NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In my last post, I wrote about bad teams from last year that have made much bigger strides than the Titans.
Brian Callahan has talked about his faith in the team, and understanding that it entails believing in things people can’t see.
Wednesday he spoke about what he sees beneath the surface that tells him the Titans are improving.
“If you look at some of the markers over the five-game stretch, really since our bye week, where we’ve improved and where we’ve found success – I think we’re seventh in the league in rushing in that time, so that’s an identity that we’ve sort of leaned into and built on,” he said.
“And I think we’ve done things, we’re getting better sort of under the surface. And I know everyone judges on wins and losses but there are a lot of things that are really positive for me as a coach.”
He likes the way guys are approaching their work and the intensity with which they are approaching it and what it’s like inside the Titans’ headquarters. He said all those things are what he hopes they’d be.
“We’ve got to find ways to translate those things to wins and losses,” he said. “But I see a lot of really positive things that no one is going to want to hear when I stand up here but that’s not really my concern, I’m concerned with the guys in the building and where we’re at and I feel really good about that part of it. We just have to keep coming and keep making improvements and trying to find ways to win more games.”
From Will Levis’ perspective, that under-the-surface stuff has come in the form of experience and reps for the offense, even as he missed three of the five games Callahan points to.
“At this point we’ve got a whole lot of concepts that we believe are important for this system for us to be able to for go out there and succeed on Sundays,” he said. “We’re just now getting to the point where we’re kind of checking the boxes on all those different concepts.
“Those few weeks when I wasn’t here I was able to see the progress of the guys in all the rooms kind of getting more comfortable, getting in and out of the huddle with a little more confidence, feeling good about the game plans.”
The Titans offense is of average sophistication, Callahan said earlier in the season, about middle of the pack. So the idea that the team is heading into Week 11 and the quarterback is still talking about box checking and comfort level is a bit disconcerting.
I’d have thought they’d be beyond those things by now, not that there wouldn’t be room for progress and polish.
Are they under-coached? Bad learners? Simply not good enough players?
And I’m not just talking offense now. The recurring problems aren’t just the lack of points, the second half stalls, the sacks in batches, the difficulties with silent counts on the road, but the overall penalties, the inability to influence the opposing quarterback, the lack of takeaways, the red-zone defense, the terrible special teams.
It’s never just one thing.
Callahan called them game-by-game issues.
But Julius Wood can’t fall down and knock down teammates on kick coverage like bowling pins to spring a 56-yard return. Sure it’s unfortunate. I’ve got an adage that is too simple I’m sure. I used to use it when the Titans slipped around the grass at Nissan Stadium all the time: Don’t fall down.
That play helped offset actual good punt coverage.
“So not everything is terrible,” Callahan said. “There’s been improvement, guys have done a better job.”
Justin Hardee and Tre Avery are now grand marshals of a parade for playing as competent gunners.
Callahan also pointed to 10 points on four second-half possessions.
“Things we’ve got to get better at,” he said. “But things that also, I think, we’ve had some improvement in as well.”
Titans fans tend to act as if they are long-suffering like people who root for the Jets, who are about to miss the playoffs for the 14th consecutive year and have a far more stories history of failure. The Titans will miss for the third whole year in a row.
Still, it’s been a miserable time. I don’t discount it.
They are a slightly better brand of bad, and for a bad team that’s not nothing. But those underlying things need to break through the surface and produce tangible results soon.