NASHVILLE – Well, that was a rough start.
The Titans let a winnable game slip away on Sunday because of mistakes and missed opportunities.
I know a lot of you have your theories on why the team lost 20-12 to the Broncos, and we'll get into some of those in here.
We're just a week into the season, and already some of you are pretty worked up.
I get it, and I appreciate everyone weighing in.
Let's dive into this Tuesday's mailbag …
Here's the link to submit questions: CLICK HERE.
Ricky Foltz from Harrisburg, North Carolina
Question: Hey Jim. D played well. Too many penalties. I hope Calvin Ridley can borrow some sticky catch catching gloves. He was a big disappointment.
Jim: Hey Ricky. I agree on the first two, and I think Calvin can definitely play better. He had a great camp, but didn't come up with some balls on Sunday that he usually catches.
Benny Carter from Memphis, Tennessee
Question: Jim. I have been a Titans season ticket holder since day one. Can you some explain to me how someone who is not a Rookie Coach any longer can be so TOTALLY inept at clock management at the end of the First Half. That was totally inexcusable and a fireable error. I know your gonna say well looking back they should have ran the clock out, but irregardless that was the poorest Coaching decision I've seen in 68 years of watching Pro Football. A Pop Warner Coach would have ran the ball twice with the lead and takin a knee. I know you won't respond or post my question, but I'm done with Callahan experiment. This is not his first clock management blunder.
Jim: Well, here I am, Benny, responding. A lot of folks are coming after Callahan in here this week, on talk radio and on social media. I'm not going to pile on, because: A. I work for the team; B. I don't want to get fired; C. Brian Callahan knows a lot more about football than I do. I will say I was surprised by the decision before the half. If I'm being perfectly honest, I would have run the ball three times and gone to the half up 6-3. I'm betting if he had to do it all over again, he would, too. I'll get more into what he might have been thinking with Bob just below.
Tobias Hildesheim from Hamburg, Germany
Question: Hi Jim. Thank you for keeping us informed. I feel a bit sorry for you, cause bad games mean you will have to fend of more angry and sad fans.
For me, I just want to share my 2 cents about last game against the Broncos:
1. Cams debut: I think it was okay-ish, considering the defense he faced. At least there were no dumb decisions from him and some nice throws, but...
2. Our receivers: Come on, we can't have those drops!
3. Our O-line: Certainly better than last year but broke apart as the game went on.
Our defense looked good I would say. I mean, we generated a lot of turnovers. That was a huge problem last year. But...
4. Big Jeff: Hey, that's our leader! What's going on? First he get's into a fight with our QB1 in training camp (big No-No 1), than the really dump push in the 4th quarter that cost us a really good field position (big No-No 2). What is wrong?
Hoping for a lot more cool heads against the Rams.
Jim: Hello Tobias. Love seeing these emails from Germany and beyond.
No doubt the tone in here is pretty rough this week, but that's OK. I understand fans are disappointed, mad, pissed, whatever you want to call it. The way the team lost on Sunday infuriated a lot of people.
As for Simmons, he picked up a bad penalty on Sunday, no doubt. But it overshadowed what was a dominant game for him. He has to be better when it comes to his emotions, and he knows it. But one of the reasons he's so good is because he cares so much, and plays with such an edge. He just has to pick his spots.
Bob Luciano from Huntersville, North Carolina
Question: On a scale of 1 to 10 how bad was Brian Callahan's decision making at the end of the first half? (Throwing 3 times inside your own 10 yard line ) when that could have run out the clock!
Jim: Well, he technically didn't throw the ball three times. Cam was sacked on the third down play…
And, let me at least throw this out there (and what the HC was probably thinking) instead of giving you a number: What if Cam had completed a 15-yard pass on first down, and gotten the team to the 22? A few more short to mid-range completions, and things would've looked different. The Titans really only needed to get 40-43 yards to get into Joey Slye's field goal range, because he hit a 68-yarder in warm-ups, with room to spare. Heck, Slye might've been able to make one from 70 yards on Sunday. The way things played out, it looked bad. And, again, I wouldn't have done what Callahan did. But I know these things are easy to second-guess after the fact.
