2012 Tennessee Titans Discussion!

[CashmoneyDrew]

Locker is our starter for the season opener according to Jim Wyatt.

[The Alex]

**** yeah.

[TitansCJftw]

Awww Yaaaa

[Bobo]

Might as well start Locker. This team is rebuilding somewhat, we're fairly young in many positions. I don't see a SB this year, I see the team growing around what is hopefully a franchise QB. I can see Hasslebeck maybe giving is a better shot at winning now, but I understand looking more long term. I'm glad they think enough of Jake rigt now to make this decision.

Now we need to hope Britt isn't gone for too long and CJ looks like that 2K guy again. Make the transition to starter easier on Jake.

[MicktheGreat]

I like the move to Jake Locker. He's obviously got some flaws that he needs to continue to work on -- particularly, his accuracy and his decision-making. [He's had some really wild throws this preseason and also some throws that should have been intercepted but weren't.] But Locker also has obvious skills that make this offense much more difficult to gameplan for. Plus, he's clearly the franchise's hope at QB for the next few years (and beyond?), so why not give him the shot to start learning on the job?

The schedule is pretty rough this year, as everyone knows -- especially in the first half. So it wouldn't shock me to see us finish with a worse win-loss than last season; but I hope that the fans will be patient with Locker, as I think that he's going to be a good one if we give him some time. Between our LB core, our talented DTs, our good WR crew, etc., I'm very excited about the future of this team.

[MicktheGreat]

Now that we've completed half our preseason games, here's my current prediction of who is on the 53-man opening day roster. I've also included some rationale behind the selections -- though this will obviously change over the next couple games. Any thoughts? Any players that you'd add/cut?

QB:
1. Jake Locker
2. Matt Hasselbeck
3. Rusty Smith
THOUGHTS: Since the end of the Peyton-saga, everyone's known that Locker and Hasselbeck would be our QBs in some order. But now that the coaches have named Locker the official starter, things are coming into focus. Prior to the preseason, I thought Rusty was on the fence, as fewer teams are keeping three QBs. But he's played very well this preseason, and he looks like a legit #2 QB (possibly as early as next season?).

RB:
1. Chris Johnson
2. Javon Ringer
3. Darius Reynaud
4. Jamie Harper
THOUGHTS: Surprisingly, I think the Titans keep 4 RBs for the start of the season. CJ has looked better this offseason, and Ringer's a solid backup and our most-consistent receiving RB. Reynaud's exceptional play so far has made him nearly impossible to cut, lest we repeat the LaGarrette Blount debacle from a couple years ago. Harper looked better against the Bucs (he had a big reception called back for holding); but he still needs to utilize his size better and with more north-south running. I think Harper squeaks in, but he might get cut early on in the season if injuries pile-up elsewhere.

FB:
1. Quinn Johnson
THOUGHTS: I'm not a big fan of Quinn, but the coaches seem to like him; and he hasn't been as hampered by injuries as his main competition, rookie Collin Mooney. There's some talk of trying to convert Harper to the FB role, but I'll believe that when I see it. Quinn makes it by default.

WR:
1. Kenny Britt
2. Nate Washington
3. Kendall Wright
4. Damien Williams
5. Lavelle Hawkins
6. Marc Mariani
THOUGHTS: Britt's likely to miss the first few games for his DUI, but I'm still very excited about our WR-corp this year. Washington, Wright, and Williams make an underrated tandem. Hawkins is solid depth, and Mariani looks better at receiving this offseason (and is obviously a good returner). This is arguably the best WR group we've ever had.

TE:
1. Craig Stevens
2. Jared Cook
3. Taylor Thompson
THOUGHTS: Stevens is our "starter" because he can block, which will allow us to run our base-formation; but I think Cook will obviously play a big role on this offense and may even acquire more snaps than Stevens. So far, I haven't been impressed with Thompson (he dropped an easy TD pass in the Bucs game), but he's got crazy measurable and is re-learning the position. There's no way that he'd make it to our PS, so we'll have to keep him.

OT:
1. Michael Roos
2. David Stewart
3. Mike Otto
THOUGHTS: Roos and Stewart are the anchors of our OL. Otto is still recovering from his dislocated finger, but he's our best backup OL and will likely be back early in the season. Easy to predict this one.

