Titans' experience creates easy transition
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"Seeing the schedule, I was like, 'Wow, is this the same Jeff Fisher that went after me back in '99?' Basically it just lets us know that what we did in the past really paid off," Kearse said. "So this year we've got to go out with the same mentality even though he's not trying to kill us right now only practicing once a day, we have to go out and make the most out of each play."
This schedule is tentative, and Fisher reserves the right to make switches. He already has made one move, turning a Tuesday night practice at LP Field that would have been closed back to the team headquarters where fans can watch. But currently, he has only two days planned where the full team will practice twice.
Kearse said the camp will help save everyone's legs.
"Hopefully, everyone will be able to go into the season in good health and be ready to go out everyday and make the most out of every opportunity," Kearse said.
Receiver Justin Gage said that is the challenge with this schedule. Fewer practices mean fewer plays, increasing the pressure to be right.
"When you're not on the field, getting in your books, knowing your assignments and your plays so when you get on the field the short plays we have, we have to ace it right there. You get it done. Everyone's on the same page, and you can convert that over to game time," Gage said.
Linebacker Keith Bulluck was asked if he has bragged to any other NFL players about the Titans' camp schedule. That would be no, just in case that got back to Fisher.
"What he wants to get done, he's doing us justice by keeping his players fresh, make sure we get out there and work hard and not run them into the ground," Bulluck said.
TERRIBLE TOWELS IN IRAQ: Jeff Fisher didn't hesitate to accept when offered the chance to represent the NFL and visit American troops in Iraq during the offseason. Even if the trip featured some interesting, and bizarre moments.
Fisher said the ironic moment came when he signed one particular autograph for a soldier from Tennessee to send back to his parents — in the Nashville suburb of Brentwood.
"But the hard part about it was signing it in Baghdad. That was special," Fisher said.
Among the other coaches who went on the trip was former Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher, and that resulted in a lot of Steelers fans pulling out their Terrible Towels.
"There were plenty of terrible towels in the Persian Gulf. They must be manufactured somewhere, some manufacturing plant because there were plenty of them," Fisher said.
A couple of Titans got into trouble for stepping on Pittsburgh towels after a win over the Steelers in Nashville last December. Fisher said he did not step on a towel while in Iraq. He did note the Steelers fans he ran into in Iraq were very confident about the 2009 season opener with Tennessee visiting Pittsburgh in the NFL's first game Sept. 10.
"I apologize in advance if it didn't turn out the way they would have liked it to," Fisher said.
MEMORIES OF MCNAIR: The Titans still are working on ways to remember former quarterback Steve McNair, who was murdered on July 4. One way includes photos of the franchise's winningest quarterback on the inside of their media guide.
A handful of fans had their No. 9 McNair jerseys for the first practice Friday. Vince Young, who called McNair "Pops" and used him as his mentor since attending one of the quarterback's football camps as a teenager, said he noticed a handful of Titans wearing T-shirts from McNair's camps.
"He's always going to be in our hearts and will always be in our minds, especially in this organization," Young said.
BEHIND THE SCENES: A couple of Titans are allowing fans who follow them on Twitter to watch them broadcast live on the Internet. Linebacker Keith Bulluck broadcast twice on Friday from his locker, while running back Chris Johnson did his own show from his hotel room Saturday after lunch.
"I'm doing my little show," Johnson told viewers that grew quickly from 43 to 88.
Johnson said he bought a new laptop, a Mac, to help him better broadcast to his fans. Bulluck didn't want to talk about KBTV until he works a few more kinks out.
EXTRA POINTS: Of the 80 players on the roster in training camp, 14 are 30 or older. The oldest Titan? That would be All Pro center Kevin Mawae, who just edges out punter Craig Hentrich. Both are 38, but Mawae was born nearly five months earlier than the punter in 1971.
