Tag: Rodger Saffold

Titans players take issue with Bengals TE saying Tennessee was scared

Two Titans took issue with Bengals TE C.J. Uzomah saying Tennessee was scared.

Tennessee Titans left tackle Rodger Saffold and defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons have taken issue with a comment made by Cincinnati Bengals tight end, C.J. Uzomah.

Uzomah was a guest on The Chris Collinsworth Podcast and said that the Titans were scared to give the Bengals the ball back late in regulation. Of course, the Titans ended up doing just that after Ryan Tannehill threw an interception, helping to set the Bengals up for a game-winning field goal.

“We’re on the sideline and we’re watching our defense and we’re kind of seeing how Tennessee is playing… oh, they’re scared of us,” Uzomah said. “If we get the ball back we are going to win this game. That was our mindset the entire time… They know if they give it back to us, it’s game over. And then we get the ball back and we’re like ‘it’s game over… it’s over.'”

Considering the Titans had kept Joe Burrow and Co. in check with nine sacks and zero passing touchdowns allowed up until that point, Uzomah’s statement is silly at best.

And that’s something Saffold and Simmons agree with.

If anyone was scared, it was Burrow, who faced a life and death situation every time he dropped back to pass.

Saffold will be happy to know the Titans do have the Bengals on their list of 2022 home opponents, and the team will no doubt keep this quote in mind when these two teams meet again next season.

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Titans place Taylor Lewan on COVID-19 list, activate 2 others off it

“This COVID deal is wild.. zero symptoms,” Lewan tweeted. “I’m just sitting on my couch feeling fine right now.”

The Tennessee Titans have added yet another player to the Reserve/COVID-19 list after announcing they have placed left tackle Taylor Lewan on it.

Lewan is the third Titans player to be added this week. He joins left guard Rodger Saffold (Wednesday) and cornerback Elijah Molden (Monday). All three players missed the Week 16 game against the San Francisco 49ers, but Lewan was initially ruled out with a back injury.

Tennessee also activated two players off the COVID-19 list in wide receiver Dez Fitzpatrick and practice squad safety Jamal Carter, both of whom were added last week.

Shortly after the move to place Lewan was announced by the Titans, the left tackle took to Twitter to reveal he’s feeling fine and has zero symptoms.

“This Covid deal is wild.. zero symptoms,” Lewan tweeted. “I’m just sitting on my couch feeling fine right now. Appreciate everyone who reached out!”

The Titans will return to action on Jan. 2 when they host the Miami Dolphins at Nissan Stadium in Nashville. That should be enough time to get all three players back. In the meantime, we hope all of them are doing OK.

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Titans’ Kendall Lamm announces he has COVID-19, won’t play in Week 16

The Titans are now down their left guard, left tackle, and their left tackle’s replacement for Week 16.

The Tennessee Titans were already down two starting offensive linemen going into their Week 16 matchup against the San Francisco 49ers, but now they’ll be without one of their offensive line replacements, also.

Backup offensive tackle Kendall Lamm, who was expected to start in place of an injured Taylor Lewan, took to Instagram to announce he has COVID-19, which means he’ll be out for the “Thursday Night Football” matchup.

“Well family and friends I tested positive for COVID this morning,” Lamm wrote. “Already down kinda bad so if there’s any remedies or tricks you guys have up your sleeves I’m all ears! I know everyone has their own opinion on this as you should but I can tell you it’s very real and with my respiratory issues this will not be fun.”

Of course, the health and safety of Lamm comes first and we hope he is OK, but this is disastrous news for the Titans, who are also without left guard Rodger Saffold on top of Lewan.

How the Titans go about covering their losses remains to be seen.

They could deploy second-round pick Dillon Radunz at left tackle. It’s also possible the Titans decide move right tackle David Quessenberry to the left side and start the rookie at right tackle instead.

Whatever Tennessee’s solution for this situation is, it figures to make life much harder for an offensive line that was already struggling when all starters were healthy.

The Titans did get some good news on Thursday. Wide receiver A.J. Brown will reportedly be activated off IR and play in Week 16; however, Ryan Tannehill might not have time to get him the football with a depleted offensive line protecting him.

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Titans’ offensive line ranked as middle-of-the-road unit by PFF

The only reason the Titans are ranked this high is because of their run-blocking.

The Tennessee Titans’ offensive line has done its best impression of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” when comparing what the group upfront has done in pass protection and run-blocking through five games of the 2021 campaign.