OG:
1. Steve Hutchinson
2. Leroy Harris
3. Troy Kropog
THOUGHTS: Hutchinson and Harris are definitely the OG starters. There's some competition for that backup OG spot among a few players, but I think that Kropog will ultimately win it because he's the most versatile of those potential backups, with his ability to play OG and OT. Our team loves versatile OL so that's the deciding factor here.

C:
1. Fernando Velasco
2. Kevin Matthews
THOUGHTS: I was so glad to see Velasco "win" the starting C job -- though I don't think it's entirely set in stone. Not only has he paid his dues with the Titans for some time, I think he's just a better player than Matthews. I've been impressed with what Velasco has done in the past in spot-duty, and I'm excited to see what he can do in a full-time position. Matthews seems like a good backup for us -- not immensely talented physically but smart, which is important for the C position.

DE:
1. Kamerion Wimbley
2. Derrick Morgan
3. Pannel Egboh
4. Dave Ball
5. Leger Douzable
THOUGHTS:: Wimbley was one of our biggest signings this offseason, so he's definitely starting. The Morgan-Egboh battle has been interesting to watch. Morgan looked better at the end of last season, but he's hasn't looked as consistent this offseason. Egboh has really intriguing size and has looked better than Morgan, at least to me. I've got Dave Ball penciled in as one of our backup DEs. Honestly, I hope he retires because of all the concussion issues that he's had recently; but, until that happens, he's penciled in as one of our primary backups because of his leadership and pass-rushing skills. I think Douzable wins the last DE spot because of his versatility in playing both DE and DT in certain situations. That's a nice luxury to have in a depth guy.

DT:
1. Jurrell Casey
2. SenDerrick Marks
3. Karl Klug
4. Mike Martin
5. Zach Clayton
THOUGHTS: Casey is a stud in the making, and I love Klug's ability to rush the passer. Marks has looked better lately -- both at the end of last season and in this preseason. Right now, he's the "starter" alongside Casey, but I wouldn't be surprised if Martin wins that job at some point, probably sooner rather than later. Lastly, Clayton is like a poor man's Klug: tons of effort and some DT/DE versatility, which our coaches love. Great depth guy.

OLB:
1. Akeem Ayers
2. Will Witherspoon
3. Zach Brown
4. Patrick Bailey
THOUGHTS: Ayers is our starting strongside OLB, and I hope that he'll have his hand in the dirt more often this season. Witherspoon is likely our "starter" at weakside OLB; but we'll see a whole lot of Brown -- especially in passing situations and against teams with good receiving TEs. Honestly, I've been very pleasantly surprised with Brown in the preseason. You can tell that he's very fast and he's making tackles too. As I said, he'll likely be the backup to begin the year, but I expect him to become the start by season's end. There will be some things to think about between that last OLB spot, between Bailey and Zac Diles. I think that Diles is probably the better LB of the two; however, Bailey is the superior special-teams player and is one of the best special-teamers that we have, which will help him win the last spot.

MLB:
1. Colin McCarthy
2. Tim Shaw
THOUGHTS: McCarthy has looked like a beast this preseason. He's been everywhere and seems to be in on every tackle. I'm excited about our LB-corp next year with Ayers, McCarthy, and Brown -- which could eventually be one of the best in the NFL. Shaw is a very good special-teamer and not a bad backup LB either, so he should safely make the roster.

CB:
1. Jason McCourty
2. Alterraun Verner
3. Tommie Campbell
4. Chris Hawkins
5. Coty Sensabaugh
THOUGHTS: McCourty and Verner have locked-up the top two spots. Campbell has looked (mostly) good this offseason, and he'll play a lot for us. When Campbell's in the game, we'll probably see Verner slide over to the slot-CB spot that Finnegan used to work. I've been impressed by Hawkins, who seems like a solid (albeit unspectacular) CB that can be trusted to stick to his assignment. Ryan Mouton has supposedly had a good offseason, but I think that Sensabaugh (give his talent and midround draft-spot) earns the final spot over him. Mouton will catch on somewhere else though.

FS:
1. Michael Griffin
2. Aaron Francisco
THOUGHTS: Griffin got a good deal this offseason, so he'll need to step up. From what I've heard, Jerry Gray wants Griffin to be more of a center-fielder this year, which seems to suit his skill-set. Since Markelle Martin is hurt and likely to begin the year on the PUP, I think Francisco gets this backup spot because he can contribute on special teams. But he's a candidate to get cut, if injuries happen elsewhere.

