Titans vs Broncos recap: finding a way to lose

Ah the Titans, practically the inventors of providing hope and taking it away. After a 21-10 score late in the second half, the Titans allowed the Broncos to go on a 41-7 run to win the game. Here is a breakdown of exactly what happened.

The Titans looked in rhythm when they were running Shonn Greene and passing the ball to Justin Hunter, until suddenly offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains decided that it was time to switch it up. Getting away from a silly plan that "worked" Loggains employed a steady dose Chris Johnson runs early, which lead to 2nd/3rd down and long.

The terrible play calling didn't stop there however, no the young offensive coordinator had plenty of tricks up his sleeve. Right before half, the Titans had two minutes to try and methodically move the ball down the field to put the Titans ahead 24-17 if they managed a field goal. So what does the wily coordinator do? He calls not one, not two, BUT THREE screen passes in a row. The cherry on top was that the last of those was a tight end screen pass, a play that Titans fans have been begging to see.

Enough about coaching, I'm sure you are wondering about how Ryan Fitzpatrick did, right? Well, the Harvard man was his standard self managing to throw just under 50% and a 1:1 TD to INT ratio. Fitzpatrick threw the ball inaccurately for large portions of the game and his only NFL-caliber passes were deep heaves to Justin Hunter. In the end, Fitzpatrick managed to turn hope into despair with a tipped pass that ultimately ended up in points for the Broncos.

The defense had its own share of issues. Despite decent coverage for most of the day (the score and penalties make this seem like sarcasm, but it isn't) the pass rush was worse than I have seen it in three years. Not only were there ZERO sacks, Peyton didn't even get dirt on his jersey until late in the third quarter when Derrick Morgan hit him late. Constantly seeing 4-man defensive line sets line down and rush with out so much as a stunt made me nauseous. At one point, Jurrell Casey dropped to cover a tight end and I knew that the whole thing just wreaked of Jerry "Soft-zone-no-pressure" Gray.

In all seriousness the Titans played a great first half, but the difference in coaching and talent showed up in a huge way after the break. Tennessee never should have thought that they could hang with the Broncos without bringing pressure on every play the Titans just got outcoached. Overall, some players like Justin Hunter and Zach Brown can be pleased with their day and how they preformed, but change is on the horizon and these Titans are making the argument that none of them should be retained.