Everyone expected the Tennessee Titans to walk into Mile High and get outplayed by the Denver Broncos, but no one expected it to go down the way it did. The Titans were badly outcoached, and numerous gaffes fell at the feet of head coach Brian Callahan.
Coach Callahan did potentially irreparable damage to his identity as an offensive-minded head coach when he called plays with no rhythm or situational awareness. The Titans were defeated 20-12 by the Broncos in a game that was begging for them to execute the Week 1 upset.
Calvin Ridley looked like someone had swapped his gloves out with pads of butter. The offensive line looked like they were going through walkthroughs instead of blocking one of the NFL's most ferocious pass-rush units.
Titans brutal Week 1 loss was even closer than you think
The Callahan family and the team's most-trusted pass catcher let the Titans down on Sunday. On the brighter side, the Titans' rookie class looked like the moment wasn't too big for them.
Most importantly, Cam Ward was doing everything he could to drag this corpse of an offense to any points he could. Ward kept the ball out of harm's way while escaping pressure from the Broncos, and he never looked overwhelmed by the failures going on around him.
Femi Oladejo wasn't spectacular, but he appeared to understand his assignments, recording multiple schemed-up pressures. Oladejo was solid, which is an improvement from what we saw in the preseason, and it should give Titans fans hope that he is going to show improvement throughout the year.
Fourth-round receiver Chimere Dike had a 71-yard kick return with 15 seconds left in the half that set the Titans up for a field goal that helped keep them in the game.
Speaking of fourth-rounders, Elic Ayomanor should have been credited with an incredible catch on the sideline, and he showed why the team believes he should be a starter as a rookie. Similarly, Gunnar Helm also had a nice catch to move the chains and was able to create some separation.
However, there is still room to grow for each of these players. Ward had to deal with multiple drops or bobbles that cost him approximately 100 passing yards, but if he could have taken a little bit of velocity off of some of those passes. It certainly wasn't Ward's fault, but if his teammates continue to fail him, then these are the adjustments he will have to make.
Can Oladejo turn those pressures into sacks by pinning his ears back on those naked bootlegs and punishing the quarterback? Dike had a play late in the game where he misread the coverage and didn't break in like Ward wanted him to, so can Dike make one fewer mistake next week and become a playmaker on offense?
Helm had a bobble on a 17-yard route down the field that would have been huge for the Titans early momentum, and Ayomanor failed to get the first down on a third-down reception because he couldn't overpower cornerback Riley Moss for another foot or two. Can they tighten up and help their quarterback more going forward?
Despite the coaching issues and some veteran struggles, this rookie class was close to having a monster day that would have had the NFL talking had come away with a win. However, they all had rookie moments that kept them from overcoming poor coaching and execution. That is why it was a nice debut by this draft class, but it unfortunately falls short of special.