Jeff Fisher arrived at Titans practice yesterday via parachute after jumping from a perfectly good helicopter with soldiers from the 101st Airborne!  Hopefully that'll be the extent of our free-fall this season.

 Terry McCormick delivers the first real news on why the heck Nick Harper has been hurt: Harper broke his ankle last year and didn't know it until he had off-season surgery!  When the crack healed calcium deposits formed and those have been giving Harper significant trouble.  He's the football equivalent of 'day-to-day'.

 How I've done these links for so long without a single Kige Ramsey link I have no idea, and to those who aren't aware of this cat I apologize.  He may be the web's most visible Titans fan, and an example of everything that's so right with new media.

 Jeremy Green makes-up for his disaturous analysis of the Titans' 2008 draft by penning this article about something I've been contending all year: the Titans have the best O-Line in the NFL.

 ESPN The Magazine has an excellent story written by NFL players on their personal security away from the field, and the fist installment is written (quite well, might I add) by the Titans' own Kevin Mawae.

 Brandon Jones got a $15,000 fine for his Pacman impression during last weeks game, and now he's going to appeal it.

 Crazy Legs and Houston's Steve Slaton have both excelled in one area that usually stifles rookie RBs: pass protection.

 PFW profiles Chris Carr and his impact on the Titans' season.

 Former Panther Kris Jenkins has revitalized his career with the Jets this year, and the match-up between he and Mawae will be a great one to watch.  Hopefully though, that match-up will be over shadowed by the blur of blue and dreads that streaks past both of them.

 That Bendability index we've been keeping an eye on?  Still crushin' it.

 How good is our pass defense efficiency according to Football Outsiders?  We're leading the league at -33.4%.  2nd place are the Packers at -30.7%, but third place are the Steelers all the way down at 24.5%!

 Don Banks did a ton of research on the history of ties in the NFL and came up with some gems, including this one from the Oilers of yore.

The Houston Oilers actually made the 1969 AFL playoffs with the unlikely record of 6-6-2. They went a nicely balanced 4-2-1 at home, and 2-4-1 on the road.

 

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Oh how the times have changed: a few years ago the Titans made the playoffs without a single starter making the Pro Bowl.  Now Haynesworth, Bironas, Hentrich, Crazy Legs, Mawae, Amano, Scott, Bulluck, Finnegan, Griffin, Hope, Boom King and Kearse all have a good to very good chance of making the Pro Bowl this year.  How Amano and Scott are doing better than Roos and Stewart I have no idea, but that's a very impressive tally none the less. ****UPDATE: Paul Kuharsky has a breakdown of where the AFC South players rank in the voting, and their tallies as of yesterday.

 I wrote a lot of mean jokes about PK while trying to figure out why I was so annoyed about this armchair diagnosis of VY, but in the end I had to say I kind of agree.  If VY makes it back and is successful as the Titans' starter, it'll be a sign of tremendous character and perseverance... on a level that most young, rich and top 5 picks don't show historically.  I could definitely happen, but it would be the exception to the anecdotal-rule.

 Jim Wyatt lays out the ways the Titans could clinch a playoff spot this weekend with a victory over the Jets.

 LenDale White got probation for his mighty lame sounding off-season disturbing the peace incident.

 Gary Estwick reports from Boom King's charity Wrestling event on Monday night at the Wild Horse, and there are some odd pics as well...

 Not familiar with the career and stories about Kerry Collins pre-Titans?  Check out ESPN's Clip Reel on him.

 Sports Journalism's Golden Calf, Mike Lupica, says the Giants are the new Yankees, but he also uses this profound logic and expert syntax:

[The Giants] are the class of the sport right now, both sides of the ball, just about everywhere except with personal seat licenses. And that stands whether the Titans are 10-0 or not.

 Here's an update on the race for the yearly league awards as measured by the awesomely named Bucky Brooks:

Coach of the Year

1. Jeff Fisher, Titans (1): When your team rolls out to a 10-0 start, you have to be considered the front runner for this award.

