Tennessee
After a season of blunders and hurt QBs, why is the Tennessee Titans’ O-line still so bad?
HOUSTON — With blood crusting over the open wound on his left elbow and a bandage spread across the back of his left hand, Tennessee Titans quarterback Ryan Tannehill joked that he felt a little bit like Keanu Reeves’ John Wick character at the end of one of his movies.
Which John Wick movie? Tannehill says it doesn’t really matter. John Wick gets beat up pretty bad whenever he’s on screen.
Tannehill knows the feeling.
After this year especially.
The veteran quarterback took a beating in the Titans’ 26-3 loss Sunday to the Houston Texans, Tennessee’s third straight loss and seventh in nine weeks. He was sacked five times, and he played barely half of the game. Rookie Will Levis had to exit in the second quarter with a foot injury after he was obliterated on a sack that turned into a fumble and a Texans touchdown.
In two games against the Texans just 14 days apart, the Titans (5-11) allowed 13 sacks and 23 quarterback hits. The 62 sacks allowed for the year are already the second-most in franchise history, and the most in any season since the club moved to Tennessee.
When asked if there were instances where he had no realistic chance to make a play because of the situation he was in, Tannehill answered with brutal honesty.
“Yeah,” he said. “Definitely.”
So what’s actually wrong with the Titans’ offensive line?
The Titans seem pretty certain they know what the problem isn’t.
“It’s definitely not for a lack of effort,” right tackle Dillon Radunz said.
“It’s not a lack of effort,” left guard Peter Skoronski said. “Guys are working.”
“We know what’s going on on the inside,” left tackle Andre Dillard said. “We’re trying to grow and learn from everything that we experience.”
So what’s left? There’s awareness. There’s scheme. There’s execution. And there’s ability.
Awareness didn’t seem to be a problem Sunday; the only penalty called against the Titans’ front was an illegal substitution. So there weren’t any costly holds or false starts, and none of the sacks came from unaccounted-for blitzers.
Which leaves scheme, execution and ability, and it’s tough to separate those. Take rookie John Ojukwu, the sixth lineman who checked in as an eligible receiver 18 times. He was the one veteran who Jerry Hughes blazed past on the sack where Levis got hurt. Speaking with The Tennessean after the game, Ojukwu said he just needs to get into his pass blocking set more quickly to prevent mistakes like that from happening.
Is there anything more the Titans could’ve done to help Ojukwu, Dillard, rookie Jaelyn Duncan or any of the other struggling blockers schematically? Yes and no. Titans coach Mike Vrabel conceded the team probably could stand to chip a little more on third downs or keep an extra blocker in a little more often. But that creates all sorts of other problems.
More blockers means fewer players running routes. When defenses are in zone coverage, fewer routes means less favorable matchups. Which means receivers are less likely to get open quickly. Which means quarterbacks have to hold on to the ball longer. Which defeats the purpose of the extra blockers to begin with.
Running the ball more effectively would help; the Titans averaged only 2.5 yards per carry on 21 carries Sunday. Getting Derrick Henry and Tyjae Spears going should free up the play-action passing attack. But the fact that the backs are struggling also could be a product of the offensive line struggles.
Radunz said the line takes full responsibility for the seven plays inside the Texans’ 10-yard line where the offense failed to score a touchdown. And heck, there was a play earlier in the game where the Titans snapped the ball directly to Henry behind seven offensive linemen and two tight ends and he couldn’t even get back to the line of scrimmage.
Henry, for what it’s worth, refused to put any blame on the offensive line. He said everyone needs to be better, himself included. But it’s obvious the season-long struggles are weighing on the guys tasked with opening holes for him.
Why isn’t anything working?
Dillard is tied for the NFL lead with 12 sacks allowed despite playing little more than half of the snaps of the player he’s tied with. He was benched for the third time this season after allowing sacks on back-to-back plays toward the end of the first half, and he was candid about the struggles.
“Surprised? It’s not a happy feeling. I’ll say that,” Dillard told The Tennessean when asked if he’s surprised the effort isn’t leading to better results. “It’s complicated. Obviously we want to do well. We’re not going to give up on that. We’re not going to give up on trying to grow.”
