The Titans spoke to the media for the first time in about a month today. The overall vibe was positive, which is expected to kick off the year. That being said, there seems to be a fresher feeling around this team. While a lot of what was said was mainly generic, there were a few notable items to take away. Below are a few tweets from today's media sessions.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Whisenhunt made it very clear the competition at QB is "after Marcus." Mariota's the starter, no doubt <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Titans?src=hash">#Titans</a></p>— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) <a href="https://twitter.com/jwyattsports/status/626803318044672000">July 30, 2015</a></blockquote>
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It shouldn't have been a surprise to anyone that Ken Whisenhunt said that Marcus Mariota is the starting quarterback. He has been saying it since the day has what drafted, and essentially said that before he was even drafted. There is no reason for the team to start up a fake "competition" that limits Mariota's snaps when they know which direction they are headed in. Both Mariota and the coaching staff need as much time together this summer as possible.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Whisenhunt said Mariota progressed well this offseason. The team plans to make sure he's not overloaded on, and off the field <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Titans?src=hash">#Titans</a></p>— Jim Wyatt (@jwyattsports) <a href="https://twitter.com/jwyattsports/status/626804044443557888">July 30, 2015</a></blockquote>
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A lot has been made about Marcus Mariota making the transition to the professional game. Ken Whisenhunt and company appear ready to adapt the offense to his skillset. They have been saying all of the right things about it this off-season, and we can just take this as another positive.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/TaylorLewan77">@TaylorLewan77</a> on last year's <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Titans?src=hash">#Titans</a> O-line: To be brutally honest, we were soft.</p>— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/PaulKuharskyNFL/status/626796350139707392">July 30, 2015</a></blockquote>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">.<a href="https://twitter.com/TaylorLewan77">@TaylorLewan77</a>: I want that rugged, blue collar offensive line. Get a little chippy once in a while. Keep your mouth running & back it up</p>— Paul Kuharsky (@PaulKuharskyNFL) <a href="https://twitter.com/PaulKuharskyNFL/status/626796629333553152">July 30, 2015</a></blockquote>
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Another person who has been saying all of the right things recently is Taylor Lewan. A lot was made of his relationship with Zach Mettenberger, but not only has he made that a non-issue very quickly, he's also stepped up as a leader of the offensive line. As a tough offensive lineman, we can only hope the rest of the unit takes on his personality so that the offense can start to develop an identity.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Whiz says <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Titans?src=hash">#Titans</a> will have number of packages for Dorial Green-Beckham limiting what rookie does after hamstring limited him in spring.</p>— Teresa Walker (@TeresaMWalker) <a href="https://twitter.com/TeresaMWalker/status/626806128886849536">July 30, 2015</a></blockquote>
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The transition will be a challenge for Dorial Green-Beckham. It's good to hear that the Titans have a plan for him. If they keep things simple at the beginning, he can still make some plays from the start.
For the most part, there was no huge, ground breaking information today. There were a lot of positive things to take away, but it won't mean anything until we see it on the field. The first practice is tomorrow morning at 9:20 central time, and the first padded practice is on Sunday. It feels great to be back to football, and to be able to put last season behind us. Today was just the start.