Offensive Rookie of the Year

2. Chris Johnson, RB, Titans (2): The electrifying runner has been held to fewer than 100 yards in his past four starts, but continues to make contributions as an all-purpose threat. After tallying 88 total yards against the Jags, Johnson ranks second among rookies with 990 yards from scrimmage.

Defensive Player of the Year

1. Albert Haynesworth, DT, Titans (1): The one-man wrecking crew put on an outstanding show against the Jags (seven tackles, one sack and a forced fumble). Haynesworth's seven sacks push him into a tie for the league lead among defensive tackles with the Vikings' Kevin Williams.

 Veteran commenter and patriot Rustmeister weighs in on the Titans, with a little special hope that Mr. Favre leaves a few divots in the turf at LP Field courtesy of our defensive line.

There's a whole lot of internet out there, so if you have a link you'd like to submit for tomorrow's Morning Links, email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com!  (Be sure to include your commenting handle so I can give you semi-anonymous credit.)

 

10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0! 10-0!

 Would everyone else here please join me in welcoming Justin Gage to the season.

 Chris Carr got his shot as a DB, and boy did he ever seize the opportunity.  Between Carr and the outstanding play of our reserve defensive lineman like Ball and Vickerson, how could any team claim more depth or talent on defense?  Now we just need to get guys like Boom King and Jason Jones healthy again...

 With Kerry's play over the last few weeks ad this defense making opponents question their life-path, it's safe to say we're never going to be out of a game this year.

 Harper is hurt, Eric King is out for 6 weeks, Bulluck is in more pain and the rib is getting worse, Hill has a hip pointer injury and is generally terrible on defense... at least coaches said 7th round draft pick Cary Williams has been showing improvement on the practice squad because he may get the call this week.

 Peter King finally jumps on board the Titans bandwagon, and he gives our guys the first 4 paragraphs of this week's MMQB column:

Maybe if I keep picking against them, it'd be a lock. "Make sure u pick jets next week!'' was the text message from Tennessee defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz an hour after the Titans came back to beat the Jags convincingly on the road, 24-14. No can do, coach.

 Well whatdaya know, Florio jumped the gun again...

 Paul Kuharsky and I had the same thought after Brandon Jones' odd celebration: did he just reference that off season arrest for gun possession at Nashville International Airport?  If you're going to get a flag, maybe he should get with Crazy Legs and come up with some better celebrations.

 ESPN The Magazine writer Ishita Singh digs up some hilarious Fun Facts on Kerry Collins, including a hilarious Onion Headline:

What a career for Kerry Collins. First he overcomes alcoholism, then racism and now his own incompetence.

 Here's a good sign your team is having an epic year:

And how about this for sheer conference dominance: If the Titans beat the New York Jets next Sunday in Nashville, they'd have a four-game lead in the so-called battle for homefield advantage through the playoffs with five games left.

 

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Big Albert Haynesworth dropped a piano on Titans critics for saying our schedule is soft, and the Tennessean back him up by noting that the record of the Titans' opponents is 34-47, while the record of the Giants' opponents is 32-49.

 It's not slight to VY, but I have to agree with Terry McCormick that Collins is looking like the perfect match for what Mike Heimerdinger wants in a quarterback.

 One of the dumber questions I've ever seen asked: Has The NFL Figured Out Chris Johnson?  Let me answer that one for you: hells + no.  The awesomeness of Crazy Legs is like a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.

 Not sure how this slipped through the cracks, but the USA Today had a must read on Jeff Fisher last week, and the coaching career that almost never was:

Fisher initially said no to a coaching career. After the Bears' 1985 Super Bowl championship season, he turned down a chance to be an assistant for Buddy Ryan, when the Bears' defensive coordinator got the head coaching job in Philadelphia...

What was Fisher going to do instead of remaining part of pro football? Enter the exciting world of selling software.