Dillard is one to stay off the internet. He doesn’t read what people are saying about him or his teammates. Doesn’t see value in it. The only opinions that matter, he says, are the ones in the meeting rooms and on the practice fields with him.
But two of those people are Levis and Tannehill. And for the third time this season, the line had to watch as one of their quarterbacks limped off the field after a hard hit and couldn’t return.
“As an offensive lineman, seeing a quarterback be injured is sort of gut-wrenching,” Skoronski said. “It’s like nails on a chalkboard. You never want to see that. It really sucks to be honest with you. We have nobody to blame but our unit.”
It’s enough to ask what all of this effort the players are talking about actually looks like. Dillard said the struggles aren’t as black-and-white as some outside observers may think, and issues that crop up on Sundays aren’t always what they seem. But he said he didn’t see value in expanding on what goes on the other six days of the week.
Some of his teammates did. It’s watching extra film. It’s fundamental work. It’s working on sets and punches and profiling rushers. It’s bonding exercises to build chemistry.
It’s a lot of work. And it’s a lot of work that isn’t exactly paying off when it counts.
Duncan said it didn’t look or feel like the Texans did anything different this time than they did 14 days ago. That’s a tough reality to accept, especially because they played without top edge rusher Jonathan Greenard Sunday. The Texans lined up and did the same thing twice in three games and the Titans had no answers either time.
“We have to be able to protect the quarterback,” Vrabel said. “The numbers are the numbers. You have to be able to protect the quarterback if you want to throw the football in this league.”
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on X, the platform formerly called Twitter, @nicksuss.
2026 four-star tight end Carson Sneed (Nashville, Tenn.) visited the Tennessee Volunteers for their “Night at Neyland” camp this past weekend.
Donelson Christian Academy tight end Carson Sneed has drawn attention from the Tennessee Volunteers since his older brother, wide receiver Dayton Sneed, joined the Vols as a preferred walk-on. The younger Sneed is still eighteen months away from putting his name on a national letter of intent, but Tennessee already has momentum with the talented pass catcher.
Sneed ranks as the No. 156 prospect in the 2026 class, according to the On3 Industry Rankings. He continues to grow into his 6-foot-6 frame throughout his high school career and showcased that during Saturday’s “Night at Neyland” camp. Sneed made the short trip from his hometown to compete against some of the Vols’ top targets in the 2026 class.
Grimsley High School quarterback Faizon Brandon and Knoxville Catholic wide receiver Tyreek King also made the trip, along with other names. Tennessee is beginning to really set their board for the 2026 recruiting class, and Sneed ranks at the top at the tight end position.
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Tennessee
Unheralded, Veteran Vols Propel Tennessee Baseball To Latest Regional Win | Rocky Top Insider
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The 2024 Tennessee baseball team has stars galore in its lineup including five players with 17-plus home runs this season. Despite an unconventional approach to the pitching staff, the Vols have a handful of highly effective pitchers that could be early draft picks.
But it was the unheralded and oft-maligned veterans that made Tennessee’s sweep through the Knoxville Regional and its 12-3 victory over Southern Miss on Sunday night look as easy as it was.
Zander Sechrist was a career midweek pitcher entering this season and even when he opened the year as a weekend starter for Tennessee, there was a prevailing thought that he was a place holder before younger, more talented arms developed into the role. While Sechrist isn’t one of Tennessee’s three most effective pitchers in its peculiar pitching structure, he’s undoubtedly a reliable and effective left-handed arm in pitching coach Frank Anderson’s arsenal.
The quirky senior proved he’s a team favorite because of his extreme toughness and competitiveness in addition to his light hearted humor against the Golden Eagles. Sechrist spent minutes on the ground when a 105 MPH Davis Gillespie liner struck him on the outside of his left knee to lead off the fourth inning.
The senior not only stayed in the game but worked out of the inning unscathed. Sechrist allowed three unearned runs on an evening his defense did him few favors but his 4.2 inning outing once against put Tennessee in a solid spot.
