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Youth Customized Tennessee Titans Jerseys , Buffalo happened.The Titans lost a winnable road game due the offensive system over-reliance on roster bubble talent at the receiver position accompanied by a failure to have a concrete identity.It’s fixable, but will take some reshaping of the current roster.Counting on Practice Squad PlayersI’ll admit it - I was sold on Nick Williams during the preseason and had hoped the team kept in on the final 53 heading into week one. Had it not been for an injury, it’s likely Williams would have made the team.When Williams was brought back into the fold following Rishard Matthews unexpected divorce, I was in the camp that believed he could be a valuable asset in the right situations. Williams had a few nice returns, but his memory with the team will be centered around running incomplete routes and THE drop that lost the game against the Bills. However, the Titans relying on Williams in a critical situation is the real problem - and is a problem the team must correct sooner than later. Williams and Darius Jennings both had moments where they flashed, but the body of work is reflective of players lucky to make an NFL roster. The Titans - after losing Matthews and Delanie Walker - are now in the position where they HAVE to make a move. Patience is not a virtue in this situation. All of the “Big Name” Free Agent receivers have found a home - with the exception of Dez Bryant. The Titans are likely not in on Bryant - as are most teams - but if Jon Robinson can’t facilitate a trade for a proven receiver, Bryant has to at least be brought in to test the fit.There are some third or fourth round receivers on other teams that are buried under depth charts with more talent at the position. The Titans must explore those avenues.Mariota and DavisChalk it up as a bad game, but the truth of the matter is that defenses will now aim to eliminate Corey Davis from the offensive game plan. Without another true threat at either the tight end or receiver position, Marcus Mariota will be forced to rely on some talent that has been unreliable. Yes
www.titansauthorizedshops.com , Taywan Taylor has made a few flashy plays - but he has also dropped some big plays and has at times looked confused as to which route he should/shouldn’t run. Jonnu Smith hasn’t come close to filling in some of the void left by Walker and the fact that Mariota chose to throw to Williams as opposed to Smith speaks volumes of where their trust level is.Mariota and Davis showed the ability to thrive on downfield connections. However, those will be minimal moving forward with teams focused on shutting Davis down. With the running game stagnant, the Titans offense isn’t striking fear into any defense. The Bills showed other teams how to stop the Titans offense. The Titans need to figure out how to become a feared offense. Part of that means having players that can win one-on-one match ups. Another part is having an effective ground game. The biggest part is finding out what the identity of the team truly is.Who Are the Titans?OC Matt LaFleur has an idea of what he wants this team to be. However, overcoming the personnel available has reared it’s ugly head time and time again. So many points have been left of the field week to week. This can’t happen. Juggling the workload between Derrick Henry and Dion Lewis has created an offense that fails to find a rhythm. If the running backs can’t get it going on the ground, the one dimensional passing offense won’t work - especially if the receivers continue to drop catchable balls.Henry looked better in Buffalo. He remains a volume back that gets better the more he touches the ball. The problem is the offense isn’t explosive enough through the air to make it easier to give Henry more carries. LaFleur has overcome personnel issues over the last five weeks - but it’s slowly hindering the development of his offensive system - thus preventing any kind of identity from being establish.The Titans have to fix this. I’m not pounding the table for Bryant to be signed - but having Bryant lined up in the red zone offense could create opportunity for Davis, Taylor and the other wide outs. Either way - the Titans needs somebody.The “somebody” this team needs isn’t a practice squad player on our team or another. It’s somebody that has been in big time games, been apart of big time moments and whose body of work doesn’t include a laundry list of teams they’ve been cut from before the season starts.
A proven pass catcher (or two) will help right the ship. If fans would have been told the Titans 2018 offense would be without Delanie Walker and Rishard Matthews, what would the reaction have been?Some may have balked. Some might have rolled their eyes and scoffed. Some may have curled up in the fetal position and looked onward towards the 2019 season.But not this Titans team. HC Mike Vrabel, OC Matt LaFleur and DC Dean Pees have gained the trust of the fan base after earning back to back division wins against the Texans and Jaguars. The coaching staff adjusted to the personnel available and secured an early lead in the race for the AFC South Crown.How can this team continue to improve if players - injury or otherwise - continue to have an impact on what the roster looks like week to week? What they’ve already done - adapt and react.Building TrustMarcus Mariota entered the game following the Malik Jackson K.O. of Blaine Gabbert and performed better than many expected. Maybe the better answer is he performed better than we were led on to believe he would.Mariota’s leaned on his legs and savvy to pick up yards and keep the Jaguars defense off balance. He also made a few plays with his arm. Taking the reins of a new offense with second year weapons at his disposal, Mariota made it work. He didn’t set the world on fire - but he did make plays when he needed to and was efficient in establishing clock-chewing drives that helped win a football game on the road against a tough division opponent.Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY SportsThe Titans host Philly Sunday
Tennessee Titans Womens T-Shirt , and Mariota no longer has Matthews on the roster. However, Matthews was essentially a non-factor outside of filling in as a returner up until this point of the season.Mariota has already praised and given respect to his receiving group. He has also expressed confidence in the young pass catchers to get the job done. The trust building will really be set into motion Sunday.Davis the Leader of the PackCorey Davis has shown flashes of what he can do in this offense. His counterpart, Taywan Taylor has also shown what he is capable of doing if he can get on the field in some capacity. Davis and Taylor have combined for 20 receptions and 213 yards with the only touchdown belonging to the latter. That figure is something one would expect one receiver to have three games into the season - not two.However, it’s important to understand the context. The quarterback situation has been streaky over the first three weeks. Factor in the difference in personnel across the offensive line and you have some offensive hiccups that are difficult to work through. Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY SportsThe receivers will head into the game against the Eagles hungrier than ever before because they now know with Matthews gone, their time is now.Both Davis and Taylor should benefit from the offensive line stabilizing with the likely return of Jack Conklin. It should provide Mariota with a little more time in the pocket to feed the receivers the targets they need to advance their game.Catching the ball is critical. Taylor could already be at two touchdowns for the season as he dropped a dime from Mariota. Davis could’ve had a touchdown in the opener had Mariota seen him in time. But that’s the past, this team is zeroed in on the future.With laser focus in knocking off the defending Super Bowl Champions, the future is now.The future is Davis and Taylor.
