Tag: Teair Tart

What the Eagles are saying ahead of Week 13 matchup vs. Titans

With Philadelphia and Tennessee set for a Sunday matchup, here are some pre-game quotes and what the Eagles are saying ahead of Week 13 against the Titans

The Eagles (10-1) and Titans (7-4) are set for a physical, Sunday afternoon matchup that’ll involve two division leaders, hurt feelings, and explosive offenses.

Philadelphia counters with Jalen Hurts, Miles Sanders, DeVonta Smith, and A.J. Brown, who’ll be at the center of some trash talk and disdain after a blockbuster draft night trade.

Tennessee with counter the Birds at the quarterback position with Ryan Tannehill, the NFL’s top rusher in Derrick Henry, and the wide receiver drafted to replace A.J. Brown, Treylon Burks.

With so many plots and storylines here’s what the Eagles are saying ahead of Week 13.

Eagles-Titans injury report: DeVonta Smith, Zach Pascal listed as limited participants

DeVonta Smith and Zach Pascal were among three Eagles who were limited participants during a Wednesday walkthrough in preparation for the Titans

The Eagles released their Wednesday injury report in advance of the Sunday matchup against the Titans, and two key figures in the passing game are dealing with groin injuries.

DeVonta Smith and Zach Pascal were limited participants in an estimated walkthrough, while Patrick Johnson was limited with an ankle injury.

Star safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson will be out with a lacerated kidney, but Philadelphia has yet to put him on the injured reserve list.

Titans’ defense elite at getting pressure without blitzing

A big reason for the Titans’ success on defense is their ability to get pressure without blitzing.

The Tennessee Titans’ defense has been phenomenal ever since they started to turn their season around back in Week 3.

From that moment on, the Titans have only allowed an average of 16 points per game, while consistently producing like an all-around elite defense.

The strength of the entire unit has undoubtedly been Tennessee’s tenacious defensive front that includes Jeffery Simmons, Denico Autry, Rashad Weaver, Bud Dupree, Teair Tart, Demarcus Walker, and Mario Edwards Jr.

The team has already accounted for 23 sacks in total through eight games. Autry (7.0), Simmons (5.5), Dupree (3.0), Weaver (4.0), Walker (2.0), and Edwards Jr. (1.0) have accounted for 22.5 of those sacks.

Arguably the group’s most impressive ability is its knack for getting after the quarterback without having to blitz.

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According to Next Gen Stats, The Titans’ defense has blitzed less frequently than any other team in the NFL this season (15 percent) but has also recorded a league-high pressure rate of 31.7 percent when not bringing a blitz.

The Titans’ seven defenders listed above have combined for a whopping 122 pressures through eight games, per Sports Info Solutions.

This group has the potential to put up some elite numbers all across the board by year’s end as long as it can stay healthy. Unfortunately, that’s a much bigger “if” than anyone would prefer.

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Tennessee Titans film study: Teair Tart continues to POP

Tyler Rowland dives into the film to break down Teair Tart’s impressive Week 5 performance against the Commanders.

The Tennessee Titans have been absolutely dominant in run defense the past two weeks, including in their win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday.

They have allowed 81 yards total in those two games. Not only is this a great improvement from early in the year, but when you look at the passing yards allowed the last two weeks (715 yards total), it becomes obvious just how critical it was for the Titans to limit the run.

Run defense has, and always will be, a team job; however, one Titan has been the rock of which the run defense is built on — his name is Teair Tart.

Tart has a crazy story; multiple colleges and then an undrafted free agent in the NFL. He stuck with the Titans his rookie year in 2020, but only played in seven games and 154 defensive snaps.

Tart had a solid year in 2021 in 11 games for the Titans as well despite some injuries and seemed like a nice rotational interior defensive lineman. Make no mistake, though, Tart wasn’t considered some X-Factor on defense heading into 2022.

Tart has changed that narrative through five weeks; he has been everywhere. Yes, I started off this article by discussing his run defense because as a nose tackle, that will always be his primary role.