SS:
1. Robert Johnson
2. Jordan Babineaux
THOUGHTS: Johnson's looked good so far. He's finally healthy, and he's laid the lumber a few times in the preseason games. More importantly, he seems to have earned Jerry Gray's trust. With Babineaux banged up, I think that Johnson wins the starting gig -- though Babineaux will likely get significant playing time this year as well, as he's a solid contributor.

ST:
1. K Rob Bironas
2. P Brett Kern
3. LS Beau Brinkley
THOUGHTS: Bironas and Kern are locks at their respective positions. Brinkley is replacing long-time LS Ken Amato. There was a mistake in the first preseason game involving a FG; however, the coaches said that it wasn't a result of Brinkley's snap. Apparently, he was a very good LS at Missouri, so that will hopefully result in some good special-teams play for us.

PUP/IR:
1. FS/SS Markelle Martin (PUP)
2. C Eugene Amano (IR)
3. LB Gerald McRath (IR)
THOUGHTS: Martin's got tons of talent and is versatile enough to play either FS or SS in the NFL, depending on the scheme. But he hasn't been able to get healthy this offseason. He'll likely start the season on the PUP. Amano and McRath both suffered season-ending injuries, which actually works out nicely for them as they were both candidates for cutting. They'll both be playing elsewhere next season.

PS:
1. RB/FB Collin Mooney
2. WR Michael Preston
3. TE Cameron Graham
4. OT Byron Stingily
5. C William Vlachos
6. DE Scott Solomon
7. DT DaJohn Harris
8. CB/S Christian Scott
THOUGHTS: Mooney is a RB/FB hybrid who's been banged up for much of this offseason. The Titans like to keep a RB on the practice-squad, so I think he's their guy this season. Preston, Graham, and Stingily have impressive measurables, so they seem like prime PS candidates. Vlachos makes the PS because of the relative rarity of good C players and because of our own uncertainty at the position. Solomon and Harris would both make excellent PS players -- Solomon has a non-stop motor (he seems like Dave Ball, version 2.0 to me) and Harris has lots of talent (though he also has some lingering health-concerns). With all the injuries that we've had at CB and S in recent years, Scott's versatility might earn him a spot on the PS.

[CashmoneyDrew]

Excellent write-up Mick. Can't say I really disagree with anything of note.

The main difference I have is Mouton as bad as I hate to say it. I have a feeling the coaches will keep him as for some reason they've always had a strange fascination with him (both regimes) since he's been here. And this offseason has been no different as the coaches and even the media keep talking about how well he's played this offseason so far. They'll then probably try and put Sensabaugh on the practice squad.

[Complex]

I doubt we keep 4 RB's and 6 WR's. I think Mooney wins the job over Quinn but other than that I agree. Hopefully we get rid of Mouton.

[MicktheGreat]

Originally Posted by CashmoneyDrew

Excellent write-up Mick. Can't say I really disagree with anything of note.

The main difference I have is Mouton as bad as I hate to say it. I have a feeling the coaches will keep him as for some reason they've always had a strange fascination with him (both regimes) since he's been here. And this offseason has been no different as the coaches and even the media keep talking about how well he's played this offseason so far. They'll then probably try and put Sensabaugh on the practice squad.

I totally agree about Mouton. I'm not a big Mouton fan -- though maybe I'm just being stubborn about that terrible Jets game he had like 2-3 years ago. But the coaches are always raving about the guy, it seems. Because of that, he's a very difficult player to predict.

[MicktheGreat]

Originally Posted by Complex

I doubt we keep 4 RB's and 6 WR's. I think Mooney wins the job over Quinn but other than that I agree. Hopefully we get rid of Mouton.

There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that we keep 6 WRs -- especially given the uncertainty surrounding Britt to start the season.

As far as the 4 RBs, it's certainly unusual; but we've done it before. (A few years ago, we kept Quinton Ganther as our 4th QB after his monster games in the preseason -- quite similar to Reynaud's preseason actually.) I think a lot of it depends on the coaches' feelings about Jamie Harper. He has some talent and they may want to invest another year in him since he was a mid-rounder. Or they may feel like he'll never become that short-yardage contributor that they once imagined. Or they may decide that Reynaud is disposable despite his promising play this offseason. It's really difficult to predict. To me, Reynaud just looks like the better RB to me -- he seems to have better vision, he's got more shiftiness, and he can play special-teams.

