Category: Titans

Titans OL Jordan Roos drags Malik Willis into end zone for score

Jordan Roos gave Malik Willis help to get into the end zone

Malik Willis scored his first NFL touchdown for the Tennessee Titans on Saturday.

It was an impressive run but the rookie quarterback needed an assist to get into the end zone.

After Willis used some fancy moves to get near the end zone, offensive lineman Jordan Roos wanted to make certain Willis crossed the goal line.

Watch as the 6-foot-3 inch, 302-pound Roos got his mitts on Willis and dragged him to six points that gave the Titans the lead in a game they needed.

Titans delay kickoff versus Texans due to frigid conditions in Nashville

The Titans have pushed back kickoff an hour due to weather conditions in Nashville

The Tennessee Titans didn’t postpone their game Saturday, as requested by Nashville Mayor John Cooper. However, kickoff for the contest with the Houston Texans was delayed an hour due to frigid conditions and power outages.

“Due to the extreme weather and power outages affecting our region, kickoff for today’s game has been postponed one hour to 1 p.m. CT,” the Titans said in a statement. “This decision was made in partnership with the NFL, Office of Emergency Management, Nashville Electric Service and the Mayor’s Office in an abundance of caution to ensure that the game would not negatively impact our community in any way. We are exploring every possibility to minimize non-essential power around the stadium. Gates are currently open and fans are welcome to enter.

“At all times, the operation of the game remained secondary to the well-being of our community and we can’t thank the OEM and NES enough for their dedication to the safety of our neighbors.”

Earlier, Mayor Cooper had requested the Titans postpone the game.

 

Nashville mayor asks Titans to postpone game due to frigid conditions

Nashville’s mayor has asked the Titans to postpone Saturday’s game due to frigid conditions

The bomb cyclone is wreaking havoc on much of the United States.

Nashville is no exception. It is so frigid in the Tennessee city that Mayor John Cooper asked the Tennesse Titans to postpone Saturday’s game with the Houston Texans.

Per the Tennessean:

The Tennessee Valley Authority has directed local power companies to “reduce load” and have planned intermittent interruptions to power supply due to high demand with sub-freezing temperatures roving through the area. As of publication, the “feels like” temperature at Nissan Stadium sits at negative-1 degrees.

This figures to be one of the coldest games in Nissan Stadium history, if not the coldest. The previous record for lowest actual temperature at kickoff in Nashville was 23 degrees, and the coldest “feels like” temperature factoring in wind chill was 14 degrees.

There isn’t a team in the AFC and NFC South divisions over .500

The AFC South and NFC South are embarrassing in 2022

The putrid play in the South divisions of the NFL in 2022 has been noted, over and over.

However, the divisions have gone about as South as teams can go.

After the results of Week 15, none of the 8 teams in the AFC South and NFC South are over .500.

That was sealed when Cameron Dicker kicked a field goal Sunday to lift the Los Angeles Chargers over the Tennessee Titans.

Mike Vrabel’s Titans are 7-7. They lead the 6-8 Jacksonville Jaguars by a game with the embarrassing Indianapolis Colts at 4-9-1 and the Houston Texans languishing in last at 1-12-1.

In the NFC South, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers collapsed against the Cincinnati Bengals to fall to 6-8. Trailing Tom Brady & Co. are the Carolina Panthers, New Orleans Saints, and Atlanta Falcons, who are each 5-9.

The NFC South collectively is 21-35, a .375 win percentage.

The AFC South is 18-36-2, somehow a lower percentage.

And not only will a team from each of these divisions wind up with a playoff spot, but each will also have a home playoff game.

Ooof.

Titans pick Justin Herbert with one of the most amazing interceptions you’ll ever see

The Tennessee Titans closed out their first half against the Los Angeles Chargers with an all-time amazing interception.

Due in large part to injuries throughout their defense, the Tennessee Titans have not been great against the pass this season. The Titans came into Week 15’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers having allowed 25 touchdowns to just eight interceptions, 3,928 passing yards, and an opponent passer rating of 97.2. All of those stats rank among the fourth-worst in the NFL, and it’s a big reason the Titans are 7-6 with a three-game losing streak coming into the Chargers game.

So, with 12 seconds left in the first half, and the score tied, 7-7, Titans cornerback Roger McCreary decided to do something you rarely, if ever, see. Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert tried to hit receiver Mike Williams in the end zone, but McCreary caught the ball as he was going out of bounds, and while he was in the air, handed the ball to cornerback Joshua Kalu.

Insane, indeed. Not that the Titans were able to capitalize on that play with any points, but if they’re able to break that losing streak, that play will be a big deal by the score it possibly prevented.

At halftime, Titans head coach Mike Vrabel raved about the play to CBS’ Amanda Renner, and referred to another deflection McCreary had last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. This time, the deflected pass went right into the hands of Jaguars receiver Zay Jones for a 20-yard touchdown.

