Titans rookie DT played like future Pro Bowler in dominant MNF victory

The Tennessee Titans were without superstar defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons in their Week 4 contest against the Miami Dolphins on Monday Night Football. Simmons was ruled out with an elbow injury earlier in the week. His absence placed increased responsibility on rookie defensive tackle T'Vondre Sweat, who served as the team's top interior defender. Sweat responded by putting forth his best performance of the young season in a dominant 31-12 win.

The Dolphins entered the game shorthanded offensively, with Tyrone "Snoop" Huntley as their third quarterback in two weeks following a concussion injury to starter Tua Tagovailoa. This forced head coach Mike McDaniel to craft a creative game plan, one that attempted to take advantage of the speed provided by Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, and Devon Achane on the edges. Sweat and his teammates routinely shut that down by getting backfield penetration.

Sweat's performance was the subject of a classic "Baldy's Breakdowns" segment by NFL analyst Brian Baldinger.

Sweat was dominant, recording six tackles and two for loss. Pro Football Focus credited the second-round playmaker a matching career-high two pressures, and a new personal-best three stops, all of which occurred in Miami's offensive backfield. The former Texas Longhorn was PFF's highest-graded interior defensive lineman across Week 4, with an elite overall score of 91.0, including a 91.2 for his run defense. The only higher-graded Titan was veteran safety Quandre Diggs (91.2).

The speedy Achane rushed for 15 yards via 10 carries, averaging an ineffective 1.5 yards per attempt. Hill was limited to 19 yards as Sweat and other Titans defenders routinely suffocated creative play designs and manufactured touches around the line of scrimmage. The Dolphins offense was held to 184 total yards and 3-of-15 on third and fourth down attempts.

The Titans are currently the league's No. 1 ranked defense following the conclusion of Week 4.

It was an eye-opening and timely performance by Sweat, especially because his usual running mate was sidelined. Sweat was PFF's highest-graded rookie in Week 4. Perhaps more impressively, he's their seventh-highest graded interior defensive lineman (80.1) through four games.

It was also a much-needed confident showing for Sweat after much quieter displays in Weeks 2 and 3 after a strong debut in Week 1. Capturing weekly consistency is the next step for Tennessee's rookie game wrecker.

Titans general manager Ran Carthon drafted Sweat to be a dominant interior defender. Monday's performance offered a peek into his Pro Bowl potential.