Titans Game Thoughts

[barrett]

Great back against the wall win. We may have lost the season with an 0-2 start.

I still think a 4-3 SLB is not worth a 1st round pick on principal, but perhaps if your team is extremely soft and can't stand up physically at the point of attack like we are, then I can see it. We finally stood up to a team physically today after getting bullied for years.

Either way Cushing played very well and added a lot to our run defense. Now if our 2nd level could make a tackle on occasion when a runner gets through the 1st line of defense.

Cushing and the rest of the team also played the screen passes very well.

In general I think we will kept getting burned by big plays defensively. We don't have the talent to take chances unless we are willing to give up big ones.

Mario can be a top DE by simply lining up and pushing the OT into the QB's lap. His physical tools are amazing.


Our play calling was finally aggressive and we went down field like we should. We have too many talented skill guys to throw all underneath routes. And I love the first down PA on the goal line to OD.

It was great to see Jacoby Jones used in the passing game. He still has no hands, but he is a weapon. He needs to be given a chance to make a big play on offense a handful of times per game. He is especially dangerous opposite of AJ.

Slaton now has 3 fumbles in two games. I think he is simply trying to hard to make plays. He has more pressure this year and a contract issue hanging in the future. I hope he gets off and settles down next week.

All I can think of right now.

[NBT]

You can't blame Slaton for anything except the fumbles (bad enough). The Oline are not getting him any running room.

[TexanJedi]

Great win, not perfect by any means but they showed heart and won.

Does anyone think the league will be looking at the tape of the side line brawl? It looked like Jacoby and Mario were throwing punches, I hope the Texans don't wind up with any suspensions.

[cadams]

the defense was horrible. they did get the job done at the end, but bush is looking like he is overmatched and out of his league as the dc. consistenetly giving up 3rd and longs and the breakdowns on the big plays are unacceptable.

glad they got the win, and it was one of the best games i have ever seen, but this game was won by the offense, and in spite of the defense.

[nero THE zero]

You can't blame Slaton for anything except the fumbles (bad enough). The Oline are not getting him any running room.

Chris Brown has put up a considerably higher YPC than Slaton has in both games so far. We have been going against tough run defenses thus far, and our o-line has struggled to create running room, but that's not to say Slaton hasn't had his own struggles as well; he's been considerably outperformed by his counterpart in both games this season.

[Dennis2112]

the defense was horrible. they did get the job done at the end, but bush is looking like he is overmatched and out of his league as the dc. consistenetly giving up 3rd and longs and the breakdowns on the big plays are unacceptable.

glad they got the win, and it was one of the best games i have ever seen, but this game was won by the offense, and in spite of the defense.

I don't think anyone said we won because of the defense but they DID contribute to the win.

All those third and long plays that the Titans were converting were all in the first half if I believe. The defense did a number on the Titans in the 2nd half. Now that blown play for Chris Johnson was the only trip to the endzone for the titans after halftime.
So, that was not a good thing but its part of the game. the other guy is trying to his job too and if you have one player out of position, big plays like that happen. The had 3 total plays over 20 yards, we had 6.

Did the defense blow up on a couple of plays, you bet they did.

Did they adjust and remove some of the players causing the breakdowns in the 2nd half? Yes they did.

We still have a long way to go but I like the more aggressive nature of our defense. Although I do not like the big plays we give up occasionally but that has to be expected as a by product of our newer, aggressive style of play.

All that being said, the defense has plenty to work on.

This win is primarily due to the offense and a great win it was.

A must win IMO.

[cadams]

I don't think anyone said we won because of the defense but they DID contribute to the win.

All those third and long plays that the Titans were converting were all in the first half if I believe. The defense did a number on the Titans in the 2nd half. Now that blown play for Chris Johnson was the only trip to the endzone for the titans after halftime.
So, that was not a good thing but its part of the game. the other guy is trying to his job too and if you have one player out of position, big plays like that happen. The had 3 total plays over 20 yards, we had 6.