[SolidGold]

Shaun Smith was cut

[MicktheGreat]

Originally Posted by SolidGold

Shaun Smith was cut

Well...we knew going into this offseason that either Smith or Marks was likely going to get cut. Smith really did seem to re-dedicate himself this offseason -- as he lost about 35 lbs and also apparently toned-down his attitude a LOT. But it never really translated into any improved performance on the field.

Marks, on the other hand, has steadily/quietly improved, starting at the end of last season. He's still not great; but he's looked solid, and I'll take "solid" over "bust" any day. Since this is the final year of his contract, I think Marks makes the team now; but I still believe that Martin will eventually supplant him as the starter opposite Casey.

Honestly...I'm excited about our DT-corp right now with Casey, Marks, Klug, and Martin. Plus, you've also got some decent DT/DE hybrid depth with guys like Clayton and Douzable. This is a pretty good (and young!) group that should only improve with more experience. Now if we could only get our DE situation figured out...

[Pit Bull #53]

I've been pleasantly surprised with Marks. It's easy to forget that he's only 25 years old and was viewed as needing some strength/endurance development coming out of college. It appears we wrote him off too early, as the coaches have clearly always seen something in him with the PT he's gotten. Having Casey next to him blowing up blocks has gotta help as well.

[CashmoneyDrew]

One of my good friends that works for 104.5 here actually got to interview Marks a couple of days ago. He was nervous cause it was his first Titan interview but apparently Marks was a really cool dude.

Cool story broseph.

[Bobo]

Originally Posted by CashmoneyDrew

One of my good friends that works for 104.5 here actually got to interview Marks a couple of days ago. He was nervous cause it was his first Titan interview but apparently Marks was a really cool dude.

Cool story broseph.

Is there a transcript to that interview broseph?

[The Alex]

Originally Posted by MicktheGreat

This is arguably the best WR group we've ever had.

I could not agree more. After dealing with ****ing garbage like Roydell Williams and Brandon Jones as starting talents, I am so relieved to have what the team has put together for this season.

[The Alex]

Originally Posted by TitansCJftw

Awww Yaaaa

Still pictures are things of the past.

[Complex]

Originally Posted by The Alex

I could not agree more. After dealing with ****ing garbage like Roydell Williams and Brandon Jones as starting talents, I am so relieved to have what the team has put together for this season.

Jeff Fisher is doing that in St. Louis. He didn't go after big names WR's to help Bradford instead he is going after diamonds in the rough in the mid and late rounds.

[The Alex]

Originally Posted by Complex

Jeff Fisher is doing that in St. Louis. He didn't go after big names WR's to help Bradford instead he is going after diamonds in the rough in the mid and late rounds.

Yeah that **** worked wonders for VY didn't it?

[Complex]

Originally Posted by The Alex

Yeah that **** worked wonders for VY didn't it?

One day he will find another Derrick Mason and Drew Bennett!!

[scottyboy]

you're welcome.

love you guys <3

[CashmoneyDrew]

So apparently Mariani's bone popped through his skin. All compound like. I'm getting the heebie jeebies just typing about it.

[TitansCJftw]

Originally Posted by The Alex

Still pictures are things of the past.

such a quality contribution thanks for the lesson

[The Alex]

Originally Posted by CashmoneyDrew

So apparently Mariani's bone popped through his skin. All compound like. I'm getting the heebie jeebies just typing about it.

That's just brutal beyond words.

[MicktheGreat]

Wow...that Mariani injury looked bad...REAL bad...like career-ending bad. Hopefully, that's not the case -- because he's a young guy with some talent -- but that was definitely one of the worst injuries that I've ever seen in a game.

If there's a silver-lining in this injury (for Titans fans), it's that Darius Reynaud should definitely make the team now, as he's our KR/PR by default. That might also mean the end of Jamie Harper's tenure here because we've got to make room for another WR. No way that we enter the season with only four WRs -- as Britt's status is still up in the air. (Probably means Michael Preston makes it or we bring in a cheap veteran after the cuts.)