Tennessee Titans vs. Houston Texans: Inactives for Week 18

Linebacker Jayon Brown is among the Titans’ inactives for Week 18.

The Tennessee Titans and Houston Texans have released their list of inactives for the Week 18 regular-season finale at NRG Stadium on Sunday.

The biggest news of the week was the status of running back Derrick Henry, who was designated to return from Injured Reserve on Wednesday. However, despite returning to practice, Henry was not activated from IR and will not play in this game.

On Friday, the Titans ruled out two players in defensive linemen Teair Tart and Naquan Jones, both of whom have spent time as the team’s starter at nose tackle this season. We expect Kyle Peko to fill the void in their absence.

The most notable inactive for the Titans is linebacker Jayon Brown, who was not listed on the injury report this week. Brown lost his starting job to David Long earlier this season and has now fallen even further in the pecking order.

Now, a look at the full list of inactives for the Titans and Texans.

Titans add Jayon Brown, Cody Hollister to COVID-19 list

The Titans now have a total of 10 players on their Reserve/COVID-19 list.

With their most important game of the 2021 season coming in Week 17, the Tennessee Titans look to be in the midst of a COVID-19 outbreak.

The team announced on Tuesday that it has placed two more players on the list in inside linebacker Jayon Brown and practice squad wide receiver Cody Hollister.

After adding five others on Monday — the Titans also activated two players from the list in the same day in left guard Rodger Saffold and cornerback Elijah Molden — the Titans now have a total of 10 players on the list.

They are as follows:

LT Taylor Lewan

RG Nate Davis

OL Kendall Lamm

WR Julio Jones

CB Buster Skrine

OLB Bud Dupree

WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine

CB Caleb Farley

LB Jayon Brown

WR Cody Hollister

The Titans will return to action on Sunday in Week 17 against the Miami Dolphins. It remains to be seen if any of the aforementioned players will be able to suit up.

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Tennessee Titans Week 14 film study: The art of confusion

Breaking down each of the Titans’ four interceptions from their Week 14 win over the Jaguars.

The Tennessee Titans got back in the win column after a two-game losing streak by shutting out the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 14. The 20-0 victory not only demoralized the Jaguars, but it likely helped get their coach fired, along with the myriad of Urban Meyer missteps.

The Titans took Jacksonville’s soul on Sunday. Now, that is something we have grown accustomed to seeing, but usually it is a result of several Derrick Henry stiff arms. This time, however, it was all about confusion.

If you are Jaguars Owner Shad Khan, the most frustrating part of the day had to be watching your young rookie quarterback and No. 1 overall pick look like a fool.

The Titans had Trevor Lawrence’s head spinning and he was lost all day, leading to four interceptions, the first time the Titans have reached that mark in a game since 2012.

It wasn’t just the interceptions, though; Lawrence was sacked three times, took plenty of other hits and had his lowest passing rating of the season.

In fairness, you can’t blame this all on Lawrence, as the game was an exercise in how to not support your rookie quarterback.

Only eight rushing attempts for the Jags after running for almost 200 yards in the Week 5 matchup with the Titans is egregious. That lack of support and inability (or unwillingness) to run the ball led directly to the Titans’ success in creating turnovers.

When the offense you’re facing is consistently in third-and-long, an obvious passing situation, it opens up the defensive playbook and increases the amount of creativity you can have with your play calls. Add in a poorly coached rookie quarterback and the result is what we saw Sunday.

What exactly did that confusion look like and how did the Titans’ defense turn that into four interceptions? As we do every week, let’s step into the film room and see how they did it.

Titans’ winners and losers from Week 14 victory over Jaguars

The Titans’ defense had no shortage of “winners” in Week 14.

When the Tennessee Titans needed a get-right game coming out of their bye to snap a two-game losing streak, the Jacksonville Jaguars were reliably there to provide it, as the Titans notched a shutout win over their division rival, 20-0, in Week 14.

While it wasn’t necessarily a good performance from the offense, the 20 points the unit mustered up was more than enough on a day in which Tennessee’s defense absolutely dominated.

The Titans notched four turnovers, three sacks, gave up less than 200 yards of total offense (including eight yards on the ground) and didn’t allow the Jags a single trip in the red zone all game long.

With the win, the Titans are back up to a two-game plus tie-breaker lead over the Indianapolis Colts, and maintain their spot as the No. 2 seed in the AFC.

There were no shortage of winners from the victory, especially on defense, but there were some “losers” to point out on offense.

What Titans said after Week 14 shutout win over Jaguars

“Really proud of the way that they played, obviously, and then coached,” head coach Mike Vrabel said of the Titans’ defensive effort in Week 14.

The Tennessee Titans snapped their two-game losing streak in Week 14 with a 20-0 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars at Nissan Stadium on Sunday.

While the offense wasn’t great by any stretch, the 20-point effort was more than enough with how great the defense played.

Tennessee’s unit held the Jags to under 200 yards of total offense and notched four turnovers and three sacks in the winning effort. The shutout was the Titans’ first since 2018, and the first at home since 2000.

