Tennessee
For these Tennessee Titans, beating the wretched Panthers was needed medicine | Estes
Running back Derrick Henry spoke last week about focusing on “efficiency,” meaning he wanted to make the most out of his opportunities with the football. Of course he wants that. It’s one of those obvious goals that’ll get dressed up in football verbiage, making it seem more complex than it really is.
“We’ve just got to block better,” said Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel when asked Sunday about Henry’s efficiency. “Efficient on his plays? I’m not sure what that means. …
“He’ll come up here and you’ll be able to ask him about his efficiency. I’m going to tell you that we’ve got to block better.”
To that, I chuckled.
It was perfect. It was the truth. It was what needed to be said.
These Titans, I figure, could stand a little more bluntness in media settings these days. Beating around the bush, though, is instinctive among players when a team is struggling. Vrabel, as coach, has the luxury of being able to be critical publicly and say what upstanding players like Henry can’t and won’t about their teammates – because they understandably don’t want to appear selfish or point fingers.
Obviously, Titans blockers haven’t provided enough space for Henry to run.
Just like they haven’t provided quarterbacks enough time to throw.
That part, in fairness, didn’t change dramatically in Sunday’s 17-10 hold-on-for-dear-life victory over the wretched Carolina Panthers. Ultimately, the Titans’ defense won this game. It stepped up repeatedly when it was required, bailing out an offense that floundered late.
Otherwise, the best thing you could say about the Titans after this bottom-of-the-barrel NFL matchup was they didn’t blow the lead and lose, thus sparing themselves the indignity and messy fallout of losing to a one-win team at home.
What did change Sunday for the Titans, however, was the energy.
“Energy is different when you win,” Titans cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting said. “When you lose, you can sense moping. You can sense people being upset or feeling sorry for themselves. Obviously, when you win, everything else goes out the window.”
Winning is simple. Losing is what makes it complicated.
To jump on Murphy-Bunting’s point, “everything else” would be the byproduct of losing. Having to explain and rationalize failure. To everyone. To yourself. That’s difficult.
Players start looking in the mirror. What can I change? How can I do more personally? That’s how a Hall of Fame-caliber running back comes up with “efficiency,” like he hasn’t forgotten more about playing running back than most others at the position will ever learn.
But it’s Henry’s job to look for ways he can improve, just like any player on a losing team.
It’s Vrabel’s job, however, to diffuse that and not allow losing to get into a team’s head.
Vrabel played a solid coaching card this past week. He preached a return to simplicity – combating a football player’s tendency to “make up things” during a losing streak, as defensive lineman Jeffery Simmons put it.
“When you get this late in the season,” Simmons said, “guys start thinking a lot, especially when you’re on a losing streak. But then you get reminded just to go back to the base things, what got us here, what helped us win games. Vrabes did a hell of job of showing us that.”
And voila …
Probably had more to do with the Panthers than the Titans. The Titans certainly didn’t fix all their problems by beating a bad opponent. But at least they got to relax and feel good again for a moment. They provided a week for fans to focus on positives and the next game instead of the draft order or Vrabel’s status.
Estes: Mike Vrabel’s Titans job is probably safe, but with Amy Adams Strunk, how do you know?
They also continued to enjoy success at Nissan Stadium, where they’ve quietly become tough to beat. Hasn’t happened this season, and they’ll play here four more times before the season’s end.
If a few other things fall right, hey, who knows?
“Because our good is good enough to win,” Vrabel said. “I know that. I’ve seen it, and I believe in it.”
The Titans weren’t that good on Sunday. But they were good enough to win against a bad team.
That’s as simple as it gets. Simple is good. Helps lead to efficiency.
Reach Tennessean sports columnist Gentry Estes at gestes@tennessean.com and on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter) @Gentry_Estes.
The Tennessee Titans have to figure out what they’re going to do at the quarterback position moving forward.
Will Levis showed flashes of big-time potential during his rookie season last year. Unfortunately, in year two, he has taken a huge step back and shown a lot of regression.
That has led to questions about his future with the team.
Recently, it has been suggested that Aaron Rodgers could end up being a potential target for the Titans if they’re looking for another quarterback.
It’s widely expected that Rodgers will part ways with the New York Jets in the offseason. Some speculation has even suggested that he could cut ties with the Jets during the 2024 season.
With that being said, Mike Moraitis of The Sporting News has slammed the rumors of Rodgers being a potential target for Tennessee.
“However, for the Titans to even consider bringing Rodgers in, they would have to be confident they are just a quarterback away and that Rodgers can put them over the top,” Moraitis wrote. “And, Rodgers would have to believe that the Titans are right there in terms of being a contender. Nothing we’ve seen from Rodgers or the Titans in 2024 has indicated any of those things are the case.”
He continued forward, revealing his thoughts on what the Titans should actually choose to do.
“What the Titans need to do is find their long-term solution under center and not a shaky bridge quarterback,” he wrote. “If Levis doesn’t rebound, Tennessee needs to get their guy in the 2025 NFL Draft, where they will have a high pick.”