Ryan Mumaw from NW Ohio
Question: Well.. I WAS excited.. then the wheels started falling off. The lack of an actual head coach, instead of having 2 offensive coordinators, shined brighter than most headlights these days. And when the Broncos, very nicely, tried giving us the game, MULTIPLE TIMES?? Well, in typical Titans fashion, we smiled, shot ourselves in both feet, then told them "Hey, thanks for the offer guys, but there's no way I can take this W from you! I have holes in both feet and a gun in my hands, there's no way I could even carry it, you have it!!".
Positive note:
Cam looks like he could really be the real deal.. Even running for his life most of the game you could tell he kept his composure and avoided making an abundance of very bad mistakes. Although a few rookie mistakes did appear, they seemed to be mostly driven by the fear of getting annihilated by the entire front seven of Denver.. there's no other way to put it, our line is looking almost as atrocious as it did last year and our receiving core looked terrible. Ridley must have had hand surgery to turn them fingers into bricks.. Van Jefferson and Tyler Lockett, who?? I don't even remember seeing them on the field. Seems like more wasted money on some very long reaches into the 'washed up wide receiver' pool that the titans somehow always end up with their hands in..
And don't forget our policy of keeping a revolving door of offensive tackles that couldn't block crawlspace from a toddler..
The rookies were impressive, and Cam has a long career ahead of him
(Hopefully all of it in Nashville, unless we manage to screw that up too.)
Special teams went from -50 to a solid 85, it was nice to see that at least one group is getting good coaching!
All in all, we hung in there the whole game on a day when we should have been blown out, but still managed to give away every opportunity to steal the W and left the fans disappointed.. this has been the story of the Tennessee Titans for longer than any of us are comfortable with..
It's not the end of the world and it's only week one, we get it Jim.
But at the end of the day; the lack of game-changing talent from year to year (and just giving it away or letting it walk when we do have it), constant lack of discipline even from our vets and captains, the lack of NFL-level coaching from Brian Callahan (if he wanted to stay an offensive coordinator he should have stayed in Cincy), and the endless swings and misses by Miss Amy; it's all getting to B predictable and beyond frustrating. We get it's week one, but that is the week the fans are most excited to see all the change that has been talked about all off season and see some coaching start to stick with guys who were here last year and see things start coming together.. not whatever that was yesterday.. or for the past 20 years or so, minus a few scattered lonely good years mixed in.
I guess i say all that to say this, Jim.
The fan base is frustrated with being one of the perennial laughing stocks. And in my opinion, it doesn't seem like that is going to go away with Callahan as our head coach. I'm not a guy that is ever quick to jump on the 'fire our head coach wagon', i know things take time and i try to be patient and see the bigger picture. But at this point. It's more about our team seemingly missing out on receiving the finer points of coaching at this level, week after week after week after week, than the losses he's managed to pile up since he's been in Nashville.. I can deal with us losing games, I mean I'm a TITANS FAN, but not losing them like that..
The very short list of positives from week one:
•CAM WARD
•Special Teams
•Cedric Gray and Cody Barton
•Rookie receivers Dike and Ayomanor
•GM Mike Borgonzi's drafting
Honestly all of our rookies were pretty solid on a day that was anything but..which is why Mike B. was my final positive note of week one. Miss Amy finally got a new hire right, let's just hope she doesn't bully him out over personal friendships or under accomplished coaching staffs making everything look bad 🙄
Thanks for your time, Jim. And as always thank you for letting us fans get on here and vent to you like you're a team therapist 😅
TITAN UP!!!
And COACH them up!!
please..
Jim: Appreciate the feedback, Ryan. I hear ya on a lot of your complaints, and right now it's hard for me to say much. The reality is we just don't know on a lot of things because the team has played just one game. I do know 16 other teams started off 0-1, and their fan bases are ticked off too. Some of the Week One trends will probably continue, but I'm betting some things change as we head into Week 2 and beyond. The reality is you can't draw too many definitive conclusions after one game, but I get it – the team is coming off a 3-14 season, and we saw a lot of familiar problems in the opener. We'll have to wait and see how things got from here.
