Category: Game Recap

Biggest takeaways from Titans’ Week 5 loss to Colts

The biggest takeaways from the Titans’ defeat at the hands of their division rival, the Colts.

The Tennessee Titans squandered an opportunity to have a share of first place in Week 5 when they dropped a divisional contest to the Indianapolis Colts, 23-16.

The Colts simply beat the Titans at their own game, with Indy proving to be the more physical team for four quarters, and on both sides of the ball.

In what was a major shock, the Colts’ ground game torched Tennessee’s usually vaunted run defense, and while the Titans were able to move the ball through the air for the most part, the offense stalled in the red zone and got nothing from the ground game thanks to poor blocking upfront.

The end result was the Titans once again failing to string together good games and wins, leaving them below .500 and down in the dumps entering Week 6.

It wasn’t all bad on Sunday, but the bad certainly outweighed the good. Here are the biggest takeaways.

Titans report card: Grades for every position group in Week 5

Shaun Calderon grades each Titans position group after the Week 5 loss to Indy.

The Tennessee Titans had another underwhelming performance on the road on Sunday, losing their first AFC South showdown of the year to the Indianapolis Colts, 23-16

You know it’s a bad day when an offensive unit that largely looked average, at best, for the majority of the day was the brightest spot on the team.

It’s hardly an exaggeration to say this was a pathetic performance by the Titans’ defense on nearly every level.

The position group grades in this report card largely reflect that, with a few average grades sandwiched in between. The biggest disappointment/surprise of the day was how a historically great run defense was anything but that on Sunday afternoon.

At least the Titans still have their elite trio of specialists who are as consistent as you could possibly be at your job.

With all of that said, let’s take a closer look at each position group to see what grade they received following Sunday’s seven-point loss to the Colts.

Titans’ winners and losers from Week 5 loss to Colts

The winners and losers from the Titans’ 23-16 loss to the Colts.

The Tennessee Titans (2-3) are back under .500 on the season after they lost a frustrating game to the Indianapolis Colts (3-2) in Week 5, 23-16.

It was frustrating because the Colts beat the Titans at their own game. Indy was the more physical group, as evidenced by the Colts dominating the Titans upfront, en route to nearly 200 yards on the ground.

Meanwhile, Tennessee’s offense moved the ball with relative ease in between the 20’s, but the unit simply couldn’t finish drives, with the Titans going 1-for-4 in the red zone on Sunday.

Let’s see which players and units emerged as “winners” and “losers” from the Titans’ Week 5 defeat at the hands of their division rival.

3 truths, 1 overreaction from Titans’ 23-16 loss to Colts

Shaun Calderon takes a look at three truths and one overreaction from the Titans’ Week 5 loss.

The Tennessee Titans dropped their third game over the first five weeks of the 2023 season, losing to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, 23-16.

Tennessee entered the day with a golden opportunity, considering all four teams in the AFC South had identical 2-2 records to start the day. A win would’ve given the Titans a share of first place.

This was a demoralizing loss in nearly every possible way. Indy was without its starting quarterback for most of the game, yet the Colts still found a way to move the ball with relative ease, regardless if they tried to pass or run.

This game has naturally led to some overreactions by the fanbase, but it’s also led to some hard truths that it may be time to start accepting as a reality instead of downplaying their overall significance.

This article is going to look at some of the narratives floating around and we’ll discuss which category these particular topics fall under.

What Kristian Fulton, Titans said about Week 5 loss to Colts

A look at what CB Kristian Fulton and the rest of the Titans said about their Week 5 loss.

The Tennessee Titans continued their inconsistent ways in Week 5 by dropping their third game of the 2023 campaign in a 23-16 loss to the Indianapolis Colts.

In what was a surprise, the Titans’ run defense was absolutely shredded in this game. In what wasn’t a surprise, cornerback Kristian Fulton struggled mightily, as he was bad in coverage and committed a pair of awful pass interferences to aid two Colts scoring drives.

When asked about his performance after the game, Fulton pointed the finger at the officials and not really at himself.

“I feel like I was very sound today,” Fulton said, per Paul Kuharsky. “Besides one play, the one with No. 11 (Michael Pittman) when he caught that out, it was on me, I guess.

“For the most part, I think today was technically sound. Obviously, they made some plays or whatever, but it’s hard when you’ve got to play against the refs and the receivers. It’s life as a DB.”

Now, a look at what head coach Mike Vrabel and more Titans had to say about their Week 5 loss to Indy.

Titans social media rips Kristian Fulton, run defense for awful showings

Titans CB Kristian Fulton got shredded on social media for his awful performance in Week 5.

After dominating the rivalry for the majority of the last three seasons, the Tennessee Titans finally got humbled by the Indianapolis Colts in Week 5, losing 23-16.

