HOUSTON – The Titans lost 26-0 to the Texans here on Sunday at NRG Stadium.
Here's a look at six things that stood out from the contest:
Cam's Honesty
Quarterback Cam Ward didn't mince words after the game, when the Titans were shut out for the first time since the 2019 season. I even learned some new Gen Z lingo because of it. Ward was honest, and clearly frustrated, following a game when the offense struggled mightily once again. The Titans managed just 10 first downs against the Texans on a day when Ward completed just 10-of-26 passes for 108 yards, with an interception. "Everything," Ward replied when asked what's going wrong. "From an interception, to a penalty, to an incompletion by me, a bad ball. And once we pass the 50 (yard-line), we just are not continuing the drive. If we keep it a buck right now, we (expletive). We're 0 and 4. At this point, we have nothing to lose." Full disclosure, the Generation X in me thought Ward said, "If we're keeping a book," so I learned something. I did know this: "We dropped a quarter of our (expletive) games, and we have yet to do anything," Ward continued. "So, we have to lock in, especially myself. From the offensive line from the defensive line from the special teams, all three phases, we have to play together. We have not played together this year yet."
Simmons Was Relentless
Titans defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons was all over the place. His stat line was impressive, but not as impressive as his highlight-reel sack in the first quarter. That's when Simmons got to Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud, and slung him to the ground. How fast did Simmons get there? In exactly 2.09 seconds, which was the fastest sack league-wide over the last two seasons, per NextGenStats. Simmons crossed the line of scrimmage 0.32 seconds after the snap, the fastest get-off time by a DT this season, per NextGenStats. Simmons was credited with five tackles, four tackles for a loss and a sack against the Texans despite regularly getting double-teamed and even triple-teamed on some plays. Simmons needs others to be better around him.
The Defensive Dam Finally Broke
With the offense firing blanks, the Titans defense was on the spot even more than usual on Sunday. And, for a while, the defense kept the team in it. The defense forced the Texans to settle for a pair of field goals in the first half, and also forced a field goal try on Houston's first drive of the second half. For a long time, the Titans trailed by 3-0, or 6-0. But the dam broke in the second half, especially in the fourth quarter, when the Texans scored three touchdowns to blow the game open. The Texans finished with 20 first downs and 353 yards of total offense in the game, with most of that damage coming late.
Slye's Misses
Kicker Joey Slye was money through the first two games, making his first eight field goals of the season, including some bombs. But Slye missed a pair of long kicks last week vs Indianapolis, and he misfired on a pair of field goals on Sunday – from 41 and 43 yards, both wide right. They were some deflating misses, which left Slye frustrated. "Any time I don't do my job it is frustrating," Slye said. "They call on me to do it, and I have to go out and execute. … I am not naïve to the fact that when we have an opportunity to score points, I need to go do it."
How Did Officials Miss That?
Let's face it: The Titans weren't going to win on Sunday, no matter what the officials called, or didn't call. The team got outplayed in all three phases of the game, and never really made Sunday's game very interesting. Still, one of the things that stood out to me was Ward getting hit in the helmet by Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair on the first series of the contest. It happened on a third-and-5 from the Houston 23-yard-line. Instead of a 1st down, the Titans were forced to try a field goal, which was missed. Don't get me wrong: I'm not saying the game would have turned out any differently had a roughing the QB been called. But it definitely changed the feel early.
Pollard's Production
Not much went right for the Titans on offense on Sunday. Heck, not much went right across the board, coach Brian Callahan said it himself. But running back Tony Pollard continues to run hard, and pick up yardage, even when the opposing defense knows it's coming. Pollard carried the ball 14 times for 64 yards on Sunday, for a 4.6-yar average. Pollard had a long run of 21 yards. In four games, Pollard has 261 rushing yards, which has him on track for another 1,000-yard season. With running back Tyjae Spears expected to come off of Injured Reserve soon, Pollard should get more of a break, which might help him as well.
