I can’t recall the last time the Tennessee Titans suffered such a deflating loss. I’m no glutton for punishment, so I’m not going to look it up either. Let’s just say this – yesterday, the Titans sucked. SUCKED. In every facet of the game, the Baltimore Ravens bulldozed the Titans. They got nothing going on offense. The defense allowed Joe Flacco and Michael Crabtree to methodically march down the field. Alex Collins drove in two touchdowns. Even the usually #elite Brett Kern had a terrible punt.
I have no idea what kind of game plan Mike Vrabel and company put together, as they very rarely had a positive play at all, but it failed miserably. The Titans played about as well as Dana Holgorsen’s hair looks (that’s a lie and you know it, Stoney – no one got a boner watching the Titans yesterday), and the Ravens made them pay for it. They absolutely dominated the Titans on their own field.
It was bad. One of the worst performances I can recall inside the confines of Nissan Stadium. So, what’s next? What do the Titans need to do to get back on track? Well…the answer is plenty.
Offense
Offensive line – I don’t even know where to begin with a unit that was supposed to be one of the best in the entire NFL. 11 sacks? A franchise record for the Ravens and just one shy of tying an all time NFL record. At one point during the game, Marcus Mariota had been sacked on a third of every one of his dropbacks. Ocho couldn’t so much as breathe without having a Ravens defender in his face. They didn’t do too well in the run game either…
Run game – So much for establishing a ground threat…the Titans did little to set themselves up to run the ball effectively. The offensive line did little to help the backs, but 3.9 isn’t good enough. Furthermore, if you take out Mariota’s two carries for 25 yards, Derrick Henry and Dion Lewis combined for an average of 2.4 yards per carry. Henry finished with 21 yards. Lewis finished with a lowly nine yards on five carries (1.8 YPC). That won’t cut it if this offense wants to be dynamic.
Explosiveness – There wasn’t even the threat of an explosive play yesterday. Corey Davis caught one ball for 24 yards on four targets. Taywan Taylor had one reception for 13 yards on two targets. There’s no threat of a tight end making plays as this team sorely misses Delanie Walker. The leading receiver yesterday was Tajae Sharpe with two catches for 33 yards. Taylor was open deep once, but the pass sailed over his head. That was it…that’s all!
I get that the Ravens have a top 10 defense, but you would think there would be some sort of whimper of creativity – the Titans had the same guys as they did when we were calling Matt LaFleur a play-calling genius against Houston, Jacksonville, and Philadelphia. Where did that go? People want to blame Mariota, but no one was open and the offensive line didn’t protect him. Period. How is he supposed to make plays?
Defense
Malcolm Butler – I was live on Periscope after the Eagles game and said that teams would start to target Butler more if he didn’t tighten his game up. Even in a win, he was beat badly by Jordan Matthews. He’s done little to improve his game, and still looks like the weak link on defense. Yet, the Titans backed up the dump truck full of money to his doorstep and unloaded it. I was skeptical of the move then (we just gonna act like Bill Belichick doesn’t know what he’s doing?), and I’m skeptical of it now. Butler has to step up his game or he will continue being a liability for this defense.
Perimeter containment – The Ravens didn’t appear eager to try and run the ball right up the gut, and were smart to do so. For the most part, Jurrell Casey and Austin Johnson led the defensive line to a decent enough performance in run support. So, the Ravens instead tried to take the ball to the edge and make plays in space. It worked. Buck Allen caught a pass at one point, and it didn’t look like there was a Titan within a mile from him.
Michael Crabtree – Six catches for 93 yards and a touchdown. There’s no doubt that Crabtree is a good receiver, but it looked like his polished route running ability did the Titans in more than anything. How do you prepare for polish at the receiver position? Beats the fuck out of me – I’m just a writer, y’all. I’m not a coach.
Pass rush – Completely nonexistent – zero sacks, one quarterback hit, and just three tackles for loss. Where did the threat of pressure go?
3rd down – The Titans defense was awful on third down – if Flacco could muster the strength to snap the ball on third down, the Ravens offense was destined to convert. The Ravens offense was 6/6 on third down to start the game, and by the end of the game, they were 12/17 on third down. That’s not going to cut it.
What do we know about this Titans team?
I have no idea – the teams that the Titans have beaten are 9-9 on the season. Meanwhile, the teams that have beaten them are 10-8. What does that tell you about this team? They can beat mediocre teams. They can lose to mediocre teams. At first, we thought that this was a team that would play up or down to its competition. But now, it just looks kind of like an aimless team.
They hadn’t had any real convincing wins or losses until today. The Titans were a team that just somehow survived or at least hung around late. The team that took the field yesterday looked like a bad football team – one without direction, without discipline, without conviction. That absolutely can’t happen again if this team wants to take the next step and become a legitimate contender in the AFC.
The Ravens are a good team – obviously one of the best in the AFC. So, I don’t want to take too much away from them, but the Titans didn’t do the basic, fundamental things correctly yesterday, and that’s what’s so frustrating about this loss.
The good news? The Jags were rocked yesterday. So, the Titans still find themselves atop the AFC South for now. But, it’s fragile, and the way the Houston Texans have righted their 0-2 start should concern all of us.
Regardless, this is one of the defining moments of this team. This is the fork in the road.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Alabama Crimson Tide football, the WWE, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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