Jun 23rd 2008 10:32PM by JJ Cooper (author feed)
Filed under: Titans, AFC South, Nashville
One of the big themes of the 2008 Titans season will be how much Tennessee opens up the playbook in Vince Young’s third season.
In his first two seasons, Young has been asked to not make mistakes, make some key third-down conversions and use his legs to move the chains. He only threw 27 passes a game as a rookie, and threw even less, 25 per game, as a second-year pro.
But Young now has 29 starts under his belt, and should be able to take on more responsibility. With that in mind, Young is saying that he hopes to go deep more often in 2008. The big question now is whether Jeff Fisher agrees. According to the Tennessean, new offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger is much more prone to throw the ball downfield than Norm Chow, the coordinator he replaced this offseason. The numbers that run with the story don’t necessarily show that, but the general feeling seems to be that the Titans will aim for more big plays in ‘08.
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Jun 22nd 2008 12:32PM by Michael David Smith (author feed)
Filed under: Titans, NFL Police Blotter, Nashville
Titans defensive end Jevon Kearse has been arrested and charged with driving under the influence, News Channel 5 in Nashville is reporting.
Police said Kearse was speeding and swerving in his car, and that the officer who pulled him over said Kearse had slurred speech, red eyes and the odor of alcohol. He claimed that all he had to drink was a vodka and Red Bull, but he refused a breath test.
Kearse re-signed in March with Tennessee, where he was the NFL’s defensive rookie of the year in 1999, after playing the last five seasons with the Eagles. He has struggled with injuries and ineffectiveness in recent seasons and is expected to be a situational pass rusher this season.
Jun 21st 2008 3:06PM by Ryan Wilson (author feed)
Filed under: Titans, AFC South
The Tennessee Titans LOVE running backs. They’ve used a first- or second-round pick the last three drafts on the position (LenDale White, ‘06; Chris Henry, ‘07; Chris Johnson, ‘08 — Mr. Kige was stupefied no that last one, by the way … I think), and they’re still not done.
J.J. mentioned that Tennessee briefly considered Ron Dayne earlier this offseason, and now, they could again be in the Kevin Jones business. Former Lions running back Kevin Jones, trying to come back from an ACL injury, is scheduled to work out for pro scouts later this month.
The Titans are among the teams interested in Jones, who visited Baptist Sports Park earlier this offseason, but don’t look for them to get in the mix for former Bronco Travis Henry or former Bear Cedric Benson. I think Henry and ‘Adam’ Jones have soured the Titans on knuckleheaded players with skillz. Probably a smart move.
Jones, on the advice of his agent*, says he “feels great” and feels like he is “ready to play right now”. The Titans are looking for depth behind their three young backs, so Tennessee might not be the right situation for the Lions former first-round pick. Ideally, he’d like to get a shot at more playing time, and presumably a starting job. That could happen in Tennessee, I guess, but there are other teams with fewer players on the depth chart between Jones and the field.
But who knows, maybe the Titans will move Johnson to wideout and Jones can share touches with White and Henry.
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Aug 10th 2008 10:34AM by JJ Cooper (author feed)
Filed under: Titans, AFC South
It’s hard to imagine how Chris Johnson could have had a better preseason debut.
The Titans first-round pick showed off his blazing speed (the run is at the 1:30 mark in the highlights) with a 66-yard touchdown run that was shocking for how quick he was. While we all knew that Johnson was fast, the reality is that everyone in the NFL is fast, so to see Johnson leaving the entire Rams secondary in the dust is a very encouraging sign.
Johnson was the star of the NFL combine with a 4.24 40-yard dash (the fastest time of anyone there). There are no concerns about whether he can maintain that speed when he put on the pads, as we saw on Saturday. He needed only to make one man miss, and he was able to bust a run straight through the middle of the defense. Heck, he didn’t even need a block from any of the wide receivers, he just outran everyone. What was most impressive was his acceleration. While everyone chasing him was working up to speed, Johnson shifted into high gear before he was through the line of scrimmage.
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