The unit has been mostly bad in pass protection, allowing a league-high 20 sacks, which is five fewer than the team gave up in all of 2020. 13 of those sacks have come in two games (Week 1 and 4).

Meanwhile, running back Derrick Henry is off to the best start of his career with an NFL best 640 rushing yards, and he’s on pace to break 2,000 yards once again, and the single-season rushing record.

With all that in mind, Pro Football Focus’ Sam Monson ranks Tennessee’s O-line as the No. 15 unit in the NFL after five games, which is actually a better ranking than I thought it would get. Here’s his take:

As you might expect, the Titans’ offensive line is better at run blocking than pass protecting. With running back Derrick Henry leading the league in rushing, the Tennessee unit has five players with a 70.0-plus PFF run-blocking grade. But only one (Rodger Saffold) can say the same about his pass-blocking grade. Pass protection is king in today’s NFL, so four different linemen with double-digit pressures to their name is a recipe for a middle-of-the-pack ranking at best.

Left guard Rodger Saffold has easily been the Titans’ best offensive lineman thus far, as he’s the only one with a grade above 70 in both pass protection and run-blocking.

In what is a microcosm of the inconsistency we’ve seen from Tennessee’s big boys upfront between the run and pass, right guard Nate Davis has the worst pass protection grade of the offensive line with a putrid 34.8, but he’s sporting a 73.4 when blocking for Henry.

Left tackle Taylor Lewan is the only starter to not have a 70 or better grade in either facet. Lewan has a 63.6 in pass protection — the second-best among starters — and a 58.9 in run-blocking.

The good news? Lewan had a much better performance in Week 5 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, earning a grade of 80 or better in both areas, the only Tennessee starter to do so.

If the Titans want to go far this year — and avoid getting their quarterback killed — they must get better in pass protection the rest of the way.

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Titans’ Julio Jones, Brett Kern out vs. Jags, A.J. Brown expected to play

Rodger Saffold is also expected to play after clearing the concussion protocol.

Tennessee Titans head coach Mike Vrabel revealed that the team has ruled out two key players ahead of the Week 5 contest against the Jacksonville Jaguars in wide receiver Julio Jones and punter Brett Kern.

This is the second straight game both have missed. Punter Johnny Townsend will take the reins once again this week for Kern, while the Titans will go with some mix of their backup receivers to fill the void left by Jones.

Tennessee did get some good news, though. Wide receiver A.J. Brown is expected to play, according to Vrabel. Brown missed last week’s game against the New York Jets.

Two players who were in the concussion protocol, left guard Rodger Saffold and outside linebacker Sharif Finch, are both out of the protocol and are expected to suit up on Sunday.

Tennessee and Jacksonville will kick off at noon CT on Sunday, with the game taking place at TIAA Bank Field.

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3 Tennessee Titans make PFF’s ‘NFL First-Quarter All-Pro Team’

Derrick Henry, who is off to the best start of his career, makes the cut.

Three Tennessee Titans made Pro Football Focus’ “NFL First-Quarter All-Pro Team” after the first four weeks of the 2021 campaign.

Those three players include running back Derrick Henry, who was a first-team selection, and left guard Rodger Saffold and safety Kevin Byard, both of whom are second-team selections.

Henry is off to a phenomenal start to the season, and it’s the best of his career with 510 rushing yards, which is nearly 150 more than the next closest back, the Cleveland Browns’ Nick Chubb (362).

Adding to that, Henry is on pace to rush for 2,000 yards and break the single-season rushing yards record held by Hall of Fame running back, Eric Dickerson (2,105 yards).

After a rough 2020 campaign, Byard has bounced back well in 2021, posting the second-highest overall PFF grade (76.1) among Tennessee’s defenders.

Byard’s four passes defensed are more than half of what he totaled all last year, and he’s allowed completions on just 41.7 percent of the passes thrown his way, leading to a QB rating against of 63.9, both career bests.

Saffold has been the Titans’ best, most consistent offensive lineman. He has the highest overall (78.5) and pass-blocking (76.1) grades of the group, and his 72.3 mark ranks second among the starters.

Now, if the Titans can just get the rest of their offensive line to play as well as Saffold has, they’ll be OK. Easier said than done, though.

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Top 5 NFL stars that have invested in esports

Some might be in for the returns, while others are sinking dollars into their hobby.

