By: Jack Gold
Sunday’s matchup between the Titans and the Jets will be important for the trajectory of both team’s seasons. Can the Titans be a playoff team? Can the Jets contend for a Super Bowl? We will be closer to answers after week two.
Last Time Out
Tennessee Titans
The first and second halves couldn’t have been any more different for the Titans in their 24-17 loss to the Chicago Bears.
They looked like everything you could have hoped for in the first half. After a slow start, the Tennessee offense found their groove in their third drive of the game – an eight-play 79-yard possession that saw four carries for 54 yards from the newest Titan RB Tony Pollard.
A fumble from Chicago kickoff returner Velus Jones set the Titans up for a field goal, and they followed that with another strong drive – 14 plays and 73 yards capped off by a tremendous 17-yard touchdown catch from Chig Okonkwo to put them up 17-0.
The defense was even more impressive, making rookie Caleb Williams look completely lost in his first-ever game. Though they forced zero turnovers all game, they stifled the Chicago offense, allowing only 148 total yards and three field goals, one of which came after a strip sack that put the Bears immediately in range and another following a 67-yard kickoff return.
In the second half, mistakes from the offense and special teams were the Titans downfall.
Following another dominant drive from the defense to start the half, the offense was not able to get anything going and was forced to punt. There, the momentum of the game shifted drastically in the Bears’ favor. A blown blocking assignment led to a punt block and return for a touchdown for the Bears’ Jonathan Owens to make the score 17-10. Just like that, it was a ballgame, and the Titans could feel the pressure of the road environment.
The defense continued to answer the call, but unfortunately, the offense did not respond as needed and produced back-to-back three-and-outs and a strip sack fumble loss in the next three possessions leading to a 17-16 game.
Still, thanks to the herculean effort from the defense, they led in the fourth quarter and just needed to play clean football to give themselves a chance to win. Instead, the worst play of Will Levis’ young career followed – a should-have-been sack turned into a pick-six that gave the Bears a 24-17 lead. From there on, the offense was stifled in their last two drives and the Titans’ collapse was final – a 24-17 loss with zero offensive touchdowns given up.
New York Jets
The Jets faced a similar fate of disappointment, theirs on a much less shameful level – a 32-19 loss to Super Bowl hopeful the San Fransisco 49ers.
Aaron Rodgers’ long-awaited return went reasonably well for a 40-year-old coming off a year of rehab following an Achilles tear. Facing the highly touted 49ers defense, the four-time MVP flashed moments of greatness that we’ve grown accustomed to over his lengthy career but looked shaky other times.
The Jets lived up to the hype in their third drive of the day, a 12-play 70-yard drive that involved all of their stars getting involved. WR Garrett Wilson looked un-guardable, RB Breece Hall looked explosive and Rodgers looked like himself. That drive is the main beacon of hope for this offense. They are capable of being an elite group even though they didn’t consistently do it in their first time out.
As for their defense, they looked shaky for a unit that was considered one of the best in the league coming into the year. The 49ers did whatever they wanted on the ground – most notably, former UDFA and Gallatin, TN native Jordan Mason ran for 147 yards while filling in for the injured Christian McCaffery. It was a shocking display of dominance versus a defensive front that is viewed as one of the best in the league. The Jets will hope that the performance was just a one-off versus one of the best offenses in the league and not a mainstay.
The Matchup
For the Titans, almost all questions lie on the offensive side of the ball. Will Levis did little in week one to encourage those around the organization that he is the long-term answer at QB for this franchise, but the good thing is that it is only week one. The talent is still there and he’s still early enough in his career to be given some benefit of the doubt. His play will make or break this season and beyond for the franchise. If he thrives, the Titans have the quarterback of the future and the draft capital and money to build around him. If he struggles, we may very well be looking at college quarterback prospects this draft season.
It’s not all on Levis though. A lot will be on Brian Callahan in his development helping him learn from his mistakes from week one and early in his career. Callahan will need to live up to his reputation as a QB whisperer for the Titans’ offense to succeed against the stout Jets’ defense.
Ranked as the third-best defensive unit in football this week by Pro Football Network, the Jets defense is littered with stars.
In the secondary, Sauce Gardner is arguably the best corner in the league, but he isn’t all they have. DJ Reed is also above-average and slot corner Michael Carter recently inked a new deal to make him the highest-paid slot corner in the NFL.
The front seven has the same level of star power with pro-bowlers Quinnen Williams, CJ Mosley, Jermaine Johnson and Quincy Williams. It will be a true test for the Titans’ offense. Can Tony Pollard reproduce what he did in the first half, and can Levis get comfortable and find Calvin Ridley and Deandre Hopkins?
