard, and Peter Skoronski) all going down at points.
More notably, WR Treylon Burks sustained a violent injury on a go ball as the Titans tried to rally back late in the fourth quarter. Burks was loaded onto a stretcher and transported to a local Pittsburgh hospital. Thankfully, after the game it was reported that Burks had feeling and movement in all of his extremities.
Tennessee Titans takeaways
Overall there are a lot of positives the Tennessee Titans can take away from the day, and it is important to understand that playing with a rookie quarterback requires a lot of patience. However, Levis has far surpassed expectations thus far, and appears to be a great asset for the future of the franchise.
Next week the Tennessee Titans will be on the road again, where they will face a 3-4 Tampa Bay Buccaneers squad led by journeyman signal-caller Baker Mayfield. It remains to be seen whether Levis will continue to be the starting QB for the Tennessee Titans or Ryan Tannehill will retake the reins once he is healthy enough to play.
Currently the Tennessee Titans are 3-5 and they have one of the worst records in the AFC. After the team missed their chance to sell on players like Derrick Henry, Denico Autry, Teair Tart, and others, the Titans are now hanging on by a thread and one more loss could realistically end any hopes of a postseason run.