After pulling out some hard fought victories during the regular season and battling their way to the one seed in the AFC, it's safe to say that the Tennessee Titans are due for some big changes this offseason. This seems fair to say after they spent most of Saturday's primetime showdown playing catch-up against a high-powered Cincinnati Bengals squad.
Now that they've fallen short for the third straight season and failed to reach their championship expectations, it goes without saying that something's got to go in Tennessee and that may be a tough pill for them to swallow at the moment. Nonetheless, in this post we'll be discussing the two immediate takeaways from the Titans' heartbreaking playoff loss during the divisional round of the 2022 NFL Playoffs.
Titans Takeaways
The Titans must find a replacement for Ryan Tannehill in the offseason
During Saturday's wire-to-wire match-up with the Bengals, Ryan Tannehill's inefficient play proved to be very costly for the Titans and led to their demise sooner than expected. With just one touchdown and three picks thrown on the day, Tannehill wound up being a major liability for the Titans and wasn't able to come through for his team when they needed it most. Even with All-Pro talents like Derrick Henry, AJ Brown, and Julio Jones at his disposal, nothing could fix Tannehill's wildly inconsistent play in the pocket.
This forced Tennessee to play catchup throughout the entire game as opposed to them striking first and building a commanding lead, and with Tannehill under center this seems to have become something of a trend for the Titans. If they're serious about competing for the Super Bowl and winning it all next season, then it goes without saying the Titans are in dire need of a change at the quarterback spot.
Tennessee expected way too much of Derrick Henry
Fresh off his 10-week layoff, King Henry returned to the starting line-up with no snap count and was doing everything he could to keep the chains moving for Tennessee. Even though he didn't have the most productive day for the Titans, Henry still was able to break away for some big gains and scored a touchdown in his first game back with the team.
However, he was not able to sustain his usual level of dominance and was still not fully recovered from the foot injury that had him sidelined for the most of the season. Granted playing with a metal plate in his foot definitely was no simple task by any means, but it also seemed as if the Titans were putting too much pressure on him to perform at an elite level immediately after his long awaited return.
In spite of his most valiant efforts, Henry couldn't deliver the results Tennessee was hoping for and lacked the explosion and perseverance he's shown in previous games. If the Titans are hoping for a better outcome next season, then making sure Henry is at full strength and playing his level best during their next playoff run should be a high priority for them.
Follow Us
Subscribe