Nick Price from Nashville, Tennessee
Question: Hi Jim. This is my first time writing in. In the NFL, there's usually one game per week that is so horribly played by both teams that it's really miserable to watch. This week's stinker, based on the games I watched and the highlights I saw, was clearly Titans – Broncos. I thought both offenses looked pretty bad, particularly the Titans. Both defenses I thought were really good. I was impressed with how the Titans defense battled so hard all day and overall think they did a pretty good job. They made some mistakes, but I was still happy with their performance. I once again came way disappointed with the performance of Coach Callahan. I think some of his decision-making and offensive play calling is pretty questionable. That being said, like the players, he has 16 more games to hopefully improve. I've always maintained that this team should be capable of winning five or six games this season, and I stick by that prediction after seeing a tough week one game. If they could pull that off, I'll see that as certainly an improvement and possibly job saving for the coach.
Jim: The game wasn't a thing of beauty from an offensive standpoint, I'll agree with that. But the Dolphins (8 points) and Panthers (10 points) and Giants (6 points) and Texans (9 points) weren't very good offensively either …
Ed Pierce from Nashville, Tennessee
Question: Jim. I learned things Sunday, as many probably did. 1) Cam is the real deal. Calm demeanor and relaxed posture in his first NFL game…cool to say the least. He has the stuff. As they say, I cannot wait for the game to slow down for him. 2) When things got tense at the end Cam threw very hard, very fast passes. His receivers were not quite ready for that imo. 3) The coaches need to find a way to teach clean game. Given all that, we hold our head high. I was glad to see the team play with the drive the way they did. Proud Titan Fan here. 4) Slye is a monster! He may save our season singlehandedly. I hope the injuries are minor and I appreciate the effort made by all. They gave this fan a thrill.
Question: How does the staff teach technique without penalty technique? It looks like a lingering problem going back to Vrabel days.
Jim: Hey Ed. Good observations, and a good question. Believe me, they're preaching it with Jarvis. It's all about discipline, technique, and emotions. They've been on him about it, but obviously it's still a work in progress.
Gary Corley from Nashville, Tennessee
Question: That was a rough one I'm proud of the Defense they played hard and made turnovers we could've went without the penalties they hurt us but for most part defense was a bright spot it was the first game so I'm not going to complain too much but do you feel that Callahan play calling through out the game and especially late in first half put us behind the 8 ball?? If we score touchdowns instead of those field goals I believe we have a different outcome. Also did they give an update on Latham? I didn't see him get hurt so it was kind of confusing when he left game. Thanks for listening and please remind the ppl it's only week one.. TITAN UP!!!
Jim: Hey Gary. There's no doubt if the team scored touchdowns instead of field goals it would have been a different outcome. And, as Jeffery Simmons said, the team did a lot of dumb stuff to hurt itself, and that didn't help the cause. … JC is dealing with a hip injury.
Chris Berry from Cleveland, Tennessee
Question: Since this is "Ask Jim" and not just rant at Jim; What is the win rate of NFL teams with a +3 turnover differential? It's got to be over 90%, yet the Titans couldn't put anything together to finish that game off. Our highest paid players have to play more like it. Ridley was awful. Moore didn't hold up. Sneed wasn't fully available. Simmons is great but had costly penalties. Callahan also has to coach better. Play calling and time management at the end of the first half was tragic; although partially bailed out by Dike. Moving backward after a turnover within field goal range can't just be on the rookie QB either. Play calling has to keep in mind having a rookie QB and a line that hasn't held up well so far.
Jim: It's hard to argue with a lot of this...
Jack Walker from Calabasas, California
Question: Hey Jim, well... a mix of good and bad. Let's start with the best part, the Titans defense. Solid. Good game by Big Jeff and Co. I like what I saw from Chimere Dike. The rest of the offense was predictably bad. After seeing Ward barely play in the pre-season it's obvious that the current offensive scheme just isn't at an NFL level. It's going to take Ward some time to get rolling, I guess. I did like the 0 interception part... but a 54 QBR and 6 sacks and a fumble isn't good. I wasn't expecting a Will Levis 4TD first start but hoped for a bit more. Did you see Rodgers? I guess he wasn't washed after all.
Jim: Rodgers had a good Week 1. I'm not ready to anoint him Comeback Player of the Year yet, if he qualifies. And I didn't leave Denver thinking Cam was the reason the team lost.