But Tart has POPPED in pass defense as well, knocking down passes at the line of scrimmage and even getting an interception in Indianapolis!

While the tape tells the story the numbers do as well.

Tart is currently the NINTH (!!!!) highest-graded defensive lineman in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus, one spot ahead of the heralded lineman out of Indy, DeForest Buckner.

Not only that, but Tart currently has five pass break-ups which is the most on the team. The single-season record for a Titans defensive lineman is nine, set by Jevon Kearse. Tart is on pace to smash that record.

Tart hasn’t been a sack junkie in his career, as he has yet to record one. So, if Tart can continue to impact the passing game in this way, his value skyrockets.

So, as we always do, let’s dive into the tape and see how big of an impact Teair Tart made in the nation’s capital in Week 5.

Titans DL Teair Tart named a ‘secret superstar’ for Week 5

Titans DL Teair Tart got some love from Touchdown Wire after his impressive Week 5 performance.

Tennessee Titans defensive lineman Teair Tart is putting together a great season thus far and is starting to get noticed outside of Nashville, which doesn’t happen very often.

In fact, he was named a “secret superstar” by Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar for his Week 5 performance in which he recorded three tackles and a pair of pass break-ups, one of which came during Tennessee’s game-winning goal-line stand against the Washington Commanders.

Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons is probably the NFL’s best at his position in the Non-Aaron Donald Division, but let’s give some love to Teair Tart, the 2020 undrafted free agent out of Florida International who’s been making quite the impact this season. Through five games, Tart has six pressures, eight stops, three batted passes, and one interception.

Farrar mentions Tart’s Week 4 interception against the Indianapolis Colts in which he showed off his break-dancing moves, and he rightly highlights the big man’s goal-line pass break-up in Week 5, where Tart gracefully dropped into coverage and made a huge play.

And, no, you didn’t read that tweet above incorrectly: Tart actually leads the team in pass break-ups after five games, and he’s tied for the team lead in interceptions with one.

I didn’t have Teair Tart leading the team in two categories normally led by members of the secondary on my 2022 bingo card, but here we are…

Tart has been a revelation since signing as an undrafted free agent in 2020 and it looks like he’s on the verge of truly taking that next step.

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Takeaways from advanced stats after 5 games of Titans’ 2022 season

Shaun Calderon dives into the advanced stats from the Titans’ first five games and gives his biggest takeaways.

Following an abysmal 0-2 start to the season, the Tennessee Titans have scratched and clawed their way back to a winning record.

The Titans enter their bye week at 3-2 and in sole possession of first place in the AFC South after grinding out three straight victories.

Now that we are officially at the quarter mark of the 2022 season, it’s time to reflect over the last five weeks and see where the Titans stack up in comparison to the rest of the league.

Similarly to what we’ve been doing all year long, I’m going to review the advanced metrics data from a variety of different platforms and I will pick a few takeaways to elaborate about.

This article in particular is going to mostly include the fantastic data over at Sports Info Solutions (SIS) unless otherwise noted.

There were some positives and obviously a few negatives that stood out, so let’s dive right into my main takeaways after the first five games of the season.

Secret Superstars for Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season

Taysom Hill, Rhamondre Stevenson, Daymi Brown, Alijah Vera-Tucker, and Baron Browning are among Doug Farrar’s Secret Superstars for Week 5.

There are all kinds of reasons that NFL players are underrated and unsung.

Perhaps they’re in systems that don’t best show their skills. Maybe they’re buried on a depth chart. Or, they’re in somebody’s doghouse, and their coaches can’t see their potential. Or, their efforts are relatively unnoticed among their more celebrated teammates. Sometimes, young players haven’t quite put it all together, but there are enough flashes to make you sit up and take notice, and when it does work, it’s all good.

Week 5 of the 2022 regular season featured players at just about every position who showed up and showed out despite their underrated statuses, and here at Touchdown Wire, it’s our job to point them out.

