The Tennessee Titans finally got in the win column last Sunday, beating the Indianapolis Colts 26-20 in an AFC South showdown between two struggling teams.
The Colts got out to a 13-0 lead that honestly felt insurmountable at the half, but credit to HC Robert Saleh for keeping his guys locked in as they scored 26 points over the final two quarters to pull off the upset.
There was a lot of things to like in this game, along with plenty of reason to be concerned going forward. With that said, let’s take a look at this week’s positional grades.
QB Grade: D
QB Cam Ward made a handful of plays when the team needed him to, so that’ll keep him from getting an F. But the Titans simply need more from Ward than just 102 passing yards where 50% of his passes thrown short of the sticks, while also ignoring the middle of the field almost completely.
Tennessee desperately needs Ward to start being more aggressive with the ball if they realistically want any chance of turning this season around. Maybe the play calling is ultimately what’s holding him back, or maybe it’s a lack of trust in Ward to push the ball downfield.
Whatever the case may be, the Titans need to see better overall performances out of Ward going forward, or the skepticism and doubt surrounding his long-term future will only get louder with each passing week.
RB Grade: C+
RB Tony Pollard led the way, running the ball 19 times for 76 yards, while RB Tyjae Spears only added one yard on one carry. As far as the former goes, Pollard had a solid outing overall.
It wasn’t anything to write home about, but he was able to help the Titans stay ahead of the chains and pick up first downs when the opportunity presented itself. Unfortunately, Tennessee finished the game with a negative rushing EPA of -0.17, per Pro Football Focus.
Therefore, I think a C is more than fair following a slightly above average (at best) performance from the Titans’ top ball carrier.
WR Grade: B-
Rookie WR Carnell Tate is doing a ton of the heavy lifting on this grade. He made the most of the limited opportunities this passing attack allows, catching six of his eight targets for 70 yards, along with his first career touchdown.
The former Buckeye continues to flash signs of a budding star on the horizon. He finished the game with an overall grade of 87.2, which was the highest offensive grade for either team.
Aside from the rookie, the rest of the receiver room accounted for just 25 yards combined. Partially due to Ward’s inconsistent play, but also due to self inflicted mistakes (drops, bad routes, not reaching landmarks on time, etc.)
The quarterback play undoubtedly needs to be better, but so do the guys around Tate, because right now, this offense is operating with only one consistent weapon at its disposal.
TE Grade: D-
The tight end room continues to be non-existent, especially in the passing game. Neither of the Titans’ four tight ends caught a single pass yesterday.
Again, there weren’t a lot of passes to go around yesterday, and they did occasionally contribute to a couple of nice runs as well, but this group has to start contributing more than they are. Otherwise, it’s a safe bet that Tennessee will be looking to upgrade this position come springtime.
OL Grade: B+
We gotta give this group some credit. They followed up an absolutely horrendous performance a week ago with an all-around strong outing last Sunday. The group upfront created lanes for Pollard to work with throughout the game.
More importantly, they didn’t allow a single sack over 23 pass blocking snaps. LG Peter Skoronski had one of his better games of the year, earning a grade of 74.2 after allowing a pressure rate of just 4.3%.
LT Dan Moore Jr. caught a lot of heat last week, most of it warranted, but that didn’t seem to faze him on Sunday. Moore pitched a shutout over his 23 pass-blocking snaps, allowing zero sacks, hits, pressures, or hurries.
If the Titans can continue to perform like they have most of this season, then this offense will have a puncher’s chance to right the ship as the season unfolds.
DL Grade: A
The Titans’ pass rush completely took this game over in the second half. In total, the group combined for a whopping 24 pressures, with DT Jeffery Simmons (eight), DL John Franklin-Myers (five), Jermaine Johnson (three), and Jacob Martin (two), accounting for 18 of them.
Simmons, in particular, was dominant once again, as evident by his team leading overall grade of 88.7. On top of his eight pressures, the All-Pro defensive tackle recorded six tackles, three run stops, two sacks, two tackles for loss, two QB hits, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.
Simply put: Simmons is playing at a completely different level than the rest of his peers at the moment. As long as that continues, you can expect these grades to continue being rather high.
LB Grade: B
Rookie LB Anthony Hill Jr. continues to flash serious potential. The Texas product totaled nine tackles, three pressures, one tackle for loss, one pass breakup, one run stop, one
LB Cedric Gray also saw an increased workload, playing a total of 38 snaps while LB Cody Barton was on the field for 44 snaps. The trio of Hill, Barton and Gray are an intriguing group that should only get better with the more reps they get together.
CB Grade: B+
The team decided to make CB Alontae Taylor a healthy scratch, and that bold decision certainly paid off.
The trio of CB Cor’Dale Flott (zero yards allowed), Joshua Williams (16 yards allowed), and Marcus Harris (25 yards allowed), combined for just 41 passing yards allowed between the three of them. Flott graded out as the Titans’ second-best defender, earning a grade of 84.7 after his solid performance that saw him reel in an interception.
S Grade: B+
Let’s start by giving S Tony Adams some credit. He stepped in for the absent Kevin Winston Jr. and played admirably, totaling 12 tackles, one QB hit, one tackle for loss, and one pass breakup.
However, S Amani Hooker was the star of this group. The former Hawkeye had a phenomenal outing on Sunday, recording 13 tackles, one pass deflection, and one beautiful interception in the red zone that directly took points off the Colts’ scoreboard.
Hooker nearly had a second interception late in the game that practically mirrored his pick from earlier in the game, but he wasn’t able to get both feet down the second time around.
The Titans’ veteran safety continues to make his presence felt along the backend, and if the pass rush continues to wreak havoc like they did against Indy, then there could be a lot more splash plays in Hooker’s near future.
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