Safe to say, McCreary learned from the experience: Bat the ball to one of your own guys!

The Philadelphia Eagles’ offense has perfected the illusion of simplicity

The Philadelphia Eagles have perfected the illusion of offensive simplicity, while demolishing defenses with terrifying complexity.

When we think of 11 personnel — three receivers, one tight end, and one running back — we generally think of teams that roll heavy on the passing side of things. Makes sense given the personnel, but right now, the NFL’s best team by record are throwing all kinds of wrenches at enemy defenses by deploying a complete, versatile, and devastating offense out of that specific personnel grouping.

The teams throwing most out of 11 this season — the Bengals, Buccaneers, Chargers — tend to lead with the pass, and the run game is an ancillary construct. Although, as our Laurie Fitzpatrick recently revealed, the Bengals are finding a dangerous balance these days.

That said, if you want dominant offensive balance out of 11 personnel, look no further than the 11-1 Philadelphia Eagles, who are killing opposing defenses with it, run or pass.

In Week 12 against the Packers, the Eagles had the 20th-most rushing yards in a single game in pro football history with 363. Green Bay came into that game ranked 30th in run defense DVOA, so it made sense that head coach Nick Sirianni, offensive coordinator Shane Steichen, and run game coordinator/offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland went that way.

But what was really interesting? How often they ran the ball out of that lighter package. The Eagles ran the ball 36 times out of 11 personnel against the Packers for 252 yards, 131 yards after contact, and two of their three rushing touchdowns. Hurts ran 15 times out of 11 for 116 yards, which made him the NFL’s most productive runner out of 11, regardless of position.

Then, in Week 13 against a Tennessee Titans defense that ranked first in run defense DVOA through Week 12, the Eagles completely flipped the script. But they did so almost entirely out 11 personnel. 34 of Hurts’ 39 passing attempts, 27 of his 29 completions, and all three of his passing touchdowns came out of 11.

Hurts won NFC Offensive Player of the Week after each of those games.

So, whatever you have to offer on defense, the Eagles have ways to nuke it, and it’s going to look very similar before the snap. This speaks to modern offensive trends, and it’s a huge problem for the defenses that have to deal with it.

(All advanced metrics courtesy of Sports Info Solutions, Pro Football Focus, and Football Outsiders unless otherwise indicated). 

A.J. Brown burns Titans again for second TD grab

A.J. Brown is having quite the revenge game against the Tennessee Titans

If the Tennessee Titans weren’t having second thoughts about trading A.J. Brown to the Eagles, he is definitely messing with their mind.

The receiver who was dealt from Tennessee to Philadelphia in the offseason has a pair of touchdown grabs on Sunday at the Linc.

This one was good for 28 yards and put the Eagles up 28-10 after the PAT.

Early in the third quarter, Brown had 5 grabs for 95 yards and 2 scores.

 

Jalen Hurts proves ultimate versatility on Eagles’ first drive vs. Titans

Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts is a runner and a thrower. The extent to which he’s able to do both makes him fully dangerous.

Last week against the Green Bay Packers, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts gained 103 yards on the ground with just seven rushing attempts in the first quarter alone. That was the start of a game in which the Eagles decimated the Packers for 363 total rushing yards, the 20th-most in NFL history, on their way to a 40-33 win.

Against the Titans’ defense on the Eagles’ first drive this Sunday, Hurts completed five of six passes for 80 yards, a touchdown, and the highest possible passer rating of 158.3. The drive ended with this masterful 34-yard touchdown pass, in which second-year receiver DeVonta Smith just housed his poor defender on the way to the end zone.

And no, this wasn’t just a one-read RPO.

A smart play here, as the Titans came into this game ranked first in the NFL in run defense DVOA. It speaks to how the Eagles are able to respond to any type of defense with Hurts as the epicenter, both as a thrower and as a runner. Smith’s runs aren’t just scrambles after the snap — they have a distinct package of designed runs for him, and this season, he’s run the ball 94 times for 595 yards and eight touchdowns.

But if you’re set up to limit Philly’s run game? Hurts has no issue at this point in his career throwing the ball all over the field.

Which is a big part of what makes this offense to tough to defend. Those who are still wondering whether running quarterbacks can lead top-tier offenses need to spend a bit of time catching up, because this is where the NFL is heading in a big hurry.

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Treylon Burks saves Titans after Derrick Henry fumbles into end zone

Treylon Burks was on the spot to recover a Derrick Henry fumble in the end zone

Derrick Henry took the screen pass and was off and running.

The Titans’ great running back was powering toward the end zone when he had the ball dislodged from his grasp.

Fortunately for Henry and Tennessee, rookie Treylon Burks was on the spot and fell on the football for a touchdown in the second quarter.