It was a tough game to watch. To be fair the Titans were in a night game, on the road, in terrible weather conditions, and against a team that had to win to keep from going 0-3.
I think the Offensive line was the absolutely terrible, and not having Taylor Lewan hurts. I agree Mariota didn't seem to play with a sense of urgency. He seems like the guy that wants to make those big throws and has the arm and accuracy to do it... he just doesn't have the time and protection. Under the circumstances with the O-line, he needs to make quicker decisions and that might mean more checkdown passes. I feel bad for the guy honestly, he's shown he can be good but like any QB he can only do so much... he needs that protection to make plays!
I also worry about play calling a bit. I'm not a big fan of DeFilippo as a OC. He was a QB coach and I think as a result he tends to favor more passing than running. Despite the fact that the ground attack was being bottled up by a stacked box, DeFilippo doesn't commit to a balanced game. He's quick to rely on the pass and when the O-line plays like they did last night things don't work out. It's part of the reason the Vikes let him go.
Let's end on a positive... On the plus side, the defense played alright, I agree about the muffed punt. That's not the D's fault. Taylor Lewan will be back in a few weeks, and hopefully your injured guard comes back healthy soon. Adam Humphries had a great game, and seems to keep getting better with each game. Also I do think A.J. Brown looks promising despite last night not being a great showing.
Best of luck next week against the Falcons!
I agree with everything you said honestly, very fair points.
Titans OC Arthur Smith and the offense seem to be having some awkward chemistry, that is pretty certain. Couple of plays miss by an inch, some plays are poorly executed, occasional penalty blah blah blah. All just excuses at the end of the day. Sometimes it is just poor playcalling.
I appreciate the positivity man. I do hope Lewan can help provide something that resembles stability on the o-line, as well as Pamphile whenever he might return. Yes the receiving core as a whole has some nice pieces and potential, just gotta execute and prove what looks nice on paper.
Thanks for the good luck against the Falcons, they'll probably need it. Not totally unwinnable for the Titans but they need to drastically improve. Long week hopefully thats a positive.
Really appreciate the comment!
You're right Arthur Smith is your guy... I totally had Defilippo in my head because he's the OC for the Jags... my bad. Either way, the Titans ended up with something like 40 passing attempts and 20 runs. Two-thirds of the offense attack was passing. It's tough when the opposing defense stacks the box against Henry, but I think you guys need to be more balanced especially when the O-line is giving up so many sacks on your guy Mariota. I hope the Titans get things turned around, there's still plenty of time to do it man!
No biggie lol. Yes it does stink we couldn't be more balanced. I definitely appreciate it, 13 more games to play.
I will keep an eye out for your Vikings this Sunday!