Head coach Mike Vrabel was understandably pleased with what he saw from the defense on Sunday, both in terms of coaching and player performance.

“Really proud of our defensive coaches, our defensive staff. This team moved the ball on us the last time we played. They have some talent,” Vrabel said. “Really proud of the way that they played, obviously, and then coached.”

Now, a look at what else Vrabel and the rest of the Titans had to say about their huge shutout win over the Jaguars.

Titans activate Jayon Brown, Aaron Brewer off IR among several moves

The Titans made a flurry of moves ahead of their Week 9 matchup against the Rams.

The Tennessee Titans made a slew of roster moves ahead of their Week 9 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams at SoFi Stadium.

The team announced it has activated linebacker Jayon Brown and backup guard/center Aaron Brewer off Injured Reserve, and is promoting running back D’Onta Foreman to the active roster.

Tennessee has also placed fullback Khari Blasingame on IR and waived outside linebacker John Simon from the 53-man roster.

On the practice squad, the Titans have signed linebacker Dylan Cole and backup center Daniel Munyer. Cole and cornerback Chris Jones have both been elevated for Sunday’s game and will revert back after.

With right guard Nate Davis and linebacker Rashaan Evans out for Week 9, Brewer and Brown could get the nods to start at those positions. Rookie Monty Rice (questionable) and Dillon Radunz are also possibilities.

Tennessee and Los Angeles will meet on “Sunday Night Football,” with kickoff set for 7:20 p.m. CT.

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Titans designate 3 to return from IR, sign 1 to practice squad

The Titans have begun the process of bringing back three of their players off IR.

The Tennessee Titans have designated three of their players to return from Injured Reserve, and signed one more to the practice squad.

The Titans announced they have designated inside linebacker Jayon Brown, outside linebacker Derick Roberson and backup guard/center Aaron Brewer to return from IR.

This opens the 21-day window for each player to be activated from the list and placed back on the 53-man roster. It remains to be seen if any of them will be available for Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts.

Also, the Titans have added another running back to their practice squad after inking Dontrell Hilliard, who was one of three players to work out for the team last week.

Hilliard was originally an undrafted free agent signing of the Cleveland Browns in 2018. He has spent three seasons in the NFL, totaling 22 carries for 97 yards and 22 catches for 199 yards.

He has some return experience, also, fielding 15 punts and 35 kickoffs to the tune of 7.1 and 23.1 yards per return, respectively.

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Titans place 4 on IR among slew of roster moves

The Titans made a total of seven roster moves on Friday afternoon.

The Tennessee Titans’ injury woes continue, as the team announced it has placed a total of four players on Injured Reserve ahead of the Week 5 contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

Inside linebacker Jayon Brown, wide receiver Racey McMath, offensive lineman Aaron Brewer and tight end Tommy Hudson have all been moved to IR. All three players will miss at least the next three games.

The Titans also announced the promotions of defensive lineman Amani Bledsoe, linebacker Joe Jones and offensive lineman Corey Levin from the practice squad to the active roster.

Brown, McMath, Brewer and Hudson were four of the six players ruled out of Sunday’s contest, a list that also includes wide receiver Julio Jones and punter Brett Kern.

Tennessee also listed five players as questionable, including left tackle Taylor Lewan, wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, defensive lineman Denico Autry, outside linebacker Bud Dupree and offensive tackle Ty Sambrailo.

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Titans’ Jayon Brown downgraded to questionable for Week 3

Brown was downgraded on Saturday after getting in a full practice on Friday.

After appearing to be good to go following a full practice on Friday, Tennessee Titans linebacker Jayon Brown has been downgraded to questionable by the team.

The change to the injury report happened on Saturday, leaving Brown’s status up in the air for Week 3 against the Indianapolis Colts. Brown missed the Week 2 contest with the same hamstring issue.

Brown has had injury issues the past two seasons, missing eight games in that span, including six in 2020. When on the field, Brown is an impact player, as he’s one of the better coverage linebackers in the NFL.

Should Brown sit, the Titans will deploy David Long in his place. Long has impressed in just about every opportunity he’s gotten, and he did so once again in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks.

The Titans will look to nab their second win of the season over the winless Colts on Sunday at Nissan Stadium, with kickoff set for noon CT.

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Tennessee Titans’ biggest salary-cap bargains on the 2021 roster

These Titans are set to produce a lot for a reasonable price in 2021.

The Tennessee Titans have spent a pretty penny this offseason in order to improve their defense, and the team has also spared no expense on offense after acquiring star wide receiver Julio Jones.

Make no mistake about it: the Titans are all-in.

But for all of the high-priced players on Tennessee’s 2021 roster, the team will enjoy some steals this coming season in terms of salary-cap bargains, or players who are making less than what their performance would dictate.

With that in mind, we’re taking a look at the Titans’ biggest salary-cap bargains going into 2021. Of course, guys on rookie deals are featured on this list, but there are some veterans on regular contracts who also made the cut.

We did not include rookies or other new additions to the team, as we simply don’t know how valuable they’ll be yet relative to their contract values. Here’s what we came up with:

Note: all cap hit figures are courtesy of Over the Cap.