Vince Young played well last season as he took a poor football team and put it on his shoulders to lead them to an 8-8 record. Still, Vince Young needs to become a better passer because if he doesn’t teams will stack the box with 8 defenders and dare him to throw. It could be hard to do for Young because they let his favorite two receivers to walk in the off season and they replaced them with more young players which will put a ton of pressure on Young. Young played in 15 games (13 starts) as a rookie last season and he completed 184 of 357 passes (51.5%) for 2,199 yards with 12 TD passes and 13 interceptions (66.7 QB Rating). He also carried the football 83 times for 522 yards (6.7 ypc) with 7 TD runs. I think Vince Young will improve in his sophomore season as he has a burning desire to win.

Kerry Collins was the starting QB at the start of last season and he was so bad that the Titans had no choice but to let Vince Young start his career early. Collins played in 4 games (3 starts) and he completed 42 of 90 (46.7%) of his passes for 549 yards with 1 TD pass and 6 interceptions (42.3 QB Rating). Not to make excuses for Collins but the Titans didn’t have any kind of a running game until after he was on the bench when they started Travis Henry at RB. Still, Collins looks like he doesn’t have many bullets left in the gun and that’s why the Titans have brought in Tim Rattay to battle him for the #2 job. Collins has played in 156 games (148 starts) in his NFL career, and he has completed 2,868 of 5,172 passes (55.5%) for 34,186 yards with 174 TD passes and 172 interceptions (73.2 QB Rating). He also has carried the football 323 times for 625 yards (1.9 ypc) with 9 TD runs.

I look for Tim Rattay to put up a good fight with Kerry Collins for the #2 QB job on the Titans. He’s been efficient everywhere he has played in the NFL and last season was no different. He played in the last few games for the Buccaneers and he helped bring their offense to life. Rattay played in 4 games (2 starts) last season and he completed 61 for 101 passes (60.4%) for 748 yards with 4 TD passes and 2 interceptions (88.2 QB Rating). He also carried the football 4 times for 3 yards (0.8 ypc). Rattay doesn’t have great arm strength but he almost always seems to get the ball to the right guys. He has played in 36 games (18 starts) in his NFL career and he’s completed 417 of 687 (60.7%) passes for 4,689 yards with 28 TD passes and 20 interceptions (82.6 QB Rating). He also has carried the football 43 times for 72 yards (1.7 ypc).

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The Titans took a chance on Mike Otto who was a 4-year starter at Purdue. It’s hard to see how he will fit in with the run-first offense of the Titans because he’s a much better pass blocker than he is a run blocker. He isn’t especially fast or strong despite being 6’5″, 319 pounds. He likely will have to move to guard if he’s going to make it in the NFL because speed rushers would abuse him on there way to Vince Young. He has the look of a practice squad player.

Ryan Smith is a little playmaker. He is only 5’10″, 168 pounds but he runs a 4.42 40. His blazing speed is often an asset in running with WRs, but his size often hurts him when going for a jump ball. He’s a willing tackler in the running game but he often gets pushed around. Smith played in 35 games (32 starts) at Utah and Florida and he made 125 tackles, had 2 sacks, 8 tackles for a loss, 1 fumble recovery, 2 forced fumbles, 10 interceptions and he broke up 17 passes.

The Titans probably drafted Jacob Ford with the idea of converting him into an outside linebacker. He certainly has the physical skills to handle the job as he’s 6’4″, 249 pounds and he runs a 4.62 40. Ford has a couple of big obstacles to overcome as he has never played a game without one hand on the ground. The other big problem will be the jump in competition as he played his college ball at Central Arkansas. In 24 games (all starts) at C.Arkansas, Ford made 102 tackles, 32.5 tackles for a loss, had 17 sacks, forced 10 fumbles, recovered 4 fumbles (1 returned for a TD) and he broke up 9 passes.

Joel Filani is a big target at 6’2″, 213 pounds and he uses that size to his advantage against smaller DBs. But, he will likely be nothing more than a possession receiver in the pros because he’s not that fast (4.67 40). Still, it’s hard to argue with the production that Filani had at Texas Tech. He played in 50 games (29 starts) at Texas Tech and he caught 175 passes for 2,667 yards (15.2 avg) with 23 TD grabs. Look for Filani to maybe work his way into the Titans multiple WR packages and he could wind up being a standout special teams player. Filani was a good pick for the Titans.

Antonio Johnson is a much better athlete than he is a football player. Johnson is 6’2″, 305 pounds and he can run a 4.96 40 which is pretty quick for a big guy. The knock on Johnson is that he’s not very smart and the Titans will have to keep the defense simple when he’s on the field. If they can do that, Johnson might be able to help them a little bit on the interior of their defense. He played in 23 games (5 starts) at Mississippi State and he made 36 tackles, 7 tackles for a loss, had 2.5 sacks and forced 2 fumbles.

The Titans needed to put some weapons around Vince Young and Chris Davis might be a good one. Davis is small at 5’10″, 180 pounds but he’s as tough as nails. He’s fearless going over the middle despite his size but he’s not been that much of a downfield threat despite his speed (4.45 40). Davis probably will also help on special teams as he has some experience returning kicks. Davis played in 51 games (26 starts) at Florida State and he caught 137 passes for 1,842 yards (13.4 avg) with 12 TD grabs.Â

The Titans did not feel comfortable going into the season with LenDale White and rookie Chris Henry so they signed Chris Brown. Brown has in the doghouse for much of last season as he only played in 5 games (3 starts) for the Titans. In those 5 games, Brown carried the ball 41 times for 156 yards (3.8 ypc). He also caught 2 passes for 4 yards (2.0 avg). Brown’s biggest problem in his NFL career has been injuries which often occur because of his upright running style which causes him to take some big hits. In 4 seasons with the Titans, Brown has played in 42 games (28 starts) and he has carried the football 541 times for 2,295 yards (4.2 ypc) with 11 TD runs. He also has caught 55 passes for 539 yards (9.8 avg) with 2 TD grabs. This was a smart signing by the Titans as Brown might wind up starting at some point this season.

The Titans have signed Kelly Herndon to a 3-year contract and they expect him to start for them. Herndon played in all 16 games last season for the Seahawks and he made 67 tackles, had 1 interception, defensed 15 passes, forced a fumble and recovered a fumble that he returned 61 yards for a TD. Herndon was just deemed to expensive for the Seahawks but he’ll fit right in on the Titans who needed defensive help. Herndon has played in 73 games in his career and he’s made 259 tackles, has 1 sack, has 9 interceptions, defensed 56 passes, forced 8 fumbles and he has recovered 4 fumbles. This was a good signing by the Titans.

The Titans were ecstatic to see center LeRoy Harris available in the 4th round. He might wind up being the best draft pick the Titans made as he could start at guard or center from Day #1. Harris is 6’2″, 298 pounds and and he knows all the tricks of the trade. He led NC State in pancakes the last 4 years! He played in 43 games and started 42 of them at NC State. Look for the Titans to give him every chance to start as a rookie.