The Titans have lost all three of their games on the road in 2023, with this one being arguably the most gut-wrenching of them all.

Tennessee was simply beaten at its own game, as the Colts were the more physical team on a day in which Indy ran for nearly 200 yards.

To make matters worse, Kristian Fulton continued to be a complete liability. The LSU product was often getting cooked by the opposition whenever he was targeted and bailed the Colts’ offense out with ridiculous pass interference penalties that extended drives and led to points.

It’s hardly an exaggeration to say that Fulton has mostly been horrible this season in a contract year in which many (myself included) genuinely believed he was on the verge of a breakout campaign.

Instead, he’s likely cost himself a lot of money with the type of play he’s been putting on film.

Titans fans and media members certainly agree, as they rightly ate him alive on social media following his disastrous afternoon. Tennessee’s run defense certainly didn’t get a pass, either.

Titans social media reacts to 23-16 loss to Colts

How Titans social media reacted to the Week 5 loss to the Colts.

The Tennessee Titans lost a thrilling but ugly divisional game to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 5 by a score of 23-16.

Tennessee has now lost three straight games on the road to open up the season, with this one being the most devastating, considering the division implications it could have later on in the year.

It was also the Colts’ first victory over the Titans since 2020, and they did it with their backup quarterback following an unfortunate injury to Indy’s promising young signal-caller, Anthony Richardson.

This was a humbling afternoon in a lot of ways, most notably when it came to Tennessee’s vaunted run defense. After being on a historically great tear over the last calendar year, running back Zack Moss absolutely carved the defensive front up on Sunday afternoon.

As you would expect, fans and local media members were not very pleased with today’s outcome. Let’s take a look at some of the social media reactions following the Titans’ seven-point loss to the Colts.

Titans drop Week 5 game to Colts, 23-16: Everything we know

The Titans lost their first divisional game of 2023 to the Colts, 23-16. Here’s what we know.

The Tennessee Titans dropped their first divisional game of the 2023 season with a 23-16 loss at the hands of the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.

While the rushing attack didn’t do much, the Titans were able to move the ball through the air. Unfortunately, finishing drives was a problem, with Tennessee ending the day 1-for-4 in the red zone.

Their biggest failed red zone trip came in the fourth quarter when trailing 20-16. The Titans drew up a run to Derrick Henry on fourth-and-1 at the Colts’ five-yard line but the play was stuffed for a turnover on downs.

On top of their red zone woes, another major issue was the Titans’ inability to stop the run, which was extremely uncharacteristic for this defense. Zack Moss ran wild all game and the Colts nearly broke 200 yards on the ground.

Bear in mind, this happened without Anthony Richardson, who exited early due to a shoulder injury.

Making matters worse, the defensive front was getting no pressure and the secondary provided zero resistance against Indy’s passing attack while also committing multiple back-breaking penalties to set the Colts up for points.

The Titans had a chance to tie the game with a minute left in the fourth but needed to drive the length of the field with no timeouts. The series ended with a Ryan Tannehill interception but a score was unlikely, anyway.

Now, let’s dive a bit deeper and see what went wrong for the Titans in Week 5.

Studs and duds from another Commanders’ prime-time disaster

Which players stood out in Thursday’s loss to the Bears? Which players and coaches didn’t have the best night?

The Washington Commanders (2-3) dropped their third consecutive game Thursday after a humiliating 40-20 beatdown at the hands of the formerly winless Chicago Bears.

There was a sense of excitement entering the game, with a third consecutive sellout, fans were hoping the positive momentum from Washington’s performance in a heartbreaking loss to the Eagles would carry over on a short week.

Instead, the Commanders looked flat, unprepared, and like they didn’t belong on the same field with a team in the middle of a 14-game losing streak.

Were there any standout performers on Thursday? Yes, we found four.

Who struggled?

Here are the studs and duds from Washington’s ugly loss on Thursday Night Football.

5 takeaways from Commanders’ embarrassing loss to the Bears

Where do we begin?

When the Washington Commanders took the Philadelphia Eagles to the limit in Sunday’s 34-31 overtime loss, some around the NFL moved them up in the various league power rankings.

According to some, it was an impressive loss — if you could ever call any loss impressive. Yet, Washington’s players, including quarterback Sam Howell and defensive tackle Jonathan Allen, wanted nothing to do with moral victories.

The key for Washington was how the team would bounce back on a short week against the winless Chicago Bears.

They didn’t. Chicago jumped out to a 27-3 lead on Washington, and while things got interesting late, the Bears finished the game with 10 fourth-quarter points to come away with a 40-20 win — their first in almost one full calendar year.

It was ugly.

Where do we begin? Here are five takeaways from another national embarrassment for the franchise.