NASHVILLE – The Titans hit the field on Monday for their seventh day of organized team activities.
Today's OTA was open to reporters.
Here's a look at some observations from today's session:
-One of the biggest highlights of the day once again involved rookie receiver Carnell Tate. During the first team period of the day, Tate got behind the defense and caught a deep ball from Ward, with cornerback Micah Robinson defending. It was a gain of 50-plus yards, and it would have been a touchdown in a game. Tate caught two passes on the day, and he has a team-high 12 grabs in the three open OTAs so far.
-Quarterback Cam Ward went 9-of-18 on the day, including 4-of-6 in 7-on-7 and 5-of-12 in the team periods, with an interception. In the three open OTAs so far, I have Ward at 37-of-66 in 7-on-7 and team drills combined. Ward had a number of throwaways on Monday, and he also threw his first interception of camp, albeit on a 4th and 15 play when he was trying to make something happen. It was part of a tough ending to practice for Ward and the first team offense.
-It was safety Kevin Winston who picked off Ward, on a pass intended for tight end Gunnar Helm.
-Edge rusher Jermaine Johnson made his presence felt right out of the gate, breaking up a Ward screen pass on the second play of practice. On the next play, Johnson ran down a Tyjae Spears after he made a catch. (More on Spears to come).
-Quarterback Mitchell Trubisky missed the previous two open OTAs after his wife gave birth to the couple's second child last month. Trubisky had the best day of all the QBs, as he completed 13-of-15 passes in the 7-on-7 and team periods combined, including 10-of-12 in the team periods. It was an impressive outing for Trubisky, was who 5-of-5 in a late red zone period.
-Receiver Bryce Oliver was on the receiving end of a Trubisky touchdown pass in the red zone period, as he got two feet in the corner of the end zone while being defended by cornerback Latrell McCutchin Sr.
-All the quarterbacks worked on the basket drill, from 40, 30 and 20 yards away. Will Levis put four in the basket, which led all the QBs. I wish I could post the video right here, but the platform where I usually post practice videos is having issues. Here's hoping the problem will be resolved soon.
-Linebacker Shad Banks Jr. intercepted quarterback Will Levis on a ball intended for receiver K.J. Osborn.
-Levis connected with rookie tight end Jaren Kanak on a nice ball downfield, and he also found rookie receiver Hank Beatty for a score in the red zone period. I had Levis 6-of-10 on the day in the 7-on-7 and team periods combined, including 3-of-3 during the 7-on-7 period that ended with the play to Kanak.
-Running back Tyjae Spears continues to turn heads this offseason. Spears had a crazy jump-cut on Monday, which resulted in a big hop from a happy running backs coach Randy Jordan.
-Xavier Restrepo made a nice spinning catch early, one of his three catches on the day.
-Along with Restrepo, Spears and tight end Kylen Granson all had three catches on Monday.
-Defensive end Truman Jones batted a ball down.
-Ward and receiver Chimere Dike nearly connected for a score in a red zone period, but officials ruled Dike only got one foot down.
-Receiver Courtney Jackson caught a touchdown pass thrown by Levis.
-Safety Sanoussi Kane nearly intercepted Levis in a team period.
-When the offense turned the ball over, or when it failed to score in a red zone period, the entire unit did push-ups.
-The Titans will be back on the field on Tuesday for OTA No.8. The team is also scheduled for OTAs on Thursday and Friday before a minicamp next week.