Did the defense blow up on a couple of plays, you bet they did.

Did they adjust and remove some of the players causing the breakdowns in the 2nd half? Yes they did.

We still have a long way to go but I like the more aggressive nature of our defense. Although I do not like the big plays we give up occasionally but that has to be expected as a by product of our newer, aggressive style of play.

All that being said, the defense has plenty to work on.

This win is primarily due to the offense and a great win it was.

A must win IMO.

I am all for a more agressive playing style, and yes, you will give up some big plays when you take risks, but to give up 3 like they did in one game is too many, especially the 91 yarder in the second half. I agree they did adjust and play much better in the second half after the one breakdown, which is why i said they got the job done in the end, but you can't give up 31 points and expect to win consistently. Agree on it being a must win.

[Joe Joe]

I still think a 4-3 SLB is not worth a 1st round pick on principal, but perhaps if your team is extremely soft and can't stand up physically at the point of attack like we are, then I can see it. We finally stood up to a team physically today after getting bullied for years.

Either way Cushing played very well and added a lot to our run defense. Now if our 2nd level could make a tackle on occasion when a runner gets through the 1st line of defense.

Cushing and the rest of the team also played the screen passes very well.



Very impressed with Cushing. I saw him take a bad angle on Johnson once, but besides that he was definitely a player in the game.

[popanot]

Kudos to JJ as well. He had a few bad moments, but overall, he played a very good game. If he stays outside and uses his speed instead cutting back inside on that catch down the sideline, it's a score. He had juked the S beyond the point of recovery and probably would have walked in had he taken it down the sideline. Oh well, chalk it up to inexperience. At minimal he showed he deserves some more PT at WR. He's pretty scary if he gets the ball in space.

[barrett]

Kudos to JJ as well. He had a few bad moments, but overall, he played a very good game. If he stays outside and uses his speed instead cutting back inside on that catch down the sideline, it's a score. He had juked the S beyond the point of recovery and probably would have walked in had he taken it down the sideline. Oh well, chalk it up to inexperience. At minimal he showed he deserves some more PT at WR. He's pretty scary if he gets the ball in space.

I agree with all of this. We need to use him where he can make big plays. He may never be a great possession guy, but we don't need him to be. If we throw him the ball twice on 8 yard passes he catches one for 8 yards and drops one because he is unreliable. It's not worth going to him in those situations and it's why he hasn't seen the field as a WR.

But if you go to him deep twice and he blows one play but makes the other, then its worth it. So give the guy 3-4 chances at big plays each week, especially since everyone but AJ gets one one one deep coverage.

I hope that seeing JJ yesterday means we are even better when Walter does come back.

[NBT]

Chris Brown has put up a considerably higher YPC than Slaton has in both games so far. We have been going against tough run defenses thus far, and our o-line has struggled to create running room, but that's not to say Slaton hasn't had his own struggles as well; he's been considerably outperformed by his counterpart in both games this season.

No argument there. We have faced two very good run stuffing defenses, but other opponents will see that and start gameplanning harder against the run. I'm just saying the Oline has not jelled yet.

[NBT]

We are playing with two rooks on defense, Cushing and Glover Quin. At least Kubiak is honest when he says we have not reached the level of consistancy that he would like to see. All of us hope we continue to become more consistant.

[Roy P]

I will say this one more time about our offense, we need to Pass to set up the run. Utilizing Slaton on screens and check downs is more effective than handing the ball off to him because of our O-Line. Having Chester Pitts out of action is going to make a bad running attack worse. I know we love to use play-action to buy time and get deep, and we can still do that from time to time. However, if we want to keep the chains moving - the I-Formation hasn't been doin much to that end.

[Fonz the Boss]

Well I hope they get off their high horses quick because the defense stunk. We got another one of the top RBs in the league next week in Maurice Jones Drew to worry about. I know I dont want him slashing and dashing through our defense like a JV game.

