If you watched the Titans - Colts game last night, you would have seen the two-headed monster that is the Tennessee Titans.
In the first half they looked great, they looked like the team that opened the season 3-1 and made it seem like they were bound to make the playoff. Their balanced offensive attack looked amazing. Fitzpatrick was able to make first down after first down, finding Kendall Wright and Delanie Walker open consistently. Then, Chris Johnson finally looked like the back that carried for 2000 yards just a few years ago. Also, their defense only allowed 6 points all half to an offense that saw the field for only 3 snaps through the 1st quarter.
The second half was nothing like that team. The defense struggled to get off the field. They allowed Luck and the Colts offense drive all the way down the field on their first possession. The run game that had totaled 38 yards in the first half was able to get 36 yards on that opening drive. The score was then 17-13. I wasn't too worried at that point because of how good the offense looked. Then, the bad luck of this team came back to bite them. The one inconsistent position on the team ruined the confidence. The newly acquired kick returner, Devon Wylie had a terrible grip on the ball and fumbled it at the 20 yard line. This gave all the confidence to the Colts and Luck took advantage. He ran a 15 yard in for the score to take a 20-17 lead and never looked back.
After that point, the Titans looked half of what they did in the first half. They couldn't run the ball, Johnson ran 9 for 16 after opening 8 for 70. They didn't have anything like the efficient passing game they had earlier and couldn't for the love of them stop Donald Brown. Being a Titans fan, it was hard to watch that game. The one point where I felt we had a chance to make a comeback they were down 23-20 and just regained the ball with 8 minutes left to play. They ran 2 plays for 2 yards and had a 3rd and 8. Fitzpatrick found Wright running a route in front of him and he got tripped up just before the first down. 4th and 1 with 8 minutes left and the defense mightily struggling. Munchak made the decision to punt the ball. This disappointed me. I was really hoping he could finally take a chance and put some confidence in the offense but they rushed off the field and Luck and the Colts got the ball back, only to run 6 minutes off the clock and score a TD putting the game too far out of reach.
I think that this Titans team is a great team, they just can't find consistent play out of their offense and defense. Also, as much as I like Munchak, I believe they need to get a new coach. He doesn't seem to show any enthusiasm to the team and is too conservative in my eyes. Another thing I believe the Titans should do is use Chris Johnson differently. If the Titans don't want to trade him, they are going to need him to start moving the ball. The best way for him to get some yards is to put him in the open field. I think the only way they can do that is if they start using him on screens, tosses, and sometimes as a receiver out on the edge. Another thing they could do is line him up in the slot and cut him loose. If you watch him make moves from the middle of the field, this is where he can break a big play and run for 50 or more yards.
We'll just have to see if they figure out what they're doing in the next few weeks and hopefully string a few wins together. The Titans next play the Raiders at 4pm on Sunday, the 23rd of November.
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