The Titans won the football game last night but they didn’t really play that well especially on defense where they gave up 380 yards.  The Titans won the game on a last second field goal by John Vaughn covering 33 yards.  Fullback Ahmard Hall also had a huge play in this game on special teams when he scored a TD by recovering a Johnnie Lee Higgins’ fumble in the end zone. 

Vince Young was terrible last night as he couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn.  He completed only 4 of 13 passes for only 37 yards last night.  Kerry Collins was just a tad better than Young completing only 4 of 15 passes for 109 yards with a 51-yard TD strike to rookie Lavelle Hawkins.  Third stringer Ingle Martin led the Titans on the game winning drive last night as he was 6 of 11 for 103 yards.  Rookie RB Charles Johnson looked special again last night leading the Titans’ in rushing with 46 yards on 8 carries (5.8 ypc).  LenDale White also looked pretty good last night rushing for 39 yards on 8 carries (4.9 ypc).  Chris Henry pitched in with 28 yards rushing on 5 carries (5.6 ypc) last night.  Rookie WR Lavelle Hawkins had a good game with 2 grabs for 70 yards (35.0 avg) including a 51-yard TD reception.  Biren Ealy pitched in with 3 catches for 50 yards (16.7 avg) and TE Bo Scaife caught 3 passes for 40 yards (13.3 avg).  The Titans finished up with 140 yards rushing on 26 carries (5.4 ypc) and they also completed 14 of 39 passes for 228 yards.

The Titans’ defense did not look good last night despite only giving up 16 points.  Linebacker Stanford Keglar led the way for the Titans last night with 8 tackles and a fumble recovery.  Linebacker Stephen Tulloch and safety Vincent Fuller each pitched in with 7 tackles apiece.  The Raiders finished up with 224 yards rushing on 37 carries (6.1 ypc) last night.  They also completed 17 of 28 passes for 156 yards.

Somehow Jeff Fisher helped lead the Titans to the playoffs with a 10-6 record despite getting awful play from Vince Young which shows how good of a coach he really is.  Of course, the season ended with a thud with a 17-6 loss at San Diego.  It will be interesting to see if Fisher has any tricks up his sleeve for the 2008 season because he will need some to get the Titans back to the playoffs.  They should have either drafted a legit WR or signed one in free agency but they didn’t so Vince Young will still have no one to throw too….not that he could hit them anyway.  Fisher has now been a head coach in the NFL for 14 seasons and he has compiled a 115-99 record (53.7%) during the regular season and he is 5-5 in the post season in his career.  If Fisher gets the Titans back to the playoffs in 2008 he should get a key to the city from Nashville.

The Tennessee Titans kicked the Rams’ butts up and down the field last Saturday Night.  Vince Young made a brief appearance and he completed 3 of 6 passes for 17 yards and he also carried the ball 1 time for 35 yards.  Kerry Collins got the most playing time of the QBs as he completed 7 of 16 passes for 105 yards.  Ingle Martin finished up the game completing 3 of 4 passes for 39 yards.  The Titans had 6 players rush for at least 33 yards in this game and the player with the most was Quinton Ganther who rushed for 115 yards on 8 carries (14.4 ypc) with 2 TD runs (45 yards, 2 yards).  Chris Johnson was also outstanding in his NFL debut as he carried the ball 6 times for 77 yards (12.8 ypc) with 1 TD run (66 yards).  Chris Henry pitched in with 38 yards rushing on 9 carries (4.2 ypc).  Omar Cuff was also busy with 33 yards on 9 carries (3.7 ypc).  LenDale White started out the game and he rushed the ball 6 times for 33 yards (5.5 ypc).  TE James Petrowski led Titans’ receivers with 43 yards on 2 receptions (21.5 avg).  The Titans finished this game with an amazing 340 yards rushing on 43 carries (7.9 ypc).  They also completed 13 of 26 passes for 155 yards as they held onto the football for a stunning 34:41 in this game!

The Titans’ defense was also impressive on Saturday Night.  CB Eric King (5 tackles) and safety Vincent Fuller (5 tackles, sack) led the way for the defense.  Outside linebacker Keith Bulluck only had 2 tackles on the night but he returned a interception off of Marc Bulger 13 yards for a TD.  The Rams finished up with 76 yards rushing on 20 carries (3.8 ypc).  They also completed 17 of 31 passes for 165 yards against the Titans.  This was a very good all around effort for the Titans in the preseason opener.

With the Titans offense often sputtering in the red zone because of their lack of passing a lot depends on the leg of the kicker.  The good thing for the Titans is that they have one of the best placekickers in the NFL.  The 30-year old Rob Bironas is coming off a great season in 2007 which the Titans hope he can duplicate.  Bironas played in all 16 games for the Titans last season and he made 35 of 39 field goals (89.7%).  Bironas also made all 28 of his extra point attempts.  The Titans can’t afford to leave many points on the field and they won’t because of Bironas’ very strong right leg.  Bironas has now played in 48 games in his NFL career and he has connected on 80 of 96 field goals (83.3%).  He has also nailed 90 of 92 (97.8%) extra points in his career.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  A

The Titans have added Alge Crumpler and Dwayne Blakley from the Falcons which should help improve TE production in 2008.  30-year old Alge Crumpler was Michael Vick’s safety net in Atlanta and he will likely serve the same role for Vince Young in Tennessee.  Crumpler played in 14 games for the Falcons last season and he caught 42 passes for 444 yards (10.6 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Crumpler has the size (6′2″, 262) and a great set of hands to exploit defenses over the middle of the football field and he should have a good year for the Titans in 2008.  Crumpler has now played in 108 games in his NFL career and he has caught 316 passes for 4,212 yards (13.3 avg) with 35 TD grabs.

Bo Scaife has been a solid player for the Titans in his career and he will likely get a lot of playing time as the Titans’ will likely use a ton of 2-TE sets.  Scaife played in all 16 games for the Titans last season and he caught 46 passes for 421 yards (9.2 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Scaife will likely match his 2007 production in 2008 with the Titans.  Scaife has now played in 46 games in his NFL career and he has caught 112 passes for 1,064 yards (9.5 avg) with 5 TD grabs.

28-year old Dwayne Blakley is a great run blocker and that’s when he’ll get most of his playing time.  Blakley played in 12 games with the Falcons last season and he caught 7 passes for 48 yards (6.9 avg).  He won’t catch a lot of passes this season but he will help the running backs get a few extra yards with his blocking this year.  Blakley has now played in 59 games in his NFL career and he has caught 21 passes for 189 yards (9.0 avg) with 1 TD grab.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  B