On the other side, the Jets will likely be telling as to whether or not the Titans defense is the formidable group we saw on Sunday or if they were just a product of playing a rookie quarterback in his first-ever game.
Aaron Rodgers is clearly the story on that side of the ball. After shaking the rust off last week, all eyes will be on him this Sunday to see if he is still a championship-level gunslinger. L’Jarius Sneed will need to live up to his contract by shutting down Garrett Wilson like he did so many receivers last season with the Chiefs, but Rodgers’ connection with Allen Lazard is no joke either and Chidobe Awuzie will be just as important. Up front, T’Vondre Sweat and Jeffery Simmons will have their hands full with one of the most explosive running backs in the league in Breece Hall.
Things to Watch
Third Down Distance
A large reason for the Titans’ struggles on offense last week revolved around playing from behind on third down. With an average third-down distance of over eight yards, Brian Callahan’s play calling was limited and easily defended. Establishing the run and short passing game on early downs will be vital to set up third-and-manageable situations. If not, the offense will continue to struggle.
Aaron Rodgers
Any normal 40-year-old coming off an Achilles tear would be labeled as finished, washed up, cooked, etc. Luckily for Aaron Rodgers, he is a four-time NFL MVP and arguably the most talented passer of all time.
That being said, he looked human against the 49ers. Playing against one of the best defenses in football in your first full game in 20 months is no easy task, but he looked shaky at times. Sure, his arm talent still popped, especially in his free-play touchdown to Allen Lazard, but his mobility and activation of his lower half when throwing was less than spectacular.
The Titans defensive front will try to make him uncomfortable on Sunday, and if his mobility is a limited as it looked, T’Vondre Sweat, Jeffery Simmons, and Harold Landry could have a day.
Ridley and Levis Connection
Ran Carthon brought in the best receiver on the market this offseason in Cavin Ridley for his ability to create explosive plays. So far throughout camp and week one, Levis and Ridley have been subpar together. Last week, they connected on a 22-yard gain in the second quarter, but the struggles in connecting on explosive plays stood out as they failed on two separate occasions to connect on potential deep touchdowns in which Ridley got open. It’s too early to freak out about the lack of chemistry, but they will need to figure things out before it becomes too late.
Offensive Line Play
After a summer of change and new additions, the Titans offensive line had a lot to prove heading into week one. While the performance was not as catastrophic as it has been at times in years past, the pass protection ranked bottom five in the NFL once again. Some of that can be credited to a strong Bears defensive front and other blame can go to Will Levis’ movement in the pocket and overall presence, but the young O-line is not free of blame. They will need to continue to learn and improve in week two against one of the best defensive lines in the NFL.
DHop’s Playing Time
Deandre Hopkins continued to make history last week with his 929th career reception, he surpassed Antonio Brown (928) for 21st place on the NFL’s all-time receptions list. He also extended his streak of games with one reception to start a career to 163, the third most all time only behind Keyshawn Johnson (167) and Marvin Harrison (190). With one catch on Sunday, he can continue to inch closer to passing Johnson.
The problem is that he only played 17 snaps. Coming off a MCL injury that caused him to miss the majority of training camp, Hopkins opted against surgery and was able to be on the field for week one. His availability will rely on injury maintenance and pain tolerance all year and is something to keep an eye on after he was a vital part of the 2023 passing game. Brian Callahan stated this week that he would be closer to a full workload in week two, but anytime a player is playing through a nagging injury it is a cause for concern.
Titans Run Game vs the Jets Defense
As mentioned earlier, the Jets’ defense was dominated up front in week one. Are they not the group they seemed to be this offseason, or are the 49ers just that dominant in the run game? The latter seems the most likely, but the Titans will try to establish Tony Polard and Tyjae Spears early and often on Sunday.
You have to pick your poison with a defense as talented as the Jets, and the tape so far shows that they can be beat on the ground. On top of that, the Titans were most successful against the Bears when Tony Pollard was rolling. Both the Titans o-line and Jets d-line have a lot to prove this week.
Game Information
Tennessee Titans vs New York Jets
Time: September 15th @ 12:00 PM CDT
Location: Nissan Stadium (Nashville, TN)
TV Broadcast: CBS (WTVF Channel 5 Locally)
TV Broadcast Crew: Ian Eagle, Charles Davis, Evan Washburn
Radio: Titans Radio (104-5 The Zone)
Radio Crew: Mike Keith, Dave McGinnis, Ramon Foster, Rhett Bryan, Amie Wells
Referee: Alan Eck
Line: Jets -3.5 (-110)
Over/Under: 40.5 (-110/-110)