He had hooked on with a California company and was going to head its Midwest division, even though he admits he's computer illiterate, and that to some extent he faked his way through early sales presentations.

 Jevon Kearse went to school with Oak Hill Elementary student Connor Tharpe to promote the NFL's Play 60 program.  When the two got to the school, Connor's classmates were all wearing the Freak's jersey with a piece of tape separating the 9 and 0!  With kids like that running around, I am no longer worried about the future of this state.

 Earlier in the year we visited Cold Hard Football Facts' Bendability index.  This handy metric measures team-wide defensive efficiency to see which teams force opponents to go the most yards for each point.  We've lead all year, but now it's getting deliciously out of hand:

The Titans stand out from the pack for a couple of reasons. Not only are they tops in scoring defense, surrendering a meager 12.9 PPG, but they make their opponents work harder than any others in football for those meager scraps on the scoreboard.

The most impressive aspect of their game, though, is the massive best gap of 3.96 Yards Per Point Allowed between No. 1 Tennessee and the No. 2 Carolina. It's the same margin between No. 3 Carolina and No. 18 Washington.

Boom.

 Craig Hentrich won this week's AFC Special Teams Player of the Week Award.  Am I the only one who misses the fake punts and random passes Craigers was getting to break-out a few years ago?  I never thought I'd appreciate a punter as much as I do this cat.

 In news that almost made my head explode from shock, citing the struggling economy, the NFL is actually LOWERING PLAYOFF TICKET PRICES by 10%.  That's pretty awesome for a league that could easily double it's prices and still sell-out playoff games.  Also, the Titans started sending out invoices for playoff tickets to season ticket holders this week!

* Big Tip of the Hat to crucial commenter gramsey712 for passing along this pic from last night's CMAs. 

There's a whole lot of internet out there, so if you have a link you'd like to submit for tomorrow's Morning Links, email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com!  (Be sure to include your commenting handle so I can give you semi-anonymous credit.)

 

Did anyone else notice that, while playing with cracked ribs, Keith Bulluck racked up 12 tackles last Sunday?  That's unreal!

 Jim Wyatt gives us another installment of 5 Things We Know About the Titans.  Not included: Crazy Legs once finished a close second in the 100m sprint to Olympic bronze medalist Walter Dix.

 Superstud tightend Bo Scaife, who has been our most consistent receiver this year, could be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year.

 Man it's awesome, so so very awesome, to see Brian Billick spending gameday in a crummy sports bar doing a radio feed on how the 8-0 Titans could definitely run the table this year. Little known fact: every-time Billick cries an angel gets its wings.

 Paul Kuharsky takes a look at the ESPN Power Rankings, and I think he's trying to say something:

• Tennessee's nine wins have come over teams with an average rank of 20.1.

• Indianapolis' five wins have come over teams with an average rank of 13.2, while its average loss has come at the hands of teams that averaged 14.5.

• Jacksonville's four wins have come over teams with an average rank of 21.5, while its average loss has come at the hands of teams that averaged 15.2.

• Houston's three wins have come over teams with an average rank of 25.6, while its average loss has come at the hands of teams that averaged 11.2.

I wonder what the median ranking is of the teams we've lost to so far?  Go ahead and calculate that one mister man, I'll wait...

 I think The Elias Sports is trying to tell us not to expect too many more wins with the kind of production we got against the Bears:

TITANS EXTEND WINNING STREAK DESPITE ONLY 20 RUSHING YARDS

The Titans improved to 9-0 and extended their overall winning streak to 11 regular-season games with a 21-14 victory at Chicago despite gaining only 20 rushing yards. That was the third-lowest rushing total in NFL history by a team on a double-digit winning streak. Each of the last nine teams held to 20 or fewer rushing yards lost, as did 20 of the previous 21 road teams that gained 20 or fewer rushing yards.

 PFW says that while other teams may try to defend the Titans like Chicago did, they will most likely get the same results.

