(04-24-2022, 08:33 PM)rpr52121 Wrote:

(04-24-2022, 08:28 PM)Bullseye Wrote: Considering how they have thoroughly dominated us over the years, this will seem a lot like whistling past the graveyard or wishful thinking saying this.

But I could see the tacks taking a major step back offensively this year.

First off, they could easily lose WR AJ Brown.  Things have purportedly grown nasty between Brown and the front office, and the contract negotiations are at a stalemate.    If he's gone this year, and Julio Jones continues his decline, the tacks's WRs may not be much of a threat. 

On top of this, QB has been problematic for them.  While Tannehill has been a good fit in that run first attack, I still don't believe he has the full confidence of the tacks or their fanbase.  That 3 INT performance at home against the Bengals didn't help matters at all.  Plus, he will be 34 this year.  The laws of football physics are bound to catch up to him sooner or later  because of this, some observers have theorized the tacks could go QB in the first round of the draft this year, which may stop them from addressing another area of need on the team.  Of course, if they trade brown, they will most likely get a first round pick for him this year.  But it'd likely be at the bottom of the first round (unless you are the Jets), because you can have a rookie WR on a 5 year contract cheap).  At th bottom of the first round, they will likely miss out on most of the stud Ts and the top tier of WRs.  Keep in mind, their tackles were a train wreck last year.  Without Henry last year, they could not pass protect worth anything.

Speaking of Derrick Henry, rpr predicted Henry would start to decline last year.  For the first time, he missed significant time due to injury.  Was it the start of an overall decline or was last year an aberration?  We shall see, but even assuming it wasn't, without the quality WR play and the quality OL play, it'll be harder for him to dominate as he has done throughout his career.

The tacks are still a very good team and are exceptionally well coached.  But I could see a scenario where they aren't quite as good because they lost brown, missed on the T out of Georgia a few years back, Taylor Lewan has fallen off, and Tannehill will be less able to hurt opposing defenses than he was last year.  The dropoff could be dramatic if Derrick henry is not as durable as he has been.

To be honest, I hope I am right and this is the beginning of the end for those bastidges!

Lol. I mean everything I thought would go wrong for the Titans with health happened and they still got the No. 1 seed. If they weren't so ingrained to giving Henry touches when he returned in the playoffs, they also probably beat Cinci. 

I will have to stop underestimating Vrabel and their staff to field a smart competitive team, esp on defense.  At this point, I still have them as the favorite to win the division until another South team goes and takes it from them.

I wasn't prepared to call Henry's decline last year, but you were.  I still don't know if he is officially in decline yet, but again, kudos to you for accurately going out on that limb. I did not anticipate the tackle play falling off so much for them.

However, I had the sense that in Henry's absence, the team got in a rhythm without him, and I figured bringing him back in, the team could be out of synch offensively.  I would be remiss if I did not give the Bengals credit for playing well.  They played damn good defense throughout the playoffs.  But I have to think the tacks being out of synch played a role in that.  I think had henry been in the lineup all along, that might have been a different outcome.

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