It’s the same old story this week as we’re breaking down another Tennessee Titans ball game, folks. The 1-5-1 Cincinnati Bengals….mighty as they may be…rag-dolled the Titans and dominated in every facet of the game. They beat the Titans 31-20, picking up their second win on the season to improve to 2-5-1. The Titans fall to 5-2, and while they’re still atop the AFC South, drop to 4th in the AFC playoff race. But, the defense is bad. So, so bad.
Where was the team that got things right in the second half against the Pittsburgh Steelers? I can’t believe I actually went on The Unofficial Titans Podcast and said that second half was something to build on. I thought that was the foundation for the “get right” game against the Bengals. But, the Titans NOPED me right the hell out of that.
And, really – it’s the same old shit, different day. There was so much space for Bengals players to make plays, they couldn’t stop anyone, guys were lining up 10 yards downfield from the guys they were covering, anemic pass rush, they couldn’t get off the field in critical situations. Rinse and repeat, it’s the same shit we’ve been talking about for weeks now. Also, I’m pretty sure the Bengals game plan on offense was simple: get out of the pocket and find Johnathan Joseph. That man was abused all afternoon.
I’ll say it – at this point in the season, the defense is what it is. There’s no ‘get right’ game on deck. If you can’t get it done (0 sacks) against a Bengals offensive line that was missing FOUR starters, who are you going to get it right against?
Make no mistake about it, this is a team that is 5-2 in spite of its defense. That’s how bad they’ve been, and I don’t know about you guys, but based on what I’ve seen, it doesn’t look like there’s any reason to think it’s going to get better. What even is the answer on defense? Bringing in someone before the trade deadline? Stephon Gilmore, huh? He’s the savior? Who’s left on this roster to give a chance to that hasn’t already had one? Chris Milton at cornerback? We’re gonna call up Dean Pees to come back and coordinate? I’m just spitballin’ here.
That’s why I’m saying “it is what it is.” They’re going to have to dig themselves out of this hole on their own. There’s no magic elixir that’s going to fix everything. The offense is going to have to bail this defense (and special teams, which sucked yesterday to) out, and we saw what would happen on a day when the offense wasn’t as crisp and sharp as usual.
If you’re looking for answers from Mike Vrabel, he ain’t gonna give ’em to ya, folks. I don’t know what else to tell you. We’re on our own trying to figure this shit out. His answer was basically ‘gotta coach better, gotta play better.’ Yeah, NO SHIT, coach.
I know I’ve been preaching patience for several weeks now, and I’m always the one on Twitter shouting “don’t overreact to one game” from the rafters, but yesterday was bad. We’re seven games into the season and those of us that write about this team have just been repeating ourselves for a month. That, friends, is what we call consistency. The Titans are consistently bad on defense. Therefore, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to finally just call a spade a spade.
I would hate for this to end up being the story of the 2020 Titans – championship offense, putrid defense. Windows open and close quickly in the NFL – we know this offense is good enough to win a Super Bowl. Let’s hope this defense doesn’t slam that window shut. Yesterday’s game, in my opinion, downgrades this team from a legitimate Super Bowl contender to “might make the AFC interesting” and “gonna have to duke it out with the Colts to win the AFC South.”
Regardless, this is crunch time. The Titans are about to go Bears, Colts, Ravens, Colts, and Browns before catching the Jags again. There isn’t another “nut up or shut up” stretch like this on the schedule, and how they respond during this stretch could dictate how their season ends.
Stoney Keeley is the Editor in Chief of The SoBros Network. He is a strong supporter of Team GSD and #BeBetter. “Big Natural” covers the Tennessee Titans, Nashville, and a whole wealth of nonsense. Follow on Twitter @StoneyKeeley
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