[popanot]

I'm holding out hope the defense we saw in the second half is a sign of things to come. Except for that ridiculous TD run by Johnson to start the half, where inexplicably no one was within 10 yards of the middle of the field, they played pretty well and shut the Titans down that half. The pass play to Johnson in the first half was clearly a busted assignment. However, there's no excuse for it and I agree the D and Bush need to show improvement. The O - and the usual Collins bonehead play of the day - saved their ass yesterday.

[Nconroe]

Whew, 1-1, that was one exciting game, hi's, low's , and a win in the end. We won the turnover battle. We had AJ, OD, JJ receiving big passes from MS, nice to see. Our guys definitely played their heart out, played tough, were motivated, and were not about to give in to Titans attemped intimidation, they played the whole 60 minutes. MW and BC looked good on defense and the last 5 defensive series our D looked very good. While Schaub got hit, he was never sacked, so improvements seen. Sure, plenty improvements still to be made, but its coming, I think we do have the depth to get better. And perhaps coaching is getting flexible in its thinking so it can make adjustmets during the game, all nice things to see. And its the kind of win that makes a team start to believe they are a team and help each other, trust each other, know each other.

[barrett]

Well I hope they get off their high horses quick because the defense stunk. We got another one of the top RBs in the league next week in Maurice Jones Drew to worry about. I know I dont want him slashing and dashing through our defense like a JV game.

High Horse? Everything I heard said that nobody on the team was celebrating this win. Kubiak supposedly wouldn't even break a smile with the media after.

Definitely no high horse here. Just a win in a league that doesn't care about syle points either way.

[WMH]

High Horse? Everything I heard said that nobody on the team was celebrating this win. Kubiak supposedly wouldn't even break a smile with the media after.

Definitely no high horse here. Just a win in a league that doesn't care about syle points either way.

I 2nd that, huh, what are you talking about?

After the game, Kubiak didn't sound a whole lot different than he did last week. "Very concerned" was the key point of his interview response. Hell, from what I heard on the radio, they didn't even get the day off today.

Regarding the game, save for a couple of bonehead plays, I thought the defense actually faired decent. I think that Britt kid could give us some fits in the years to come, and there is really not too much else to say about C Johnson. Man, that dude is quick. We have GOT to get the 3rd down thing fixed, that is madening.
Offense - A+++, nice air job, + they should them enough in the running game to give them something to think about. It wasn't working, but they kept plugging at it, and it opened up the play action. As Roy said earlier, throwing to set up the pass may not be a bad direction, especially since we are now 1 starting guard down for the next 4-6 weeks.

Games like this make me look forward to Sunday! 6 days to go!

[HPF Bob]

You guys called for a more aggressive defense and that's what happens - more big plays in both directions. Too bad we don't have a Polamalu or Dawkins to clean up the garbage at the back end. That's why we had 60-yd, 70-yd TDs scored against us rather than 20-yd gains given up.

What I liked best was that the Texans were down 21-7 and could have easily wimped out like last week but, when they got punched in the mouth, they hit back for once.

As for Jacoby Jones, he's never dull. He's either a big play or epic fail on every touch. The refs bailed him out on that punt muff but, under normal circumstances, it would have been Titans' ball and could have swung the game.

[Roy P]

Thinking creatively is something that I liked seeing on both sides of the ball. On offense, putting Slaton out wide and leaving an empty backfield was nice. Having AJ, JJ, DA, and both TE's on the field was a nice look. Some of the best ways to run the ball is by spreading out the defense and having numerous targets to unload the ball to if they blitz.

On defense, we were dropping Barwin and blitzing Cushing. Zac Diles got a hit on Collins when he blitzed. If we can keep the offense guessing where the pressure is coming from, the Secondary will benefit. Eugene Wilson's INT was because Collins was getting people in his face. Moving Mario from Right to Left also kept them guessing. Now, if we want an attacking defense, we have to be better at gap responsibility and tackling. Too many times, over pursuit allowed huge gaps for the RB to take advantage of.

