3 Tennessee TITANS
IN RECENT years the Titans have relied on veteran leadership. Players like linebacker Keith Bulluck, center Kevin Mawae and defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch helped stoke the team in great seasons like 2008, when Tennessee went 13--3, and steadied the squad in uneven years such as '09, in which the Titans rallied from an 0--6 start to finish 8--8.
The question for 2010 is whether Tennessee has any leaders left to lean on after an off-season during which the team's locker-room generals either left voluntarily or were discharged. After 10 years in Nashville, Bulluck signed with the Giants. Mawae, who helped pave the way for the NFL's second-ranked rushing attack in '09, was cut. And Vanden Bosch hit a four-year, $26 million jackpot with Detroit after the Titans refused to engage in a free-agent bidding war.
"People make a lot of ado about the leadership, but I'm not concerned about it," coach Jeff Fisher says. "The guys that left were great, but the guys we have here are still great."
The best of them is running back Chris Johnson, who last season set a league record by racking up 2,509 yards from scrimmage, including 2,006 rushing. After a brief contract dispute over the summer (he wanted to be the NFL's highest-paid player but settled for a $1.25 million raise and will make $4.2 million this year), Johnson returned to the team and set his sights on reaching another league milestone, this one even more difficult than last year's. "I'm shooting for 2,500 [rushing yards]," he says, "but I'll be happy with anything over the record [of 2,105, set by Eric Dickerson]."
That was a bold statement, even more so considering that he'll have to do it behind a tweaked offensive line. With the release of Mawae, Eugene Amano slides over from guard to center and backup Leroy Harris steps into Amano's spot. But, as Fisher pointed out at the start of camp, "I'll remind you that last year at this time, when [Johnson] wanted to be the MVP and rush for over 2,000 yards, everybody kind of said, 'Oh yeah, really? We'll see what happens.' It happens."
Johnson will have a better chance of reaching 2,500 yards if Tennessee can develop a downfield passing game to prevent defenses from stacking against the run. Even though he led the Titans to an 8--2 record after returning to the starting lineup midway through 2009, quarterback Vince Young remains the object of much scrutiny. But, according to Fisher and offensive coordinator Mike Heimerdinger, Young was a hit in the off-season (as well as in a Dallas strip club in which he got into a minor scuffle in June), which they believe portends good things this fall for the fifth-year quarterback.
"I believe we have surrounded him with the best skill players to date that he's been on the field with," Fisher says. "That simply will help in his improvement. He has room to improve, but again I think with what he was able to accomplish this off-season, all the signs are there for him to have a great year."
One of those ascending skill players around Young is receiver Kenny Britt. After a breakout 2009 rookie season in which he led the team in receiving yards (701) and made a pinballing, game-winning catch against Arizona in Week 12 to keep Tennessee in the playoff hunt, Britt returned to Nashville for spring workouts out of shape. Hamstring and knee injuries reduced him to mostly an observer in practices. A bruised confidence contributed to dropped passes, allowing Nate Washington and Lavelle Hawkins to steal reps from Britt.
"When I'm not focused on the field, I'm gonna have some drops," says Britt. "I want to be the guy who makes his quarterback look good regardless. If he throws a bad pass, I want people saying I didn't get to it. It was my fault."
By the summer Britt was ready to challenge Washington and Justin Gage for a starting job. He rededicated himself to his fitness, with an emphasis on increasing his endurance. "A lot of times [last year] I needed an IV or a muscle relaxer just to keep going at 100 percent," he says. "What I want to do this year is start out the first game going all four quarters without stopping."
Britt is growing up, and so are many of the Titans. It's good timing because this season, they'll need to.