Joe Arcudi from Merrimack, New Hampshire
Question: Oh boy....That is what the worst team in football looks like. Denver tried like crazy to give us a chance...but very little fight on offense. I am sooo glad we have an offensive minded coach. Cally proved again he is a lousy play caller, and...... we have the best Oline coach of all time....we "retooled" the oline and they were flat out awful. Revolving door Moore will never earn the money we gave him, and Latham is looking more and more like, yet another Titan first round bust.
My lord we turned them over 4 bleeping times and still could not get anything done. Our calm steady unflappable young QB took two stupid sacks to basically take us outta the game.
I am just too old to go through another rebuild but let's be honest the team that played Sunday will be lucky to win three games.
Predictions:
3-14
ANOTHER new HC is pretty much certain.
Gonna be a loooong season Jim.
Good luck to you covering this team again. You are far better than they are!!!
Jim: I guess I'll take this as a compliment, but c'mon Joe, you're overreacting a little here I think.
Clint Phillips from Fletcher, North Carolina
Question: Do you think Cally will even last till the week 7 game when Vrabel comes back to town and gives us a beat down in his old house?🤔 I bet ole Miss Amy will probably clean house if the Vrabel led Patriots win.😬
Jim: Vrabel's Patriots didn't exactly look like world beaters in Week 1 either…
Jeremy Rodriguez from Winchester, California
Question: Well Jim there were highs and there were lows. Rookie mistakes, O'Line issues .. Defense looked much more improved!!! Now gonna have to see the adjustments Callahan makes for the Rams. Have a great week Jim and as always TITAN UP!
Jim: Good to hear from you, Jeremy.
Richard Curran from Prairieville, Louisiana
Question: Hello Jim: I was an original PSL owner. Commuted to Baton Rouge for the LSU home games and flew back for the Titans games. Tore my quad and surrendered my tickets.
Since then I have continued to be a loyal Titans fan.
So for my question: what did the Titans receive from Baltimore for our talented running back Henry?
Enjoy your "Mailbags". Don't get much information down here about the Titans.
Keep up the good work and GEAUX TITANS
Jim: Sounds like you're a great, loyal fan, Richard. The Titans didn't get anything for Henry – he left as a free agent. Hope you're still making those LSU games – they're off to an impressive start.
Neil McKeegan from Derry, Ireland
Question: Hey Jim. Your 'six things that stood out' piece really covered everything i wanted to rant about!! I do have a question though. Are there any punishments handed out to players for penalties? Its getting ridiculous at this point. Brownlee had 3 & was lucky it wasnt 5! He had a hold not called & what looked like, to me anyway, unsportsmanlike on a tackle. Anyway, things can only get better.
Jim: Hey Neil. Thanks for reading. Well, I guess players could ultimately be benched, or demoted, for penalties. The tough think about Jarvis, as I touched on earlier, is coaches want him to be physical, without crossing the line and getting penalized. I thought Jarvis was scrappy, and the facemask was over the top. But he wasn't the only one who crossed the line.
Matthew Wallace from North Augusta, South Carolina
Question: Sunday was rough. I didn't expect to win, but the way we lost is what hurt the most. My question is...What will it take for Callahan to give up play calling so that he can focus on being the coach. There were some very questionable play calls that really hurt our team starting at the 47 sec mark left in the half. I'm not in the boat of many fans stating that Callahan needs to be fired, but I do think he is in over his head right now. He needs to focus on rules, play clock, and team discipline. So what do you think it would take for Holz to become the play caller and help take some stress off of his plate on gamedays and during the week to focus on head coach fundamentals. If he doesn't make this change I feel we will have a new HC before the season ends. Hoping for a better rest of the season from an improvement standpoint and not unrealistic expectations.
Jim: Thanks for taking the time, Matthew. This is a question only Brian can answer. I have no idea. And, under your scenario, you'd be replacing him with a guy who has never called plays.
Tom Meyer from San Antonio, Texas
Question: Good Morning Jim, it's been a while since I written the Mailbag. I watched the game Sunday ,I had no expectations the Titans would win. I was impressed how well they played throughout the game and felt they had a great chance to actually pull this one out. I have to say I never listened to the naysayers about Brian Callahan, but I must say better coaching could have won this game. I truly believe the coaching lost the team a win. Yes some bad play by some players didn't help and stupid penalties really hurt. Jarvis Brownlee Jr. seems snakebit, We all know once you get a reputation of bad play the Ref's are going to watch you closer. I feel he should be benched for another player( if there is one on the team) and someone else given a chance. The team must focus on Offensive line help. This team has a good base to work from but changes are needed. start with the coaching, head coach and offensive coordinator. The number of penalties are a result of poor coaching. Thanks for hearing me out.
