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The Tennessee Titans sported among the worst defenses in the NFL last season, which made de-facto defensive coordinator Shane Bowen public enemy No. 1 in Nashville.
The Titans couldn’t stop the pass, were historically bad on third downs, and totaled the third-fewest sacks in the NFL, while also allowing the ninth-most points per game. To make matters worse, players pointed to communication issues.
In response to the lackluster showing, general manager Jon Robinson completely overhauled the defense this offseason.
He let go of most of the starting secondary, and added Bud Dupree, Denico Autry and Janoris Jenkins in free agency. The Titans also drafted a trio of defenders in cornerbacks Caleb Farley and Elijah Molden, and EDGE Rashad Weaver.
Looking ahead to 2021, Titans head coach Mike Vrabel is confident that Bowen, who was officially promoted to defensive coordinator, and the defense will right the ship.
#Titans' Vrabel: Believes "a lot" in Shane Bowen and the defense. Says he doesn't think last year's defense was "miserable," but that giving opponents more chances after third-down conversions was a big problem.
— John Glennon (@glennonsports) July 27, 2021
We disagree with Vrabel. The defense was miserable to watch last season and the only reason it didn’t blow up the Titans’ season was because of their elite offense. Fans rightly had zero confidence in the struggling unit.
Vrabel also noted how the Titans have been working hard on their third-down defense so far this offseason, something he hopes will be apparent when the season starts, according to Jim Wyatt of Titans Online.
“We have to be better. We have to be better on third down. We have to go and force the quarterback and make him be uncomfortable, and we have to go cover guys at the sticks, and all of those things we teach. That’s where the problems occurred. … That’s something we hit hard in the offseason, and hopefully that will show up.”
Despite the defense’s putrid showing overall, Vrabel doesn’t think it was all bad on, saying “there were a lot of good snaps in there,” per WKRN’s Emily Proud.
Those good snaps were few and far between. If Tennessee wants to compete for a Super Bowl in 2021, an improvement from the defense will be necessary.
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