“I think it just shows what type of teammate he is. He’s a tough guy,” catcher Cal Stark said. “He’s going to go out there and compete. You know whenever something like that doesn’t go his way, he’s going to have everyone one of our backs.”
“He’s a tough kid in his own way,” Tennessee coach Tony Vitello said. “He’s the definition of a quirky lefty, a lovable kid and a great teammate. Somehow, it’s kind of odd how he gets out there and is as much of a competitor as Hunter Ensley and Cal Stark.”
Few Tennessee players have faced more criticism than Stark in recent years. The Vols’ backstop continued his bounce back season with one of his best weekends at the plate, reaching base in seven-of-14 plate appearances and hitting three home runs over the weekend.
More From RTI: Everything Tony Vitello Said After Tennessee Won The Knoxville Regional
His fifth inning solo shot gave Tennessee the lead against Southern Miss and his three-run ninth inning shot was the exclamation point on a once tight game that had turned into a route.
“We could dissect why he’s gotten better offensively or why he’s gotten better over the course of four years, but I think they all fall under the umbrella of he meets challenges head on,” Vitello said.
The disdain Tennessee center fielder Hunter Ensley faced as recently as a month ago was more ridiculous than any others faced. One of the Vols’ top hitters on a College World Series team a season ago, Ensley struggled at the plate for much of the season while playing stout defense in center field.
Ensley was hitting .238 entering Tennessee’s series final at Florida on May 3. In 17 games since then, he’s hitting .393 with a .534 on-base percentage, three home runs, seven doubles and 18 RBIs.
“I’m as much for competition as anybody, but when you do have experience and we know truly what you can do in games, it does give you an edge,” Vitello said on his trust in Ensley. “Based off what he did for us last year in so many different situations, you can’t erase that. … We kind of pay attention to certain things that are just always there. Whether it be taking charge in the outfield, being able to be one of the better center fielders in the country, defensively, being an aggressive and really good baserunner and being a fighter at the plate.”
The redshirt junior center fielder is now hitting .285 on the season after recording five hits and reaching base nine times over the weekend.
Tennessee’s does have and has had plenty of elite talents under Vitello. Those guys are a big reason why Tennessee is back in the super regionals for a fourth straight season. But whether it be Will Heflin and Pete Derkay or Sechrist, Stark and Ensley— unheralded veterans always find a way to make a major impact on Vitello’s squads.
The trio of seniors are playing their best baseball of the season for Tennessee right now and that’s just making the top-seeded Vols look all the scarier. Their performances made a regional a drama free weekend, something you don’t often see.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – Tennessee is seeking its seventh regional championship in program history, taking on No. 2 seed Southern Miss in the regional championship round of the Knoxville regional.
The Volunteers will have two opportunities to defeat the Golden Eagles once to advance to a fourth straight Super Regional.
It’s the first time the two programs have met since the 2023 Hattiesburg Super Regional.
Southern Miss battled back from the loser’s bracket, defeating Northern Kentucky 6-0 on Saturday and Indiana 15-3 earlier on Saturday to punch its ticket to the regional finals.
It’s the first time the two teams have met in Knoxville since 1991.
Southern Miss is the home team for today’s game.
Follow along with updates below. Scoring plays are listed in italics.
TOP FIRST INNING
A Blake Burke walk was erased by a Billy Amick double play as the Vols were unable to score in the first inning for the tenth straight game.
BOTTOM FIRST INNING
A leaping grab from Christian Moore helped Zander Sechrist retire Southern Miss in order to close the first.
TOP SECOND INNING
Dylan Dreiling led off the inning with a double down the left field line.
Hunter Ensley drove in Tennessee’s first run of the game with an RBI single | Tennessee 1, Southern Miss
Ensley was thrown out on an attempted steal of second.
BOTTOM SECOND INNING
A second scoreless frame from Sechrist kept the Vols up 1-0 after two innings.
TOP THIRD INNING
Cal Stark drew a leadoff walk but was unable to advance further.
BOTTOM THIRD INNING
Copyright 2024 WVLT. All rights reserved.
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