Tag: Tyjae Spears

Titans elevate LB Luke Gifford, RB Jabari Small from practice squad

The Tennessee Titans have elevated LB Luke Gifford and RB Jabari Small from their practice squad ahead of a Week 3 game against the Packers.

The Tennessee Titans are about to take on the Green Bay Packers at Nissan Stadium in Nashville on Sunday and have made some small roster moves in preparation. 

The Titans are elevating linebacker Luke Gifford and running back Jabari Small from the practice squad and he is likely to suit up in the match-up. 

For Gifford, this is his third elevation of the 2024 season. After seeing time on both defense and special teams during the past two games, it is likely that the Titans will sign him to the 53-man roster after this game to continue in this role.  

By NFL rules, a player can only be elevated to the active roster three times during the season. 

Small, who is familiar with the system after spending training camp with the Titans, is likely activated as a precaution in case Tyjae Spears (ankle) can’t go on Sunday. That’s the first elevation for the former undrafted rookie free agent. 

In some news for the Packers, they elevated quarterback Sean Clifford on Saturday. While this does not mean that Jordan Love will not play, it is a potential sign that Titans fans could indeed see a Will Levis vs Malik Willis match-up on Sunday. Stay Tuned!

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Titans’ final injury report for Week 3: Tyjae Spears questionable vs. Packers

The Tennessee Titans are relatively healthy and ready to go against the Green Bay Packers with Tyjae Spears the only player with a designation.

The Tennessee Titans will return to the field against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday afternoon at Nissan Stadium.

To this point, the Titans have been relatively healthy in 2024. However, there are a couple question marks heading into this match-up.

Running back Tyjae Spears is the biggest concern; the second-year back has been limited while battling an ankle injury. While he returned to practice in full on Friday, he is still listed as questionable.

Practice squad linebacker Luke Gifford, who missed practice Thursday with a back injury, was not listed on the report and had no designation.

The Titans also added Morgan Cox to the injury report with an ankle injury. He was a full participant on Friday and also has no designation for Sunday’s match-up with the Packers.

Full injury reports for both the Titans and Jets can be found below.

George Walker IV / Tennessean.com / USA TODAY NETWORK

Tennessee Titans

Out: None

Doubtful: None

Questionable: Tyjae Spears (ankle)

Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Green Bay Packers

Out: Jordan Morgan (shoulder)

Doubtful: Carrington Valentine (ankle)

Questionable: Jordan Love (knee)

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Titans Injury Report: Gifford sits out, Spears Limited

The Tennessee Titans practiced Thursday and made a few changes to their weekly injury report.

The Tennessee Titans continued their preparations for their Week 3 matchup with the Green Bay Packers on Thursday.

While veterans Jeffery Simmons and L’Jarius Sneed returned to practice after being given an off day, the biggest news was centered on RB Tyjae Spears, who returned in a limited capacity. This in no way indicates whether Spears will be available this week; it does show that he is trending in a positive manner after being listed day-to-day by head coach Brian Callahan.  

Titans LB Luke Gifford sat out Thursday with a back injury after being a full participant on Wednesday. 

Gifford has been elevated from the practice squad for each of the season’s first two games and is a regular on special teams. If he can’t go on Sunday, this could cause problems for an already struggling unit. 

The Titans’ Thursday injury report can be found below:

Did not participate: LB Luke Gifford (Back) 

Limited participant: RB Tyjae Spears (Ankle)

Full participants: DT Jeffery Simmons (NIR-Rest), CB L’Jarius Sneed (NIR-Rest)

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Titans injury report: Tyjae Spears sits out

The Tennessee Titans released their first injury report for Week 3 with RB Tyjae Spears being held out with an ankle injury.

The Tennessee Titans returned to the practice field to start preparing for their Week 3 matchup against the Green Bay Packers, and it provided an opportunity to see where several of the team’s injured players are.

All eyes were on running back Tyjae Spears, who suffered an injury late in the game against the Jets. Early in the week, head coach Brian Callahan stated the running back would be “day-to-day” with his ankle injury. 

Unfortunately, he was the only member of the Titans who did not practice due to injury. DT Jeffery Simmons and CB L’Jarius Sneed were given a veteran’s maintenance day. 

The Titans’ Wednesday injury report can be found below:

Did not participate: DT Jeffery Simmons (NIR-Rest), CB L’Jarius Sneed (NIR-Rest), RB Tyjae Spears (ankle)

Limited participant: N/A

Full participant: N/A

The Packers had an extensive injury report for the first practice of the week, led by quarterback Jordan Love.

Former Titan Malik Willis is expected to start if Love doesn’t go.

 

Titans’ Tyjae Spears avoids major injury

Titans running back Tyjae Spears left the game against the Jets on Sunday with an ankle injury. Brian Callahan provided an update on Monday.