Jim: Don't be a stranger, Tom.
Javier Tabraue from Miami, Florida
Question: Hi Jim. Brian Callahan is proving once again he cannot call plays. The sequence at the end of the first half was nothing short of coaching malpractice. Take the lead into halftime and be happy. Who knows how the game turns out if they did. It's a shame because Callahan cost the Titans a chance at winning on a day Cam played well when he wasn't running for his life, and the defense played well enough to win. I know you will point out the penalties and other things but when your head coach does not know how to call plays and sabotages his own team, you are not going to win regardless.
Jim: Hey Javier. The team didn't take advantage of a lot of opportunities on offense, there's no doubt about it. When you kick field goals instead of touchdowns, you increase your chances of losing. This loss wasn't on one person, it was because of a combination of things.
James Kaufmann from York, Pennsylvania
Question: Good Evening Jim. I'm still bummed out after the loss to Denver. It's maddening to see the same results as last year with the money we spent up front to see another young QB running for his life on Sundays. It's the literally the same thing from last year in a new season. O line can't block dropped passes and fumbles. Oh and sprinkle in some penalty flags as well. Just disappointed to see names changed but our game hasn't. I get it's one game but c'mon man.
Jim: Thanks for chiming in, James.
Charles Johns from Hermitage, Tennessee
Question: Jim, hope all is well with the family. A couple of comments and one question (please answer).
First let me say I think Callahan is a good person. I do not think he's a good HC, and one elbow does equal two feet. Can't run it on first down every time. Can't throw it every down with a rookie when backed up to your own goal line with 45 seconds left in the half against a front like Denver. You dominate the turnover battle and end the game with as many penalty yards as total yards on offense. I'm guessing they're giving him the season but what are the chances we get to see if the QB coach or OC can do a better job calling plays on game day this season?
Jim: I appreciate you taking the time Charles but the one question you tossed in at the end is impossible to answer after one game.
Gregg Accas from Nashville, Tennessee
Question: Hey, Jim. Just finished watching the Titans lose to the Broncos. I have to applaud the players for their effort in a losing cause. Objectively, I have to grade Brian Callahan a huge F for the following reasons:
A. Horrible play calling and situational awareness (end of 1st half…really?!) (knowing the time, down & distance, offensive personnel on the field as well as the defensive personnel on the field, defensive coordinator tendencies, etc.). All of that was missing!
B. Terrible game plan for a rookie QB against one of the premier defenses in the NFL, especially a defense that is known for their pass rush (in 2024, they blitzed 39% of the time!). Where were the screens, 3-step drops, quick outs? Why was almost every rush between the tackles? How do you ever plan to win an NFL game with 62 yards passing and 71 yards rushing for a total of 133 total yards even while winning the turnover battle (+2)?
C. Team was unbelievably undisciplined! We had 13 penalties for 131 yards!! That puts us on pace for the season to have 221 penalties for 2,227 yards after finishing 3rd in the league last season as 3rd worst with a total of 132 penalties for 1,030 yards.
D. Coach, please swallow your ego and decide if you want to be a great NFL coach or a great NFL play-caller. You have proven you're incapable of both. If you want to be a great NFL play-caller, try getting hired by another NFL team…doubt your resume as a play-caller will get you in the door. If you want to be a great NFL coach, please hire a proven offensive play-caller.
Finally, a couple of thoughts in closing:
A. Please, please, please don't ruin Cam Ward!!! While I wasn't a big fan of Will Levis due to several limitations, he really didn't get a lot of support from the coaching staff for the above reasons, which we saw over and over again last season.
B. Regardless of whether the Titans are in a rebuilding mode, the fans, players, and especially management should be really concerned about the current coaching situation as they have yet to demonstrate the skill sets needed to allow this team to be successful in this season or any future season!
Jim: This was a well thought out submission, Gregg, and the presentation was solid as well.
