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How Sweet it is

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Nothing fires me up more than a win against Peyton Manning and the Colts.  One thing that needs to be cleared up, the NFL is a field goal league.  You will hear from a lot of Colts fans, here and elsewhere, saying this win isn't that good because it took a 60 yard field goal.  Boys, a win is a win and a loss is a loss.  The Titans got a win yesterday and the Colts got a loss.

Peyton Manning is such a baby.  Every time something doesn't go his way he gets that look on his face like he is going to cry.  Can't you just hear him crying when he says this:

"I wanted to score a touchdown," Manning said. "There were some guys open short, underneath, that I was afraid (the Titans) would tackle and be short. I just kind of saw the run, thought I had a shot at the end zone but they collapsed. I saw Addai ... and I desperately wanted to get a touchdown."
 Did anyone see his tirade wanting a flag thrown after the Titans made the kick?  I think I saw a tear even.

Now to the game.  Titans fans are going to have a hard time running Schwartz out of town.  His defenses have given up 31 points to the Colts in 2 games.  I think that stat alone might get him hired by a lot of teams in the NFL.  The bend but don't break scheme has been extremely effective against the Colts.  The defense gives up yards but keeps the Colts out of the end zone.  That is really all that matters.

The Titans did have one blown coverage yesterday and one bad play that led to big chunks for the Colts.  The 68 yard TD pass to Harrison wasn't a blown coverage.  Adam Jones and Chris Hope both bit on the double move from Harrison and he just ran past them.  The other big play to Harrison was a blown coverage.  It looked like Lamont was late getting over the top.  It could have been Adam's fault but it looked like a cover 2 and that should have been Lamont's third of the field.  These 2 plays not withstanding the defense played excellent yesterday.  If the Titans can add a shut down corner to go opposite Adam and a pass rushing defensive end, the defense will be one of the best in the league next year.

The sky is the limit for VY.  Yes he still makes some bad decisions and his throws are off line sometimes but he always seems to step up and make a play when the Titans need it most.  Look at these stats from yesterday courtesy of the Tennessean (quarter, down and distance listed with first down runs in bold):

(1) 3-3-TEN 34 Runs 5 yards
(2) 3-3-TEN 30 Runs 4 yards
(2) 3-6-IND 36 Runs 7 yards
(3) 3-9-IND 35 Runs 18 yards
(3) 1-10 IND 17 Runs 2 yards
(3) 3-5-TEN 40 Runs 15 yards
(3) 1-10-IND 45 Runs 14 yards
(4) 2-8-TEN 27 Runs 4 yards
(4) 3-4-TEN 40 Runs 9 yards
Now tell me VY didn't win that game.  He did have help from Travis Henry who had another solid game.  He got some nice catches from his receivers.  Courtney Roby had one of the plays of the game hauling in a pass on the sideline at the end of the 2nd quarter that set up the TD pass to Bennett.  Speaking of Bennett, that was a heck of a catch he made on the TD because he got hit hard on the way down.  Did he get in?  I don't think so but the refs owe the Titans a lot of calls so it is cool.  Brandon Jones made a nice play on his TD catch going up to get the ball.  That play was nice all around.  Great play call by Chow, great throw by VY and great catch by Jones.  This team is coming together on both sides of the ball and it is a blast to watch.

There were reports on CBS yesterday that the Fisher had been offered a contract extension.  The Titans and Fisher both denied those reports yesterday. What are you waiting for Bud? Have you been watching this team for the last couple of months? How about the gamesmanship Fisher pulled yesterday when he sent the punt team on the field after Indy called their 2nd timeout? That was a great call because if the Titans miss the field goal the Colts get the ball where it was kicked from, not at the line of scrimmage. There would have been enough time for Peyton to complete a pass, call timeout and get a field goal try off. Vinateri would not have missed again. Indy was forced to burn their last timeout when the punt team came on the field. Fisher is always thinking about these kinds of things. Nothing ever comes up in a game that he is not prepared for.

Another big win and another fun Monday. A lot of talk is starting about the playoffs if the Titans win out. All of that talk is a little premature because there is a lot of football to be played. For now we can just enjoy the win. Monday afternoon quotes later today.