 The Titans have slid to 3rd in Football Outsiders' Defensive DVOA rankings, but we're also sporting a 99.8% chance at making the playoffs.

 In personal news, I got my favorite Titans hat signed by Jeff Fisher last night.  There is no truth to the rumor that I made Fish pinky swear to sign Haynesworth, but don't think I didn't try!

 

There's a whole lot of internet out there, so if you have a link you'd like to submit for tomorrow's Morning Links, email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com!  (Be sure to include your commenting handle so I can give you semi-anonymous credit.)

 

Paul Kuharsky talked to several Titans about their pending free agency and how the franchise is with extensions.  The comments were a little disturbing, but understandable (I think Cort, Roos, Stewart and a few others would disagree).  Don't expect anyone to let that distract them Sunday, however:

"The Titans organization isn't the quickest to go to the checkbook, so we'll have to see," Bulluck said. "We'll just play this season out and I'm sure a lot of things will happen this offseason. But we'll worry about the offseason when we get there. You know what we're worried about now, right? Da' Bears."

 John McClain raises an awesome point I hadn't heard yet:

The Titans also are the only team in the league that’s perfect, 26-of-26, in the red zone. It’s interesting that a team ranking 21st in offense, including 29th passing, has managed to score at least 30 points in half of its games.

 Commenter UrbanDad drops off the kids long enough to point us towards this: The Football Outsiders gave-out their midseason awards, and the Titans dominated the list like it was the AFC South.

 Dinger knows that whatever he needs, he can just dial up Crazy Legs' number; he'll take care of it and make sure it looks good too!

 None to happy about his $7,500 fine for a supposed horse collar tackle on Aaron Rodgers last week, Jevon Kearse is going to appeal it.  Also of note: Dave McGinnis is a candidate for the Kansas State head coaching position.

 With the mercury falling in Chicago and those winter winds whipping off of Lake Michigan, expect to see a healthy portion of Smash and Dash this weekend at Soldier Field.

 More reasons why Ahmard Hall is a pimp:

Titans fullback Ahmard Hall, who served in the Marine Corps in Afghanistan will make his annual visit to a local veterans hospital in honor of Veteran’s Day next Tuesday.

"I’m just going to the hospital. I’ve been every year since I’ve been here," Hall said. "I’m just going to show my gratitude to the veterans, young and old, that served the country and enable us to do what we do."

 Intrepid commenter and contributer BigW points out that last week's Titans-Packers game gets the epic NFL films treatment. I'd love to watch a game live with the guy who narrates these vignettes... make sure you catch Steve Waterson's reaction to the Bironas miss.

 Bodoglife.com has the Titans' odds to make it to the Super Bowl at 5/1.  Keep in mind that these numbers are not for recreation or entertainment, and are intended to be used for gambling... sweet rent-losing, budget breaking gambling!

 The AOL Fanhouse gives their NFL midseason MVP to Big Albert, but they keep with the head stomping jokes... I don't think Albert will ever fully live that down.

There's a whole lot of internet out there, so if you have a link you'd like to submit for tomorrow's Morning Links, email me at mcmaugustwest@gmail.com!  (Be sure to include your commenting handle so I can give you semi-anonymous credit.)

 Kerry Collins missed parts of practice due to a dinged-up ankle, thus leading to Vince Young taking first team reps.

Stephen Tulloch draws inspiration from former Bears linebacker Mike Singletary... perhaps LenDale draws inspiration from Refrigerator Perry?

 AOL Fanhus blogger Matt Snyder takes stock of what may be "The Most Talented Rookie Running Back Class Ever".  And just think: we haven't gotten to see what Rashard Mendenhall can do when healthy.  I think we still got the gem of the lot.

 The Titans signed Ravens, Broncos and Browns cast-off Amon Gordon to the practice squad to replace Mookie Johnson.

 In a related note, Paul Kuharssky sheds some light on how Mookie Johnson ended up on our practice squad, and how he fits in with the Colts... make sure you check-out the hilarious closing comment on Gordon.