Still not sure about some of the calls. The Jacoby Jones TD was an incomplete pass since he went to the ground and lost the ball on the ground. Will be waiting to hear what Mike Pereira has to say about that one. I was scared about the muff/fumble but Steve Tasker did a good job of convincing me that was the right call.

[Roy P]

You guys called for a more aggressive defense and that's what happens - more big plays in both directions. Too bad we don't have a Polamalu or Dawkins to clean up the garbage at the back end.

Yeah, still waiting for that elusive big-time Safety to be drafted onto the roster.

[Joe Joe]

As for Jacoby Jones, he's never dull. He's either a big play or epic fail on every touch. The refs bailed him out on that punt muff but, under normal circumstances, it would have been Titans' ball and could have swung the game.

The refs didn't bail him out unless they completely whiffed on the rule. The rule bailed him out that gives him the right to catch the ball till it hits the ground unless the rule was explained wrong in the telecast. If the Titans would have respected his right to catch the ball until it hits the ground, he probably would have caught it on the bounce, but then again he is Jacoby.

[nero THE zero]

High Horse? Everything I heard said that nobody on the team was celebrating this win. Kubiak supposedly wouldn't even break a smile with the media after.

Definitely no high horse here. Just a win in a league that doesn't care about syle points either way.
http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/gamecenter/recap/NFL_20090920_HOU@TEN
The celebration inside the Texans' locker room easily could be heard outside before the doors opened. Schaub said there will always be questions from outsiders.

[Roy P]

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/gamecenter/recap/NFL_20090920_HOU@TEN

I think they should be proud of their effort and mental toughness. Being on the road and being down 21-7 after giving up an easy TD, was enough for most of us fans to throw our hands in the air and say, "here we go again" and simply give up. This team had plenty of execution errors, that need to be addressed. However, they did not bow down to the like of VandenBosch or Finnegan. They stood their ground and fought, literally, for a victory. While this game shouldn't go down in the text book for how to win a game, there is a bit of an intangible element that this team showed that should be celebrated.

[NBT]

Dominique Barber blew the coverage when Chris Johnson was lined up out wide. By the time he figured out what happened Johnson was galloping for the endzone. We have two rookies starting on defense which further confused things. Cushing was out of position on one of Johnson's rush TD's, and Glover Quin was playing nickle back. DeMeco was trying to pull it all together, but by the time he did Johnson had done all of his damage. The defense has been doing this all pre-season and by now should be getting it figured out. We will see next week against JAX.

[edo783]

The Jacoby Jones TD was an incomplete pass since he went to the ground and lost the ball on the ground. Will be waiting to hear what Mike Pereira has to say about that one.

Would have been incomplete IF he had received it in the end zone then he MUST complete the play with full control, but he had control of it in the field of play, so all he needed to do was break the plane. IMO, he actually should have been down at the 1 yard line as it looked like his knee was down, but I will take the TD.:D

[Fonz the Boss]

The Jacoby Jones TD was an incomplete pass since he went to the ground and lost the ball on the ground. Will be waiting to hear what Mike Pereira has to say about that one.

It all started with the overruled TD that the Raiders had against the Chargers that could have been a game winner..... The NFL reviewed that play and I think from now until the end of the season once the catch is made in the end zone and possession is established then that is the end of the play. Another way to see this type of play is when a receiver catches and establishes possession of the ball at the 5 yard line then dives to the pylon and loses the ball when he knocks the pylon with the ball. The pylon play ends once you score the TD. Similarly, when you catch a ball in the end zone and establish possession then that should end that play.... Thats why the play wasnt overruled.

[nero THE zero]

I think they should be proud of their effort and mental toughness. Being on the road and being down 21-7 after giving up an easy TD, was enough for most of us fans to throw our hands in the air and say, "here we go again" and simply give up. This team had plenty of execution errors, that need to be addressed. However, they did not bow down to the like of VandenBosch or Finnegan. They stood their ground and fought, literally, for a victory. While this game shouldn't go down in the text book for how to win a game, there is a bit of an intangible element that this team showed that should be celebrated.

