The Tennessee Titans defense isn't getting the attention they deserve because the team let two winnable games slip through their fingers. After a rough start against the New York Jets in Week 1, the Titans have had six sacks and 16 tackles for loss over the last two weeks.
That improvement is great, but until the team starts winning games, they need to do everything they can to find a winning edge. That includes making changes to personnel groupings that could be better by tweaking the lineup.
One way they can do that is by using first-round rookie Keldric Faulk more on passing downs as a true EDGE.
Titans rookie DE Keldric Faulk deserves more playing time after notching first career sack in Week 3
So far this season, Faulk has only had 10 opportunities to pin his ears back and rush against a true pass set. A few of those situations happened against the New York Giants in Week 3, and one ended up in his first career sack on a looping stunt.
It isn't a large sample size, but that is exactly why the Titans need to get him on the field more in obvious passing situations. Faulk's length, burst, and balance make him a weapon on an attacking front, and he hasn't been productive enough as a run defender so far. Instead of wasting time on that, the Titans need to use Jermaine Johnson and Femi Oladejo to stop the run because both are doing a nice job on early downs.
Faulk is one of the youngest players in the NFL, and the Titans need to know what they have at that position this offseason. So far, it seems like Faulk does his best work in obvious passing downs. While this week against the Baltimore Ravens might not be the best opportunity for him, going forward, this needs to be how the Titans utilize his skill set.
This Titans rookie class is shaping up to be something special. Anthony Hill leads the NFL in tackles despite his inexperience, Carnell Tate has led the team in receiving yards in two of their three games, and Fernando Carmona was having a nice rookie season at right guard before being placed on IR. If Faulk can join the other three as a standout rookie, this could be the best draft class the Titans have had in nearly a decade.
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