 Adam Schefter notes how special Sunday's meeting of Crazy Legs and Matt Forte will be:

They are the only two rookie running backs among the Top 10 rushing leaders -– Forte with 641 rushing yards, Johnson with 715. Only twice in NFL history have rookie running backs that ranked in the Top 10 in rushing with 600 yards apiece actually squared off.

The first time it happened also involved another Chicago running back, Gale Sayers, going against San Francisco’s Ken Willard on Dec. 12, 1965. At the time Sayers had 672 yards, Willard 745.

The other time two rookie running backs in the league’s Top 10 rushers squared off was Dec. 21, 1969, when Washington’s Larry Brown battled Dallas’ Calvin Hill. At the time Brown had 827 rushing yards, Hill 869.

 John Clayton grades the AFC South.

 Albert Haynesworth and Keith Bulluck are of the opinion that the Bears' cameraman is no Christopher Nolan:

"They have the worst sideline view in the history of the NFL," said Bulluck, probably going a little too far back with his timeframe. "It's kind of tough. Normally you have an above view so you can see the formations, you can kind of see the splits of the linemen, you can see a lot of different things. With the tape when you play the Bears and get it from them -- it's not like they do it on purpose, everybody gets the same tape -- but it's definitely hard to differentiate linemen splits, splits of the wide receivers, things that are really key to studying an offense."

The Bears said it's a matter of the location of the camera bay in new Soldier Field, which opened in 2003.

 

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It's time again for the annual midseason SB Nation Studs and Duds awards. I agree with most everything here besides the ridiculousness that Jeff Fisher wasn't voted Coach of the Year.

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Clinton Portis is playing like an MVP right now.

The Studs

NFL Mid-Season MVP: Clinton Portis, Redskins

Comment from David the Falconer at The Falcoholic:

The homer in me wants to say Michael Turner, but he's done the majority of his damage against the league's weakest defenses. Portis has put the Redskins on his back and carried them 100 yards or more down the field most games, and for that he deserves my vote.

Best Player on Offense: Clinton Portis, Redskins

Comment from Skins Patrol at Hogs Haven:

He also has 150 yards receiving and has had his role increase with the injury to Ladell Betts Not everyone knows this, but Portis is the best pass protecting RB blocker in the league and is a big reason why Jason Campbell is playing well this season.

Best Players on Defense: Joey Porter, Dolphins

Comment from BigBlueShoe at Stampede Blue:

I thought this guy was DEAD. How does he have 11.5 sacks and 3 forced fumbles? I mean, it is only Week Nine and he has 11.5 friggin' sacks! The hell are they feeding them down there in Miami?

Best Rookie: Chris Johnson, Titans

Comment from cgolden at Revenge of the Birds:

No explanation needed. Just watch this kid play and it's obvious why he's truly special. Were we really questioning his status as a first round pick six months ago?

Best Coach: Jim Zorn, Redskins

Comment from WCG at Windy City Gridiron:

I hate doing this, but in that division the Redskins should have easily been the worst team.

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Jaguars coach Jack Del Rio has seen better days.

The Duds

Mid-Season Worst Player: JaMarcus Russell, Raiders

Comment from Dave the Falconer at The Falcoholic:

Consider that this guy was the first overall pick in the draft. Then consider that he can't throw a pass without collapsing into a heap.

Mid-Season Worst Rookie: Vernon Gholston, Jets

Comment from cgolden at Revenge of the Birds:

He's learning a new position so this probably isn't fair but seven tackles in eight games for a top six pick is simply unacceptable. You'd think he could at least be a situational pass rusher.

Mid-Season Worst Coach: Jack Del Rio, Jaguars

Comment from Chris at Big Cat Country:

Can I vote for Del Rio and the Jaguars for every possible spot?

