There is, of course, a ton of familiarity between the New York Giants and Tennessee Titans. To learn even more about the Titans, we check in this week with Jimmy Morris of Music City Miracles for our weekly ‘5 questions’ segement.
Ed: Assess the job that Brian Daboll has done thus far with the Tennessee offense. Does he look like the right offensive coordinator to help Cam Ward reach whatever his ceiling is?
Getting Brian Daboll was huge for Robert Saleh. Reports suggest he wanted to trade up for Cam Ward in the 2025 draft, making it an exciting pairing. He called a really good game against the Eagles, with the exception of one play. As you were probably alluding to with your
question, we don’t yet know Cam’s ceiling. For now, this offense is going to have to rely on a run game to move the football. They did a good job of balance in Week 2.
As the season progresses, we will get a better idea of how good Daboll really is. Cam has two major issues that are hindering him right now. The first is his tendency to leave a clean pocket. That’s partially a result of the offensive line being so bad last season. Cam spent most of the season running for his life. The offensive line has been better through the first two games. A lot of the pressure Cam has faced has been self-induced.
His second issue is his footwork when he throws the ball. He has the tendency to not set his feet when he throws, which causes inaccurate throws. That was supposed to be a big point of emphasis through the offseason. He hasn’t been any better at that in the two games. Hopefully, that is something that Daboll can coach him through this season.
Ed: There are four Giants players who signed free agent contracts with the Titans. Can you give us a synopsis of each player’s role, and how he has performed?
Jimmy:
Austin Schlottman
Schlottman has been solid so far. His familiarity with the system and the offensive line coach has been an asset to the team.
Wan’Dale Robinson
Robinson hasn’t gotten going yet, with only 6 catches for 47 yards in the first two games. Some of that is a product of Cam Ward’s struggles. The Titans need to get him more involved.
Daniel Bellinger
Bellinger has done a good job blocking in the run game. He only has 1 catch for 7 yards, but the Titans didn’t bring him in to be a threat in the passing game.
Cor’Dale Flott
Flott was terrible in the preseason. He missed last week’s game with a quad injury. He should be back this week, and they need him because the secondary hasn’t been very good.
Ed: The Titans have, obviously, already taken several former Giants. If you could take one player off the current Giants roster and put him in the Titans’ lineup, who would it be? Why?
Jimmy: This one is close between Malik Nabers and Brian Burns, but the Titans finally have a solid receiver room, so I will go with Burns. The Titans have been searching for an impact edge rusher since the Obama administration. Pairing Burns with Jeffery Simmons would give Tennessee one of the best pass rushes in the league and could hide the holes in the secondary.
Ed: Tennessee went from looking horrible against the Jets to almost beating a good Eagles team. What was the difference, and is it sustainable?
Jimmy: The biggest difference was that they forced two turnovers against the Eagles. The offense also did a better job of staying balanced. The Titans haven’t sustained any time of success in about 4 years, but last week’s game plan, especially on offense, gives me some hope that they are finally starting to move in the right direction.
Ed: The Titans will be the underdogs on Sunday. Why can they win? On the flip side, why could they lose?
Jimmy: They can win the game if they find success in the run game and force Jameis Winston into a couple of turnovers. This offense needs a short field or two if they are going to put up a lot of points.
They could lose if Winston is able to hit a couple of big plays early. That would force them to go pass-heavy on offense, and that is not the recipe for them to have success right now.
