NASHVILLE – The Titans returned to the practice field on Sunday at Vanderbilt Health Football Clinic.
Here's a look at 10 observations from practice No. 8 of training camp:
-Carnell Tate had a day. Titans fans who attended Friday night's scrimmage at Nissan Stadium saw what fans had been seeing out here during camp. On Sunday, Tate turned it up a notch, catching three touchdowns passes on the day. Tate went up high in the end zone to catch one pass, and he spiked the ball in celebration. Earlier, he'd snagged two more passes during a red zone period for scores. I actually thought Tate's best catch of the day came later, however, when he fought off cornerback Cor'Dale Flott to catch a pass in a "Backed Up" period. Tate wrestled the ball away, and got the Titans out of a hole. Tate has heated up in recent training camp practices, and he'll take momentum into the joint practice and preseason game with the 49ers.
-Quarterback Cam Ward threw all three of the TD tosses to Tate. Ward excelled in the 'Strike Zone" a red zone periods, completing 5-of-7 during a stretch when the offense dominated. Things got a little tougher when the offense was backed up, but Ward scrambled for a first down and he made the throw to Tate, when he made the contested catch. I had Ward at 11-of-21 on the day, and I have him at 98-of-156 with three interceptions through the first eight practices of camp.
-Running back Tyjae Spears, who didn't finish Friday's practice, was back on Sunday and he looked fresh. On the fourth play of practice, Spears busted into space for what looked like a touchdown to me. Officials ruled Spears down, but only because he was touched. Nick Singleton got a raw deal on what I thought was another touchdown scamper.
-Defensive end Jermaine Johnson II was in the backfield stuffing runs early, and he had company during practice. I had Anthony Hill, Micah Robinson and Erick Hallett II with stuffs as well, two each in fact for Hill and Robinson.
-I wrote down rookie linebacker Anthony Hill's number (53) down three times on Sunday – the two runs stops and also a pass break-up in the end zone on a pass intended for tight end David Martin-Robinson, who had scored on the previous play. The rookie is looking more and more comfortable to me.
-Defensive end Jaylen Harrell, who I credited with two sacks and two more pressures on Friday, kept his momentum going. I had Harrell with another sack, and I jotted down Femi Oladejo's name because he was in the backfield on another play himself.
-Cornerback Micah Robinson had two pass break-ups in addition to being in the right place twice in the run game. In addition to the PBUs by Hill and the scrappy Robinson, James Williams, Derrick Canteen and Alontae Taylor had PBUs as well. The secondary gave up some plays in the red zone, though.
-Tight end Jaren Kanak had just one catch today, but it was a gritty one. Kanak somehow held onto the football just as he was popped in the middle of the field. Kanak, who has 11 catches in camp, seems to be gaining confidence.
-Quarterback Mitch Trubisky was 9-of-16 of the day and I have him at 84-of-112 with four interceptions in camp. Quarterback Will Levis was 5-of-9 and I've charted him at 52-of-90 with one interception in camp. Hendon Hooker didn't throw a pass during the team periods on Sunday, and he's thrown just six passes in team periods during camp.
-Wan'Dale Robinson caught four more passes on Sunday, and through the eight training camp practices has a team-high 26 grabs. The next closest is Elic Ayomanor (21), then Spears (19). If you're wondering, Tate has 16.
