One of the most egregiously bad aspects of the Tennessee Titans’ 21-20 Week 1 loss to the New York Giants was the play-calling of offensive coordinator Todd Downing.
Downing, who had a horrible first year as Tennessee’s play-caller in 2021, picked up where he left off on Sunday with several questionable play calls. Two of them came on third-and-1 plays where Downing appeared to be allergic to simply handing the ball off to Derrick Henry.
One saw the Titans go with the wild cat with Henry, who fumbled the snap and was unable to pick up the first down, leading to a Titans punt.
The other was more crucial. Downing went with an end around to Chigoziem Okonkwo with 6:26 left in the game instead of handing the ball off to Henry, which was stuffed for a four-yard loss, leading to another Titans punt that prevented them from having the opportunity to run out the clock.
But wait, there’s more…
The least talented tight end on the roster, Geoff Swaim, had more touches than Chig and Austin Hooper combined. Downing even called a TIGHT END SCREEN for Swaim, who also had a drop on one of his targets.
Downing’s leash had already run out with Titans fans, and they were right back to calling for him to be fired after Sunday, which is very understandable.
You’re going to be hearing Tim Kelly’s name a lot in the coming week. Here are some of the best reactions to Downing from Week 1.