NASHVILLE – Titans coach Brian Callahan held a press conference on Monday, one day after the team's 20-12 loss to the Denver Broncos.
Next up in the home opener against the Los Angeles Rams.
Here's a look at some of the hot topics from today's presser:
-Callahan said he was pleased with a lot of the things quarterback Cam Ward did in Sunday's game, from managing the game to his poise to handling a tough environment.
"He was under some duress, and I thought he did a good job protecting the football," Callahan said of Ward, who completed 12-of-28 passes for 112 yards on Sunday.
Ward was sacked six times, and lost a fumble late.
"He managed the protections, he managed some difficult third downs," Callahan said of Ward. "I would have liked to have seen us help him a little more around him – we dropped four or five passes that would have helped us a lot and made the day feel a little bit different, had we connected on a few of those. … And he never got rattled at any point. His ability to continue to battle and stand in there was impressive."
-Callahan noted the team's four takeaways (three on defense, one on special teams) led the NFL over the weekend.
-Callahan was asked about his interpretation of the NFL catch rule, after the team opted not to challenge an incomplete catch call on the sideline, when receiver Elic Ayomanor appeared to get an elbow down inbounds, which would have resulted in a first down.
"Ultimately, my interpretation of the rule was wrong," Callahan said. "I'll own it. We should've challenged the play. That's pretty much all I can say about it is I'll own the mistake. We should've challenged it and that's where it stands."
-Callahan said the biggest injury concern coming out of the game regards right tackle JC Latham and his hip injury.
"He's kind of been battling the same thing for a little bit now," Callahan said of Latham. "That one is probably the biggest one at the moment, but I have no further clarity on it."
-Callahan was asked about the aggressive play-calling at the end of the first half, and he acknowledged "every game has plays, as a play-caller, that you want back." Callahan said the team didn't execute well in that sequence, which resulted in Denver scoring a touchdown late in the half.
-Callahan said the team continues to monitor cornerback L'Jarius Sneed and his snaps, and that's why he didn't play more on Sunday in Denver.
"It's not about saving him, per se," Callahan said of Sneed. "It's about the loading, coming off an injury and very limited practice time."
Callahan said there was a cap put on Sneed, who ended up playing just 21 snaps.
"From a health standpoint, you put yourself at risk when you just go in there into a game and you play 65 plays," Callahan said. "The risk of injury, especially soft tissue, goes way up. That was part of the thought process."
Callahan said the team will continue to build Sneed's workload, and he'll do more in time.
-The Titans were flagged 13 times for 131 yards on Sunday. Callahan said it was "frustrating, to have that amount, and some of the types of penalties." Callahan said he was hopeful the team had grown past making some of the mistakes it made on Sunday, while saying there were critical penalties that hurt the team. "I was disappointed by that," Callahan said. "The amount of work that we put into it, to have that show up in the opening game was definitely disappointing." Callahan said the staff will make coaching points on the penalties this week in an effort to correct some of the mistakes.