Agreed. The team had every right to celebrate such a hard fought victory, despite the number of mistakes made in the game.

[Arky]

I went back and watched the Chris Johnson wide-open-for-the-TD pass play last night. At the start of play, CJ saunters out to the wideout position. At this point, the Texan linebackers haven't noticed him, in fact they seem confused as there is much shouting and shuffling around among DeMeco/Diles/Cushing. Both cornerbacks are on the other side of the field. Freddy on the wideout, Dunta on the slot. Barber who is in the middle of the field can be seen looking at Eugene Wilson and Wilson is seen looking at and emphatically pointing at one of the wide receivers on the other side of the field. I take it Wilson is saying either "that's my guy" or "that's YOUR guy". From there, you can hear the crowd's volume (eyes on CJ no doubt) begin to build and the ball snaps and it's all over.

Conclusion: just a perfect storm of inexperience, confusion and undercoaching. I believe this play got Barber yanked but after watching it, I don't think he's entirely at fault. As a safety (and the last line of defense), he (Barber) at the very least should have scanned the field and made sure all the wideouts and possible trick plays were accounted for. Eugene, too. The linebacker on that side of the field should have spotted CJ and turned around to make sure one of his safeties was in position. That's the way I see it....

[Nconroe]

So why after two games do we have the worst run offense and worst run defense in the NFL? Hard to go very far with those stats, if they continue.

On offense, seems we are almost signalling the other team that a run is coming, and we have played two excellent defenses. Perhaps we can disguise this better.

On defense, seems it is a lot on third down, first and second down is better. And we played to good run offenses. Perhaps our third down package has a lot of young players who aren't staying in their lane, a little experience will help.

[NBT]

"Conclusion: just a perfect storm of inexperience, confusion and undercoaching. I believe this play got Barber yanked but after watching it, I don't think he's entirely at fault. As a safety (and the last line of defense), he (Barber) at the very least should have scanned the field and made sure all the wideouts and possible trick plays were accounted for. Eugene, too. The linebacker on that side of the field should have spotted CJ and turned around to make sure one of his safeties was in position. That's the way I see it.... "

That's pretty much the way it was. However, all of these things can and should get worked out - I hope! It better be sooner than later!

[Big Texas]

I will say this one more time about our offense, we need to Pass to set up the run. Utilizing Slaton on screens and check downs is more effective than handing the ball off to him because of our O-Line. Having Chester Pitts out of action is going to make a bad running attack worse. I know we love to use play-action to buy time and get deep, and we can still do that from time to time. However, if we want to keep the chains moving - the I-Formation hasn't been doin much to that end.

I have been all for screen plays with Slaton. Especially that first game when the Jets were blitzing with no remorse. But our execution was terrible. I went back and watched that game and it looked as though we had not even been working on screen plays.

As a matter of fact it was Pitts who looked bad, when he pulled for the screen. He not only let his man come free without so much as a chip block but he ran into Duane which led Bart Scott to have a free hit on Slaton.

If we want our run game to be more effective we are gonna have to show that we are an elite passing team. We must keep defenses honest. Especially after Slaton's 3 fumbles.

[Big Texas]

So why after two games do we have the worst run offense and worst run defense in the NFL?

That is completely unacceptable. Our safeties are almost non-existent in run support. If the LB's lose contain, its to the house everytime. Then to pore salt on the wound they are not fast either.

Thus you have:

Mike Bell 46 yd TD
Adrian Peterson 75 yd TD
Thomas Jones 39 yd TD
And worst of all...
Chris Johnson 57 yd TD, 69 rec TD, 91 yd TD

"Its only preseason" my ass.

[Big Texas]

Despite how bad the Oline looks as a unit, D. Brown has looked good against Vandenbosh. I believe the one time he got in was when O. Daniels was blocking him.

Also, Busing is starting to look like a ball hawk. He has picked couple and almost picked another when he jumped the quick slant. Not saying he is starting material but he is looking good in relief. I think that's why his playing time has increased.

