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No team in the NFL needs a bye week more than the Tennessee Titans, a team that has lost two straight and is dealing with a slew of injuries.
How bad are the Titans’ injuries, you ask?
Well, just consider that Tennessee broke the record for the most players fielded in a single season with 86, two more than the previous top mark.
Head coach Mike Vrabel and players noted how important the coming bye week is after the Week 12 loss to the New England Patriots, both for the team’s mental and physical wellness.
“We’ve got to get healthy mentally and physically,” Vrabel said. “And get back to playing football how we know how to play it, taking care of the football, playing complementary, knowing the details. A lot of things to improve.”
Defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons echoed those sentiments and believes the Titans will come back better after getting some time to rest.
“We are going to get everybody healthy, and we are going to get everybody going like Coach Vrabel said, both physically and mentally coming off this bye week,” Simmons said. “We have two weeks to get prepared and get ready back at home after the bye week. We’re going take this bye week and hopefully we can get a lot of guys back, but you know, we’re a good team and I feel like once we get everybody back or coming off this bye week when everybody’s mind is clear, we are going to get it back rolling. You know, of course everybody is probably thinking we are not that team anymore, but I have a lot of faith in my guys and I have a lot of faith in this team. And like I said, coming off this bye week we’re going to come back.”
On top of the players already on Injured Reserve, like Julio Jones, A.J. Brown, Derrick Henry and Bud Dupree, the Titans were without four other starters on Sunday in Teair Tart, Nate Davis, Rashaan Evans and David Long.
The hope is that Jones, who is eligible to come off IR, can return in Week 14, along with Davis, Long, Tart and Evans. However, Tennessee will have to wait another game for Dupree, and two more for Brown.
Getting any of the aforementioned players back will be a welcomed addition to an injury-depleted team that desperately needs a lift on both sides of the ball, and in particular, on offense.
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