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 My new favorite NFL writer, Clark Judge, comes through with a truly awesome statistical find (a 10 gallon hat tip to TheBlindRef!!!):

And what I found was that, since the merger, there have been 14 clubs -- other than Tennessee, of course -- that won their first eight games. Of that 14, seven -- or exactly half -- won Super Bowls, while another three lost them.

There is nothing discouraging about those numbers. In fact, if you're a Titans fan it means you have a 71 percent chance of spending February in Tampa with your favorite pro football team, which means you can start booking flights to Super Bowl XLIII now.

 The Titans are still on the perfect train to Perfectville, and it's because they continue to focus on just one thing: the opponent that is in front of them and not the past or the future.

 Jim Wyatt comes through with 5 things we know about the Titans, including a forewarning about the dangers of kicking to Devin Hester... no matter how bad he's been this year.

 The Colts signed defensive tackle Antonio 'Mookie' Johnson off of the Titans' practice squad. This is a great signing for Indy, because I was seriously surprised the coaching staff didn't keep the massive Mookie on the 53-man roster coming out of camp.  He was, at best, only our best 4th DT though.

 Crazy Legs is the subject of a great story from Steve Wyche at nfl.com.

 Vote Crazy Legs rookie of the week and Chris Hope Defensive player of the week!!!

 Paul Kuharsky breaks down the remaining opponents on the AFC South's schedule, and it looks like the Colts will get to face the march of the cupcakes.

 Only the Titans and the Giants got an A+ in this Fox Sports midseason grade.

 Mike Silver recasts some of the NFL's myths with special mention of our Titans.

 This ran yesterday before the Presidential election... Titans talk taxes, and not the brass kind:

It is hardly surprising that many players cite taxes as a key issue. Tennessee Titans tight end Alge Crumpler, despite his wealth, isn't sold on the merits of tax credits that Bush instituted three years ago and McCain has pledged to continue.

"The overwhelming majority of the American people aren't doing as well as they were three years ago before those tax credits," said Crumpler, an Obama supporter. "I believe in a bottom-line philosophy."

Crumpler's teammate, defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth, has a different perspective. He says he views the decision selfishly, and that "A lot of guys should all be for McCain if they like their money.

"I only have a small window to make as much money as I possibly can and if we get somebody in office who's going to raise taxes 50%, that's going to hurt," Haynesworth said. "What am I supposed to live on when I'm 60, 70 years old?"

 

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This may be the easiest position grouping to grade on this team, and they're almost certainly the most fun to watch on Sundays.  Chris 'Crazy Legs' Johnson was drafted to give our stagnant offense some life.  National pundits mocked the pick, and local nutbar-fans like myself wondered why we would spend another high pick on a running back.

Now we know why.

Rather than use him as a change-of-pace back and 3rd down specialist, Crazy Legs was thrust into the limelight and quickly began eating away LenDale's carries.  Johnson's success has come quickly, and his momentum changing plays have helped wake-up an offense that still seems too content to punt sometimes.  Here at the halfway point in the season he's leading the AFC in rushing.  He isn't afraid to take a hit, can run inside and outside, falls forward for extra yards and has yet to lose a fumble this year.  Crazy Legs has also chipped in 164 receiving yards.

While LenDale may be carrying the ball less, he's gotten a whole lot more opportunities to audition for celebrity dance shows from end zones across the country.  Until the past few games Lendale's yards per carry was hovering below 3, but a few big runs against the Chiefs and Packers have helped raise that average back above 4.  A shoulder injury slowed down his wrecking ball ways for a few weeks, but LenDale has been one of the most consistent short-yardage backs in the NFL, and he's still broken of an 80 yard run.

Quinton Gainther, Chris Henry and the newly available Rafael Little have had next to no contribution so far this year, but that's more a testament to the health and effectiveness of Smash and Dash than a knock on their abilities.

So in summation, we have the AFC's leading rusher setting-up the NFL's leading TD machine.  It just doesn't get much better than that folks.

Grade A+