Rhamondre Stevenson, Dameon Pierce, Daymi Brown, Taysom Hill, Ethan Pocic, Alijah Vera-Tucker, Matt Judon, Baron Browning, Osa Odighizuwa, Teair Tart, Dre Greenlaw, Camerson Dantzler, and Caden Sterns are our Secret Superstars for Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season.

Here’s why each of them made the cut.

Titans’ Teair Tart talks Week 4 INT, ‘break-dancing’ on his head

Titans DL Teair Tart caught some jokes from his teammates for “break-dancing on my head” after the INT.

Ever since Teair Tart arrived as an undrafted free-agent signing of the Tennessee Titans prior to the 2020 season, the talented defensive lineman has steadily developed into a household name within the fanbase.

However, Tart’s league-wide reputation as a playmaker grew on Sunday following an incredible interception that ultimately helped setup a Titans touchdown on the ensuing drive to extend their first-half lead to 21 points.

The Florida International product was being double-teamed on the play by Indianapolis’ two best blockers. The Philadelphia native quickly realized he probably wasn’t getting to the quarterback but remained cognizant of where the ball was and got his hands up right as the pass was thrown.

Colts linemen Quenton Nelson and Ryan Kelly quickly realized that the ball had been tipped in the air, and their natural reaction was to knock Tart down in order to eliminate the threat of an interception.

Unfortunately for them, Nelson ended up pushing the Titans defender directly towards the ball, and it ended up falling right into Tart’s grasp.

Tart admitted that he’s been catching a lot of jokes from his teammates, in particular for his “break-dancing” celebration that followed the turnover.

“It’s been pretty funny — I’m getting some jokes from the DBs, some of my teammates, about me break-dancing on my head,” Tart said, per Jim Wyatt of Titans Online. “So, it’s been fun and cool, finding other ways to impact the game.”

Despite having some success the past few years and becoming a starter, Tart took nothing for granted going into this year and continued striving to improve his game.

“The biggest thing for me this offseason was not taking anything for granted,” Tart said. “At one point you can feel like you’re at the top of the world, the next minute everything can be gone. Coming into this season I just wanted to improve on every little detail that I could to be a student of the game.

“(Coaches) tell me never to get satisfied, and never to get comfortable. After every game I talk to the coaches, and they tell me what I need to work on. You can never be satisfied or be content.”

Outside of this impressive pick, the third-year defensive tackle had an all-around impactful Week 4 performance.

Pro Football Focus gave Tart the fourth-highest overall grade on the team (82.9) after he recorded three tackles, two passes defensed, and one interception.

In total, Tart has recorded seven tackles, three passes defensed, two quarterback hits, and one interception through the first four games of the season.

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Watch: Titans’ Teair Tart makes insane INT after deflecting pass

Titans DL Teair Tart made an incredible play against the Colts in Week 4.

The NFL features plenty of big guys who are incredibly nimble for their size, and Tennessee Titans defensive lineman Teair Tart is no doubt one of them.

In the second quarter of Tennessee’s Week 4 game versus the Indianapolis Colts, Tart was able to deflect a pass from quarterback Matt Ryan up in the air and had the wherewithal to recover and completed the play by nabbing the pick.

The Titans took full advantage of the turnover in Colts territory by scoring plays later on a pass from quarterback Ryan Tannehill to tight end Chigoziem Okonkwo.

It was Ryan’s second turnover of the day and helped stake the Titans to a commanding 24-3 lead halfway through the second quarter.

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Behind Enemy Lines: Week 1 Q&A with Titans Wire

With a Week 1 matchup between the New York Giants and Tennessee Titans on tap, we go behind enemy lines for a chat with Titans Wire.

The New York Giants (0-0) and Tennessee Titans (0-0) will square off on Sunday afternoon in a Week 1 matchup at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Giants opened the week as 5.5-point road underdogs and that’s where the spread remains as of this writing.

With this matchup on tap, Giants Wire took the opportunity to hold a Q&A with Titans Wire managing editor Mike Moraitis.