This one was ugly all the way through.
So I’ll be honest, I turned this one off when the Cleveland Browns went up 20-3 because I knew there was no way the Tennessee Titans were going to score a touchdown – much less multiple touchdowns. This was just an old-fashioned butt whoopin’ from start to finish. There is so much blame to go around.
What it ultimately comes down to is that the Titans are going to get destroyed up front when they play teams that have good defensive lines. They were able to score points last week because the Los Angeles Chargers‘ defensive front isn’t very good – especially with Joey Bosa being limited like he was last week.
This week they faced a front that just blasted them all day long. Ryan Tannehill was sacked five times including a devastating one at the end of the first half that kept them from attempting a field goal that would have cut the Browns lead to 10-6. It wouldn’t have mattered, but it was a play that simply cannot happen. Your veteran QB has to feel that pressure and your offensive coordinator has to call a protection that doesn’t put Andre Dillard 1 on 1 against Myles Garrett. Dillard vs. Garrett brought flashbacks of Svitek vs. Watt. #IFYKYK
Defensively they were fine in the first half other than some really stupid penalties that kept drives alive. They were bound to wear down in the second half after they spent the entire day on the field. There are some things that need to be better there, but they didn’t lose this game because of the defense.
Look, it is only week 3. We can look back at multiple games in years where they ended up being good that made you feel like there was no way they were going to be good. To me, this team is what I thought they were heading into the season. They have a solid defense that will keep them in games where their offense is competent. Their offense will be competent against teams that don’t have very good defenses. That will be enough to hang around in the division race and put them out of draft position to get a good quarterback. The cycle will continue.