Preview of ‘07 Titans
AFC SOUTH PREVIEW
Vinsanity
Tennessee Titans
2006 Record: 8-8
Last Year Summary: In 2005, the Titans went 4-12 and were rewarded with the #3 overall pick in the ’06 NFL Draft. It was obvious that the Titans were going to select a QB and since the team had just hired former USC OC Norm Chow as their new offensive coordinator, everyone expected that QB to be Matt Leinart. The Titans selected Vince Young and if the ’07 season meant anything, it meant that Tennessee made the right choice. After the Titans started the year 0-3, head coach Jeff Fisher decided to make Young the starter. In his second NFL start, Young almost led the Titans to a huge upset over the Indianapolis Colts (but lost 13-14). After getting his feet wet, Young won eight of the next 11 games. 
During that span the Titans won at Philadelphia (31-13), pulled of an amazing comeback against the New York Giants (won 24-21, despite trailing 0-21 in the fourth quarter), beat Indy on a 60-yard field goal (20-17) and beat Jacksonville (24-17). After winning six straight, the Titans had a slim chance to make the playoffs in the final week of the season. They needed to beat New England and have three other teams lose. Two of the teams lost, but so did Tennessee 23-40. Vince Young had a great rookie season despite his ugly passing statistics. Young threw for 2,199 yards, completed only 51.5% of his passes and had a touchdown/interception ratio of 12/13. However, it seemed whenever the Titans had a third down, Young would scramble and get enough yardage for the first down. Young rushed for 552 yards on 83 carries (6.7 yards per carry) and scored on seven rushing touchdowns. Despite missing two games, RB Travis Henry rushed for 1,211 yards and had seven rushing touchdowns. LB Keith Bulluck led the defense with 144 total tackles. CB Pacman Jones had a good season and finished with four interceptions for 130 yards and a touchdown. Jones excelled on punt returns, where he returned three for touchdowns. Statistically, the Titans were much worse than their 8-8 record indicated. Overall, the offense ranked 27th in yards per game (300.6) and the defense was last in the NFL in yards allowed (369.7).
Additions: CB Nick Harper (Indianapolis), WR Eric Moulds (Houston), DB Kelly Herndon (Seattle), LB Ryan Fowler (Dallas), WR Justin Gage (Chicago), LB Gilbert Gardner (Indianapolis), QB Tim Rattay (Tampa Bay), DB Bryan Scott (New Orleans), OT Seth Wand (Houston) and DT Lauvale Sape (Buffalo).
Subtractions: RB Travis Henry (to DEN), WR Drew Bennett (to TEN), DT Robaire Smith (to CLE), LB Colby Brockwoldt (to SF), OG Zach Piller (to DET) and WR Bobby Wade (to MIN).
2007 Season Summary: Due to Vince Young’s emergence last year, coach Jeff Fisher has job security and the Titans will play on Monday Night Football twice in ’07. Young will get better in ’07, but will have to overcome the ‘Madden Jinx.’ Also, there is something called a ‘sophomore jinx.’ Young shouldn’t have either one, unless the ‘Madden Jinx’ takes affect, which usually comes in the form of an injury. The move in late July to sign WR Eric Moulds should help in Young’s development. WR David Givens played in only five games last year and is coming off a serious knee injury. The loss of Henry should hurt. Nonetheless, this young Titans team will be fun to watch. The big story this offseason is Pacman Jones. Jones’ suspension is made out to be a bigger deal than it really is, the signing of CB Nick Harper was key. Tough road games include Jacksonville (Sept. 9), New Orleans (Sept. 24), Denver (Nov. 19), Cincinnati (Nov. 25), Kansas City (Dec. 16) and Indianapolis (Dec. 30). Tough home games include Indianapolis (Sept. 24), Carolina (Nov. 4), Jacksonville (Nov. 11), San Diego (Dec. 9) and NY Jets (Dec. 23). The Titans have a tough schedule, the start will be brutal- at Jacksonville, vs. Indianapolis and at New Orleans.
Best Rookie: RB Chris Henry – I pick Henry on the belief that he will eventually get the majority of the carries. Chris Brown rushed for over 1,000 yards in 2004, but has had injury problems. I’m just not a believer in LenDale White. Henry is the strongest and the fastest back on the roster. Also it is fitting that he shares the last name of the Titans’ ’06 leading rusher. I like the first-round pick of DB Michael Griffin, but he will have to learn how to play cornerback after playing safety at Texas. Also, I really liked third-round pick WR Paul Williams while he was at Fresno State. He reminds me a lot of the Bengals’ Chad Johnson. However, Williams will need at least a year before he becomes a major threat.
Big Games of the Year: vs. Jacksonville (Sept. 9- 1:00pm- opening game), vs. Indianapolis (Sept. 16- 1:00pm), at New Orleans (Sept. 24- 8:30pm- Monday), at Denver (Nov. 19- 8:30pm- Monday) and at Indianapolis (Dec. 30 1:00pm- last game).
2007 Projected Record: 9-7
Futures (Bets): The current odds for the Titans to win the AFC South are 12/1. Not that bad of a bet, the Colts are losing a bunch of talent this year. However, it is wrong to bet against the Colts. Tennessee is a very questionable team, statistically the team was terrible, but the team found ways to win games in 2006. The win total betting is set at 6 games. Even though the team is questionable, I would fire on the win-total bet. Tennessee should easily win six or more games. Currently, the Titans odds to win the Super Bowl are set at 70/1. The odds opened at 45/1. If you are a Titans’ fan it might be a good idea to a put a $100 down on your team to win the Super Bowl. For a price of a game ticket on eBay, a $100 bet could earn you enough money to get season tickets for the next six years.