Obviously, in an ideal world, Levis would bounce back strong down the stretch of the season. He could still very well do that and there is no denying the talent he possesses.
Bringing in Rodgers would be entertaining, but it wouldn’t change much about the outlook for the franchise. Depending on the price, they could consider signing Rodgers to a one or two-year deal and drafting a rookie. Starting Rodgers and letting a rookie learn from the sideline could make sense.
Even with that being a possibility, the idea of Rodgers to Tennessee just doesn’t make a ton of sense. Fans should not expect to see the Titans try to pursue Rodgers this offseason.
Make sure you bookmark Tennessee Titans on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!
The Tennessee Titans are just one day away from their next matchup against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium.
The Titans are looking for their first win since Week 9, when they beat the New England Patriots at home. In the last two weeks, Tennessee has lost by double digits to strong playoff-contending teams, and this week might not be much different against the first-place Texans.
CBS Sports writer Pete Prisco believes the Titans’ struggles will continue, falling 31-21 to the Texans.
“The Texans are playing on a short week, but they looked better on offense against Dallas with Nico Collins back. The Titans will have trouble stopping them this week, so look for the Texans and C.J. Stroud to play well. Will Levis won’t keep up,” Prisco writes.
The Titans will have to stop Houston’s multi-dimensional offense with Joe Mixon on the ground and Collins and Tank Dell through the air. Tennessee has the No. 2 overall defense this season, so it should provide a good test for C.J. Stroud and the Texans offense, but it still doesn’t make them a favorite.
If the Titans want to win against the Texans, they will have to pressure Stroud and take advantage of their offensive line, which has proven to be suspect at times during the season.
When it comes to the Titans’ offense, it needs to take care of the ball. Giving the Texans shorter fields will be the easiest way to lose the game, so if the Titans can prevent the Texans from scoring up close on short drives, they will have a chance to be competitive against their division rival.
Kickoff between the Titans and Texans is set for 12 noon CT tomorrow. The game can be watched on CBS or streamed on Paramount+.
Make sure you bookmark Tennessee Titans on SI for the latest news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!
Tennessee
Tennessee football commit Ethan Utley not looking ahead after Ensworth’s season ends vs McCallie
There was a reason Tennessee football commit Ethan Utley didn’t make any trips to Knoxville during the home stretch of Ensworth’s season.
Utley wanted to be fully locked into the Tigers’ TSSAA football playoffs run.
That’s one reason why Friday’s tearful postgame was so difficult. McCallie ended Ensworth’s season, defeating the Tigers 31-7 to advance to the Division II-AAA state final on Dec. 5 in Chattanooga against Baylor.
Utley, a 6-foot-4, 265-pound four-star defensive lineman, doesn’t know if he’ll enroll early at Tennessee yet. He hasn’t been thinking that far ahead. Everything lately, he said, was about the Tigers trying to reach their first TSSAA football state championship game since 2014.
“It hurts and it will hurt for a while. My mind was set on going to the state championship,” Utley said. “All the personal stuff, it doesn’t really matter. I knew Ensworth was going to be my home and where I would graduate from. I never wanted to transfer. My seniors and I gave it everything we could and just fell short.”
Ensworth (11-1) trailed just 7-0 at halftime. McCallie (10-2) began to put the game out of reach when Vanderbilt commitment Carson Lawrence returned an interception 44 yards for a touchdown to go up 21-7 with 10:46 left.
Utley, who appeared in all 45 of Ensworth’s games since the beginning of his freshman season, played through an injury most of the second half until the pain became too much. He said he was kneed in one of his nerves in his right shin. He was helped to the bench by Ensworth staffers late in the fourth quarter.
“I told myself if it has to end this way, I’m going to have to get dragged off this field,” Utley said. “And that’s what happened.”
Utley is the No. 3 prospect from Tennessee in the 2025 class and No. 21 defensive lineman nationally, according to the 247Sports Composite. He intends to sign with the Volunteers when the early period begins Dec. 4.
“He’s super athletic for his size, very smart,” Ensworth coach Tim Hasselbeck said. “Depending on how he wants to change his body in the weight room, how he eats, he’ll figure out what position he’ll play. I think he could play on either side of the ball. He’s got a very bright future.”
Utley was an easy teammate to get along with, Hasselbeck said. That’s where Utley’s focus was Friday as he hugged players on the field one last time.
But he knows a big stage awaits in Knoxville.
“I’m excited for the competition. I’m grateful to be able to go play Division I football in the SEC. Most kids can’t say they can go do that,” Utley said. “I’ve been through some hard times. For that to be my next step, I’m more than blessed. When I get healthy and get my body right, get back in that weight room, get back on the field and start attacking it more, I’ll start getting ready for the bigger things ahead.”
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Reach sports writer George Robinson at georgerobinsontheleafchronicle.com and on the X platform (formerly Twitter) @Cville_Sports.
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