Secondary stifles red zone passing, plus 3 more takeaways from Tennessee Titans practice

Receiver Tyler Boyd, linebacker Jack Gibbens and safety Amani Hooker were among the Tennessee Titans who made impressive plays in confined spaces for their second mandatory minicamp practice of the offseason.

Red zone pass plays were the focus of the Titans’ 7-on-7 team session at the end of Wednesday’s practice. Quarterback Will Levis only completed 3 of his 8 pass attempts with two scrambles on 10 reps, finding Boyd and running back Tony Pollard for touchdowns but also throwing an interception to Gibbens and having a pass batted away by Hooker trying to fit passes into tight spaces. Three of Levis’ incompletions came when trying to connect with receivers in the back corners of the end zone, a feat he was never able to accomplish against a stingy defense.

Levis’ touchdown to Boyd came on an impressive route where he deked linebacker Chance Campbell to the outside before crashing inside on a slant route and coasting into the end zone.

Backup quarterbacks Mason Rudolph and Malik Willis fared a little better in their red zone reps, throwing five touchdowns on 10 attempts, though Rudolph also had a pass batted away in traffic and Willis fired a short throw a little too hard into traffic and it was nearly intercepted.

Here are three more quick observations from Wednesday’s minicamp.

Absences, limitations pile up

Cornerbacks L’Jarius Sneed and Chidobe Awuzie, two of the Titans’ key offseason acquisitions, were both on the field but not involved in team activities, making some of the successes in the cornerback room all the more impressive. Receiver Calvin Ridley dealt with similar circumstances, dressing out and walking through some drills but not participating in team periods. Ridley grabbed at his shoulder after diving for an errant pass Tuesday but continued practicing without limitation after the incident.

Defensive tackles Jeffery Simmons and T’Vondre Sweat were once again absent from on-field activities, continuing a trend that’s persisted since the start of OTAs.

Special teams notes

Wednesday was the first time the Titans practiced kickoff returns during a media viewing period this summer. Eight players lined up as potential options to return under the league’s new kickoff rules: running backs Pollard, Tyjae Spears and Jabari Small, receivers Burks, Kyle Philips, Mason Kinsey and Jha’Quan Jackson and cornerback Eric Garror.

Undrafted free agent kicker Brayden Narveson showed off his leg strength by nailing a kick from more than 50 yards out, but missed a shorter kick wide enough to somehow not hit the netting behind the goal post and land in the lake overlooking the practice field.

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A little bit of scene setting

Temperatures were up in the low 80s, but it didn’t seem to faze Ridley, DeAndre Hopkins or rookie tackle JC Latham, all of whom wore long sleeves under their pads, with Hopkins and Latham wearing hooded sweatshirts.

Several players and entire position groups hung around the field after practice to get some extra work in. Levis stuck around to throw some end zone passes, with running back Hassan Haskins catching for him. A gaggle of five defensive backs stayed outside longer than any Titans, with Sneed leading the group inside roughly 35 minutes after the final practice whistle blew.

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.