[lawrence-related id=150754,150746,150592]On Sunday, the Tennessee Titans hosted the New York Jets in their second game of the 2024 NFL season. The Titans hoped to bounce back from a Week 1 loss to the Chicago Bears and win their home opener against the New York Jets. They weren’t up to the task, though, falling 24-17.

Aside from losing the game, the Titans thought they might lose running back Tyjae Spears when he left the field with an ankle injury. No player wants to hear the dreaded “high ankle sprain” news, and thankfully it seems Spears isn’t hearing that either. Head coach Brian Callahan says that Spears is “day-to-day” with his injury.

https://twitter.com/jwyattsports/status/1835719171658698788

Hearing that Spears is day-to-day is huge news for the Titans. He is RB2 behind Tony Pollard and doubles as a return-man on special teams. Losing him would thin out their depth in both areas.

Over two games this season, Spears has carried the ball 10 times for 41 yards. In 2023, he recorded 100 carries for 453 yards and two touchdowns. He hasn’t yet shown us what he will be capable of in the NFL, but provided this injury doesn’t linger, we should get a better look at him this season.

Titans vs. Jets: 3 best player prop bets for Week 2

The Tennessee Titans take on the New York Jets in Week 2 and here’s a look at three of the best player prop bets.

The Tennessee Titans are looking to bounce back in Week 2 after losing a heartbreaker to the Chicago Bears last Sunday.

Even with this game being the home opener, the Titans are 3.5-point underdogs against the New York Jets, per BetMGM. The Jets also lost in Week 1, so it may officially be panic time for the loser of this one.

Let’s look at the three best player prop bets you should consider if you plan on betting on this game.

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Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images

Tyjae Spears OVER 23.5 rushing yards

After Week 1, head coach Brian Callahan expressed disappointment that Tyjae Spears wasn’t more involved.

“Tony [Pollard] ran the ball, and he was doing a nice job,” Callahan said, via team reporter Jim Wyatt. “But I’d like to get more for Tyjae [Spears]. I’d like him to get rolling a little bit more. We can make that division of labor probably a little closer to equal. … I regret that part of it.”

Well, expect Spears to be involved in Week 2. The Jets allowed 49ers backup running back Jordan Mason to gain 147 yards on the ground in Week 1, so there should be plenty of opportunities for Spears and Pollard. Spears easily surpasses this total.

Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports

Garrett Wilson UNDER 5.5 receptions

In Week 1, Garrett Wilson caught six passes for 60 yards. In Week 2, don’t expect the young star to reach the same total.

Wilson will likely be matched up against L’Jarius Sneed, who feels like he has something to prove after Week 1, even as the secondary played well.

In the past, the Titans have primarily been hurt by secondary receivers. Expect Wilson to get locked down on Sunday with Aaron Rodgers forced to distribute the ball elsewhere.

Quinn Harris/Getty Images

Will Levis OVER 195.5 passing yards

Will Levis had an awful Week 1 performance. However, the quarterback has expressed confidence that he can bounce back in Week 2, and I expect him to.

Levis’ passing yards total is under 200, which immediately makes me want to hammer the over. Brock Purdy threw for 231 yards last week, but his team was in control for much of the game.

This one could become a shootout where Levis has to stretch the ball down the field. I would not be surprised to see Levis bounce back with something like 250 yards and two touchdowns.

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Titans-Bears Week 1: Offense, defense and special teams snap counts

The Tennessee Titans lost their Week 1 game against the Chicago Bears. Here are the snap counts on offense, defense and special teams.

The Tennessee Titans watched a fourth quarter lead completely evaporate on Sunday afternoon against the Chicago Bears, ultimately snapping defeat from the jaws of victory.

A Will Levis pick-6 effectively sealed the loss — something he later called a “boneheaded play.

Following the loss, the Titans will head back to the drawing board as they prepare for a Week 2 matchup with the New York Jets.

Now let’s take a closer look at the snap counts that contributed to the Titans’ Week 1 defeat.

Offensive snaps: 64
Defensive snaps: 56
Special teams snaps: 29

The injured DeAndre Hopkins (knee) took just 17 snaps and was largely ineffective. It will likely be several weeks before he’s able to take a full snap share.

At running back, it’s evident that Tony Pollard will handle the early-down snaps while Tyjae Spears receives a secondary share. The split won’t be even but it will be balanced.

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A bold prediction for new Titans running back in 2024

Don’t be surprised if…….

There is some mystery surrounding the 2024 Tennessee Titans. That’s what happens when you have a coaching change.

Brian Callahan is in as the new head coach. Callahan spent the past few seasons as Joe Burrow’s offensive coordinator with the Cincinnati Bengals. Callahan was brought in to mentor Tennessee’s young quarterback, Will Levis.

This offseason, the Titans revamped the entire team, signing free-agent wide receivers Calvin Ridley and Tyler Boyd, running back Tony Pollard, center Lloyd Cushenberry and spending a first-round pick on left tackle JC Latham.

Callahan stated that Pollard will split time at running back with Tennessee’s 2023 third-round pick, Tyjae Spears. Spears looked phenomenal at times during training camp and the preseason.