Laura Miller from Maryville, Tennessee
Question: When plays are clearly not working, who makes the adjustments? Does the quarterback decide or do the coaches give the play? I sometimes feel like we pound out the same play, that still is not working.
Jim: Hi Laura. Most of the time the coaches make the adjustments, but veteran QBs have more leeway. Callahan said yesterday rookie QB Cam Ward has some freedom to change protections at the line of scrimmage, but the coaches are the ones adjusting play calls during the course of the game.
Jason Petty from Lebanon, Tennessee
Question: Jim, I hope this question finds you well. Although I'm sure you're going to get quite a few on this subject/ situation. Can you please answer this! WHAT IN THE (BLEEP) was Callahan thinking running 3 straight pass plays(especially the 3rd) in a row at the 8 yard line with .47 seconds left in the half? You gave our defense all of 2-4 minutes in "altitude" after getting the stop? From the first half I am absolutely convinced Cam Ward can be an amazing NFL QB. He's got the poise and awareness to go with all the physical attributes. Still excited for the season as we do look competitive and capable of pulling off some big wins. But stupid calls like, CAN NOT HAPPEN! Thanks for listening to my venting, and Thank you for your complete coverage of all things Titans. Have a great week.
Jim: Appreciate it, Jason.
Sadhish Siva from Manchester, Tennessee
Question: I know your mailbox is going to be inundated from Sunday's game. My question is how can a coach not know a simple NFL rule that most casual fans know (that an elbow, one butt cheek, etc equals 2 feet?). The fact that Callahan did not challenge that play where Elic made that catch just screams that we do not have the right person to lead this team. Payton put a clinic on how to call challenges on the opposite sideline that made huge positive impacts for his team in the game. Wha is scary is not just Callahan failed to recognize an elbow equals two feet but no one on his staff told him to do the challenge as well.
If that was not enough, why would you put your rookie QB in a situation at the end of the first half with your team in the lead and the ball inside the 10 yard line with a minute or so to play? Could have walked into that locker room at halftime with momentum and positive feeling instead calling 3 dangerous passes and not taking any time of the clock also ranks as one of the most boneheaded coaching calls that game (trust me there were quite a few (another one is why call long developing pass play when you had to substitue a new right tackle in and promptly get Ward in trouble and out of field goal range after giving the offense such great starting position).
Sad that Special Teams and Defense balled lights out and was undone by coaching incompetence (as well as some bad drops by receivers not helping to bail out their QB who impressed me with his poise and accuracy).
Jim: Hi Sadhish. I know this has been a topic of conversation for a lot of fans.
I can't speak for Coach Callahan on this, but I can tell you what he said on the subject.
This is Callahan from Monday, on both topics:
On the Ayomanor play:
"I know you guys are all here for the conversation about the play with Elic (Ayomanor) and challenging the play what I said after the game and look, ultimately, my interpretation of the rule was wrong. I'll own it. We should have challenged to play and that's pretty much all I can say about it is I'll own mistake should have challenge it and that is where it stands. … I'm the head coach of the football team and my job is to make those decisions and I didn't do a good enough job in that moment. I should have challenged it and it probably would have resulted in a potential explosive play. So should have challenged the play."
On if looking back now if it was better to just take the knee with the lead going into halftime:
"Sure, there's every game that has plays as a play caller that you want back. There's always situations that you think about, I could have called this instead of this or that play instead of the other one and those things happen often. That's every play caller I think around the league and I'm no different. And so, there was a moment there that on first and 10 took an aggressive throw, tried to get one down the field to Elic (Ayomanor) running across the field, we gave up a pressure. And then I tried to throw essentially a screen that would keep the clock running and have the ball in bounds and then we didn't execute that very well. And then the third down certainly could have run the ball on the third down there. Was hoping to keep the clock running on a second down play. And then again in the third down play could've had a better selection."
Chuck Oldroyd from Austin, Texas
Question: So no touchdowns? What about Derrick Henry, he scored 2, oh but we got rid of that has been good for nothing, sure glad we did that. Oh but what about DeAndre Hopkins he scored a touchdown, oh but we got rid of that has been also, so glad we did that. Guess we'll be getting rid of Jeffrey Simmons next?
Jim: It's time to move past Henry and Hopkins no longer being here, Chuck. They're gone, and they're not coming back. And, by the way, their team is also 0-1 after Week 1.