PROJECTED STARTERS
WITH 2009 STATS
COACH JEFF FISHER
OFFENSE
2009 Rank: 12
QB VINCE YOUNG
G 12
ATT 259
COMP 152
PCT 58.7
YARDS 1,879
TD 10
INT 7
RATING 82.8
RB CHRIS JOHNSON
G 16
ATT 358
YARDS 2,006
AVG 5.6
REC 50
YARDS 503
AVG 10.1
TTD 16
FB AHMARD HALL
G 16
ATT 1
YARDS 5
AVG 5.0
REC 12
YARDS 79
AVG 6.6
TTD 0
WR KENNY BRITT
G 16
REC 42
YARDS 701
TTD 3
WR JUSTIN GAGE
G 12
REC 28
YARDS 383
TTD 3
TE BO SCAIFE
G 14
REC 45
YARDS 440
TTD 1
LT MICHAEL ROOS
G 16
HT 6'7"
WT 320
LG LEROY HARRIS
G 15
HT 6'3"
WT 302
C EUGENE AMANO
G 16
HT 6'3"
WT 300
RG JAKE SCOTT
G 16
HT 6'5"
WT 292
RT DAVID STEWART
G 15
HT 6'7"
WT 315
DEFENSE
2009 Rank: 28
DE JASON BABIN
G 12
TACKLES 16
SACKS 2½
INT 0
DT JOVAN HAYE
G 15
TACKLES 32
SACKS ½
INT 0
DT JASON JONES
G 7
TACKLES 15
SACKS 4
INT 0
DE JACOB FORD
G 15
TACKLES 22
SACKS 5½
INT 0
LB WILL WITHERSPOON
G 11
TACKLES 59
SACKS 1
INT 1
LB STEPHEN TULLOCH
G 16
TACKLES 121
SACKS 2
INT 0
LB STANFORD KEGLAR
G 12
TACKLES 6
SACKS 0
INT 0
CB JASON MCCOURTY
G 15
TACKLES 29
SACKS 0
INT 0
FS MICHAEL GRIFFIN
G 16
TACKLES 77
SACKS 1
INT 1
SS CHRIS HOPE
G 16
TACKLES 81
SACKS 2
INT 3
CB CORTLAND FINNEGAN
G 13
TACKLES 63
SACKS 0
INT 5
SPECIAL TEAMS
P BRETT KERN
PUNTS 37
AVG 45.0
NET 41.4
K ROB BIRONAS
FG 27--32
XP 37--37
POINTS 118
PR ALVIN PEARMAN
RET 11
AVG 10.2
TD 0
KR KENNY BRITT
RET 8
AVG 21.8
TD 0
New acquisition
TTD: Total touchdowns
2010 SCHEDULE
2009 Record: 8--8
September
12 Oakland
19 Pittsburgh
26 at N.Y. Giants
October
3 Denver
10 at Dallas
18 at Jacksonville (M)
24 Philadelphia
31 at San Diego
November
7 BYE
14 at Miami
21 Washington
28 at Houston
December
5 Jacksonville
9 Indianapolis (T)
19 Houston
26 at Kansas City
January
2 at Indianapolis
(M) Monday (T) Thursday
SCHEDULE STRENGTH
NFL Rank: T1
Opponents' 2009 winning percentage: .547
Games against 2009 playoff teams: 5
ANALYSIS
The Titans should avoid repeating last year's slow start—they open at home with the Raiders, then face the Roethlisbergerless Steelers—but their playoff fate will be decided by a string of five divisional opponents in the final six games. If there's a bright side to traveling to Indianapolis in Week 17, it's that the game often has been a throwaway for the Colts.
SPOTLIGHT
Derrick Morgan, Defensive end
THE TITANS didn't expect Morgan to be available to them in last April's draft. An 8--8 record left them with pick No. 16, and the chances of scoring a talent like the rangy 6' 3", 278-pound defensive end at that spot seemed unlikely. But when the Eagles traded up to grab Michigan end Brandon Graham with the 13th selection and the Giants snagged South Florida's Jason Pierre-Paul two picks later, Tennessee knew it had its man.
More so than most other teams, the Titans have a knack for developing fearsome pass rushers. It doesn't matter if they're first-rounders like Jevon Kearse (whom they took 16th overall in 1999) or second-rounders like Kyle Vanden Bosch (35th overall by the Cardinals in 2001). Their latest project is Morgan, who led the ACC in sacks (12½) last season and ended his Georgia Tech career with 30½ tackles for loss. His ability to both rush the passer and stop the run instantly boosts a defense that ranked 31st against the pass and 28th overall in 2009, Chuck Cecil's first season as coordinator.
Though Morgan was slowed by a calf injury in training camp, the Titans' coaching staff believes he has the work ethic and consistency to help fill the pass-rushing void created by the losses of Vanden Bosch (whom the Lions signed in free agency) and Kearse (not re-signed). The focus is on getting Morgan healthy and on the field. "He's got great hands and feet," coach Jeff Fisher says. "Working with [defensive line coach Jim Washburn], he's going to get significantly better."
In short, Morgan has the makings of another Titans success story.
PHOTO
BILL FRAKES
MIND MATTERS Britt has the tools to be an elite receiver if he keeps his head right.
PHOTO
DONNJONESPHOTOGRAPHY.COM/TITANS