However, one NFL insider believes the 2024 season could be big for Pollard.

In his annual surprise predictions for all 32 NFL teams in 2024, ESPN’s Dan Graziano said not to be surprised if Pollard has a bounce-back season.

Don’t be surprised if … Tony Pollard has a bounce-back season.

What I’m hearing: Pollard is one year further removed from his 2022 season-ending ankle injury, which can only help. The Titans signed him on the first day of free agency to a fairly substantial contract (for a running back, anyway) at three years and $24 million. Yes, they have Tyjae Spears in the backfield as well, but I’m not sure they view Spears as ready to take over the lead role all by himself.

I doubt Pollard ends up with twice as many touches as Spears, the way Derrick Henry did last season. But I also expect this team to lean fairly heavily on the backs as both runners and pass catchers while it brings Will Levis along at quarterback. And Tennessee seems to view Pollard’s experience as a differentiating factor between him and Spears, who is in Year 2. Pollard — who went over 1,000 rushing yards for a second straight year last season — is my bet to be the lead back in Tennessee.

The Titans have a good running back situation. Spears and Pollard have similar styles, and both can impact the passing game. It’s definitely a new day in Tennessee, with franchise legend Derrick Henry no longer leading the Titans’ backfield.

Tyjae Spears, Saints featured in viral ‘Art But Make It Sports’ trend

The Saints were on the wrong end of the viral ‘Art But Make It Sports’ trend as Tyjae Spears’ hurdle was likened to a centuries-old French painting:

Don’t look now, but the New Orleans Saints were featured on the trendy “Art But Make It Sports” page after their preseason loss to the Tennessee Titans. And to make it worse, it’s because of an impressive play from Louisiana native Tyjae Spears.

More to the point, it’s recognizing an outstanding photo of Spears’ hurdle over a wall of Saints defenders captured by Titans team photographer Jessie Adell Rogers.

The account, managed by New York Knicks fan and part-time art historian LJ Rader, has gone viral on social media — closing in on 500,000 Twitter followers while regularly earning thousands of impressions online. And it’s a great bit, drawing comparisons in color and composition between the work modern sports photographers do and what can be found in masterpieces at museums around the world.

Unfortunately, the Saints wound up on the wrong side of this one. Spears, of course, hoped the Saints would draft him last year. Rader likened this photo to “The Ascension,” a French painting created by an unknown artist in the late Sixteenth Century. The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, which exhibited the piece from 2011 to 2012, describes it as such:

The subject may represent the Ascension in the spirit, an appearance of Christ to his disciples during his supernatural life after the Resurrection. Christ is represented nude, clad only in a loincloth and a flowing mantle, and showing his wounds. The twelve apostles, who manifest various expressions of astonishment and rapture, are distinguished only by their age. They bear no attributes. In the background one sees a town and a mountain ridge.

The figure of Christ seems to have been inspired by that in a painting, The Doubting Thomas, executed in 1551, by Léonard Limosin for the church of Saint-Pierre-du-Queyroix in Limoges. Today this is in the museum at Limoges and was restored in 1963. On the other hand, Léonard Limosin may have used for his painting a figure of Christ designed by Jean Pénicaud II for his workshop.

So there’s some art history for you. It’s a shame the Saints passed on Spears in last year’s draft, but good on him for making a great play. And big respect to Rogers for snapping such a great photograph. Hopefully the next time the black and gold are featured by this social media trend it’s because of a great moment they’ve created.

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Titans’ second-year RB heartbroken hometown team did not draft him

Spears will make his return to New Orleans this weekend.

Tennessee Titans running back Tyjae Spears has never shied away from speaking honestly. The New Orleans native will, once again, make his return home when the Titans wrap up their preseason schedule against the Saints on Sunday.

Spears and the Titans visited Caesars Superdome in Week 1 last year, a game in which the Saints eked out a win. The second-year back, who understandably grew up a huge Saints fan, played collegiate football at nearby Tulane.

However, he indicated he was heartbroken that New Orleans passed on him in the 2023 NFL draft.

“I was so hurt that they didn’t draft me,” Spears said on Thursday via ESPN’s Turron Davenport. “Because they had like the (71st overall pick). I was so hurt. But I’m blessed. I’m in this position. I’m right where I need to be. My family inside the (Titans facility), my family at home–so, I’m good.”

Spears fell to the Titans in the third round, 81st overall, in last year’s draft. The Saints did take a running back in that round, but it was TCU’s Kendre Miller, who rushed for 156 yards in his rookie season.

Spears served in a backup capacity behind Derrick Henry, rushing for over 450 yards and adding nearly 400 passing yards out of the backfield. However, his numbers are expected to see an uptick now that he is entering a split-share starting role with free-agent signing Tony Pollard.

Many have pegged Spears as a potential breakout player for the upcoming 2024 NFL season. With how quick and shifty the second-year back is, it’s not hard to see why.