Ken Tripp from Sebring, Florida
Question: 1 in the books and unfortunately it's a Loss.
The team stuck with Denver throughout the game. CJ Harvey broke a long run and that seemed to change the confidence of the team. In the second half we could not pass block, so there was no way to make an attempt at a comeback. We lost more yards from sacks than gained passing in the 4th quarter. I'm giving grace to a young quarterback… but my frustration comes from the offensive play calling. Is Coach Callahan still calling the offense plays? I know that his former team and head coach in Cincinnati called the plays but it doesn't seem to work for most teams. Maybe it's time to hire someone with better experience calling plays.
Please protect the first round pick otherwise we will be picking first again next year.
TitanUp the o-line and hire an OC with play calling experience.
Jim: Yes, Callahan is still calling the offensive plays.
Greg Serheev from Chester, New Jersey
Question: Wow!! Only the Titans can turn a 4 turnover game into a loss. Multiple penalties, poor tackling, terrible play calling, OL sill s**t, another gifted win on opening day. Looks like a long disappointing season again.
My question is when is Will Levis projected to come back??
Jim: Levis is projected to be back in 2026, for which team remains to be seen.
Chuck Rhoten from Kingsport, Tennessee
Question: Jim do you think Callahan called a good game? I thought he killed us on his calls when we recovered the dropped punt. I just don't think he has a feel for the game and how to call plays. I do believe we have our QB. Brownlee is a good corner but if he can't keeps his hands off of the WR he needs to be replaced. I do feel the defense gave up some runs late but played good enough to win but you can't give up those runs. The O-line did not impress me a lot. For the money we paid the LT, I thought he would have played better. Any news on Latham's injury?
Jim: When you don't score a touchdown, I'd look pretty silly if I said the offensive play-caller called a good game. Obviously things need to be better. Latham is dealing with a hip injury and will be monitored this week.
Richard Thomason from Hermitage, Tennessee
Question: Follow your mailbag closely and agree maybe 90% of the time but today's is really not telling the whole story of the play calling at critical calls and bone head decisions being made by the head coach.
Amy has to be ready to pull the strings on the coach
Jim: Thanks for taking the time, Richard.
Mitch Wilson from Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Question: Ward got his first chance...EVER...to play behind a porous offensive line against a great defense. He did okay for a rookie in his first NFL game. I was pleasantly surprised. He was a little anxious and rushed his passes a little, put too much heat on them on several occasions and over threw his receivers slightly. Cannot blame him for getting rid of the ball ASAP after 6 sacks. Ward should buy Dan Moore dinner. The LT was beat early in the game and instead of letting the rusher get a free hit on his QB took a holding penalty instead. The sacks were as much a result of the play calling as the O-line getting beat. Three pass plays from inside the 10 yard line while you are still in the game with a rookie QB...come on now. Even I know better. Overall Ward's play was about the same level as that of Levis. Ward still has one major advantage over Levis. He has not been sacked so many times by the best pass rushers in the world that he has nightmares about them and hears them coming for him in his dreams. Too many dropped passes. Three by Okwonko and Ridley late in the game all of which were too hot but could have and should have been caught. Ridley who I've watched since he played for the tide left the impression he was afraid of getting hit. If you are not willing to take a hit to make a play maybe it's time to retire. Makes me wonder if they should activate Xavier Restrepo to send a message to the other receivers and at the same time give Ward a "go to" receiver that is used to him and vice-versa when the game is on the line...at least until Ward gets his feet solidly under him. The worst play of the game came from the Titans best player Jeffery Simmons himself. He's all emotion. He's out of control. He cost the Titans their best chance of winning the game by playing after the whistle was blown. The DC shares the responsibility for this because the time to fix it is on the practice field and Simmons has been playing this way all through the preseason and it was not corrected. If he was in Junior high you would expect him to make immature mistakes but not a seasoned all pro NFL player. When you play on emotion you make stupid mistakes. This time it cost the Titans a close game. In the future, it cost them a playoff game or the Super Bowl. DC you need to reel him. Against a top three defense, I believe the Titans play improved over all. Overall their loss can be contributed to a few players not playing up to their potential and suspect play calling at key times in the game.
Jim: I can always count on you for a lot of opinions, Mitch.
Have a great week everyone!