NFL stars are not just players, but are also business people and some of them instantly recognize the fierce competition in esports and all the opportunities that come with it.

The days of small neighborhood gaming tournaments are long gone. Esports is a global billion-dollar industry now and investors from all walks of life see the potential that comes with grand tournaments broadcasted to millions of viewers.

Many want a share of the revenue generated by the top esports orgs, but only a few truly understand what they are investing their money in. It takes someone that is deeply engrossed in sports competition to grasp the true potential of competitive video gaming. NFL players definitely do and they are getting more and more involved in esports.

Let’s take a look at the top 5 NFL stars that invested in esports.

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Titans’ Mike Vrabel on Day 2 practice with Bucs: ‘I thought it sucked’

Titans guard Rodger Saffold also touched on the fights that took place.

The Tennessee Titans’ second and final joint practice with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers was a bit overshadowed by the fight club it devolved into, but head coach Mike Vrabel was more concerned with his team’s performance.

The Titans’ offense, which didn’t have two of its best players in Julio Jones and A.J. Brown, wasn’t at its best, and the defense saw a drop-off in performance after a stellar Day 1.

Vrabel was quite blunt in his assessment of the last session before the Titans and Bucs meet ahead of Preseason Week 2 on Saturday, per Jim Wyatt of Titans Online.

“I thought it sucked,” Vrabel said. “I thought it sucked. From what I saw, we didn’t do well offensively. I don’t think we competed like we did (Wednesday). Probably a lot of reasons but just not good enough. They (Buccaneers) were clearly better today. We will see how we respond and take the coaching and play on Saturday.

“I don’t know (why), this isn’t like we alternate days. We want to come out every day and compete, make adjustments. Same guys going against the same guys. I am sure there were some good things but just not enough positive, just not getting into the flow of drives offensively, and I don’t think it was very good defensively either.”

Speaking of the fights, of which there were five, Rodger Saffold brushed them off as being just another part of the game and something he wants no part of at his age.

“I am too old, man, I am too old,” Saffold said, smiling. “I look at it and like, ‘I’ll get in there!’ And then when I see it’s 50 yards away and I am like, “Maybe I’ll just chill and rest.’ But it’s part of the sport.

“(The Buccaneers) came out today on fire. We had a really good day of practice yesterday, and that is what you want to see – people competing. A lot of pushing, but no punches thrown, and as long as no punches are thrown, we’re good.”

Titans cornerback Chris Jackson would beg to differ on the idea that no punches were thrown, as evidenced by the photo below.

George Walker IV / Tennessean.com via Imagn Content Services, LLC

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Cardinals to face 5 of NFL’s top guards in 2021

The Arizona Cardinals will have four games against 5 of the league’s top guards — Quenton Nelson, Zack Martin, Joel Bitonio, Wyatt Teller and Rodger Saffold.

The Arizona Cardinals have a solid offensive line and hope to get good guard play this coming season with Justin Pugh and whoever wins the competition at right guard. However, the defense will face some top guards in the league.

Based on Mark Schofield’s list of the top 11 guards in the NFL, the Cardinals will face five of them in four games.

Check them out below.

Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.

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Watch: Titans’ Rodger Saffold already crushing weights, preparing for 2021

Rodger Saffold isn’t playing any games at the gym.

After a slow start to his Tennessee Titans tenure in the early parts of 2019, left guard Rodger Saffold has settled in nicely and is proving general manager Jon Robinson made the right decision to bring him aboard.

Despite battling injuries for most of the season, and with his normal running mate at left tackle in Taylor Lewan missing the majority of the campaign, Saffold was a rock for the Titans on the interior in 2020.

Saffold has posted back-to-back seasons with a Pro Football Focus grade over 70, and he rightly received some recognition in All-Pro voting by getting one vote after Derrick Henry’s historic season.

Still, that isn’t enough to satisfy Saffold, as the veteran is already back in the gym preparing for 2021, a season he no doubt hopes results in a Super Bowl.

With the Titans needing to clear cap space, there has been some speculation about Saffold possibly getting cut, a move that would save the team close to $8 million. However, we simply don’t see happening because he’s far too important to the Titans’ elite offense, rushing attack, and overall culture.

The ideal scenario would be for the Titans to work out a restructure with their veteran guard, but if nothing happens and Saffold continues to play under his current deal, we can certainly live with it considering his elevated level of play since the second half of 2019.

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