[Arky]

Weird stat of the day:

Counting pre-season, so far in 2009, the Texans are 0-3 at home and 3-0 on the road.

[HPF Bob]

The refs didn't bail him out unless they completely whiffed on the rule. The rule bailed him out that gives him the right to catch the ball till it hits the ground unless the rule was explained wrong in the telecast. If the Titans would have respected his right to catch the ball until it hits the ground, he probably would have caught it on the bounce, but then again he is Jacoby.

Allow me to clarify. 90% of the time when a punt is muffed an a defender is standing right there in front of the return man, the kick team winds up with the football. One could argue the defender, not the refs, bailed Jones out by catching the ball in the air but the refs did take a rather obscure rule out of the rule book to give the ball back to the Texans (and tack on a 15-yard interference penalty on the defender).

Tasker, being a kick returner and gunner much of his NFL career, probably knew that rule but I'm betting most of the players and coaches didn't. It's a good thing at least one of the refs knew the rule and was also in a position to see that the ball didn't hit the ground.

The defender was simply reacting as just about any player would if a muffed catch hopped into their lap.

[painekiller]

Allow me to clarify. 90% of the time when a punt is muffed an a defender is standing right there in front of the return man, the kick team winds up with the football. One could argue the defender, not the refs, bailed Jones out by catching the ball in the air but the refs did take a rather obscure rule out of the rule book to give the ball back to the Texans (and tack on a 15-yard interference penalty on the defender).

Tasker, being a kick returner and gunner much of his NFL career, probably knew that rule but I'm betting most of the players and coaches didn't. It's a good thing at least one of the refs knew the rule and was also in a position to see that the ball didn't hit the ground.

The defender was simply reacting as just about any player would if a muffed catch hopped into their lap.

Hey I was screaming interference before the muff. JJ has a the right to the ball and a 2 yd cushion, the defended was in his face as the ball was coming down, the flag should have been thrown at that moment.

I was not aware of the ball hitting the ground is the trigger for the cover team, I just knew the cover guy did not allow JJ the chance to field the punt.

[Nconroe]

Just in case it wasn't mentioned, Jeff Fischer, Titans coach and on the rules committee, in his postgame comments said the refs made the right call.

[papabear]

Similarly, when you catch a ball in the end zone and establish possession then that should end that play.... Thats why the play wasnt overruled.

In the endzone the rule is that the WR has to maintain possession through contact with the ground.His knee had already hit the ground but in the endzone you have to have possession all the way to the ground...a knee isn't enough in other words. The contact with the ground stipulation was fulfilled when Jacoby landed on the DB. He lost the ball after he "bounced" off the DB and went to the ground a second time.

[papabear]

Hey I was screaming interference before the muff. JJ has a the right to the ball and a 2 yd cushion, the defended was in his face as the ball was coming down, the flag should have been thrown at that moment.


I'm almost positive they got rid of the 2 yard "halo" around the punt returner. As long as you don't physically interfere with the return man you are OK.

[idymoe]

It's a good thing at least one of the refs knew the rule and was also in a position to see that the ball didn't hit the ground.

.




Yeah, it's not like it's their job or anything to know all the rules. How lucky.

[Fonz the Boss]

In the endzone the rule is that the WR has to maintain possession through contact with the ground.His knee had already hit the ground but in the endzone you have to have possession all the way to the ground...a knee isn't enough in other words. The contact with the ground stipulation was fulfilled when Jacoby landed on the DB. He lost the ball after he "bounced" off the DB and went to the ground a second time.

I replayed this catch again and if thats the case then the ball had broken the plane when his knee had hit the ground before he was spun and landed in the endzone. That means it was determined by the refs that possession was established outside the endzone, his knee hit the ground but the ball was already crossing the plane so that ended the play as a TD.

[HPF Bob]

Yeah, it's not like it's their job or anything to know all the rules. How lucky.

Well, it's their part-time job. These guys are insurance salesmen and high school principals and such in real life.

And given how often these guys get it wrong, we were lucky that this time they got it right.