Upon review of Tennessee Titans’ loss to Colts, one stat is especially concerning | Estes

• Making sense of the Tennessee Titans’ loss to the Indianapolis Colts in Week 5 of the 2023 NFL season.
• The Titans’ wins and losses have featured a trend that could be concerning for Tennessee: it wins when good in red zone and loses when it’s not

INDIANAPOLIS – A Monday postscript to breathe a little life into the Tennessee Titans’ deflating 23-16 loss to the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday:

1. As another example of slippage from past success, the Titans were 1-for-4 in scoring touchdowns in the red zone Sunday, dropping their season average to a woeful 35.29%. That’s tied for third-worst in the NFL, and it’s a steep decline from previous seasons under Mike Vrabel.

In 2022, the Titans (64.29%) were sixth-best in red-zone offense. In 2020, they were second (74.24%), and they led the league in 2019 (77.36%).

“Red zone offense is something that has been a factor in helping us win,” Vrabel said Sunday.

Indeed. If there’s one stat to decode the Titans’ wins and losses thus far, this is the one: In losses, the Titans were a combined 1-for-9 in the red zone. In wins? 5-for-8.

“We’ve got to be better. I’ve got to be better,” running back Derrick Henry said. “… When we get down there, (we need to) score TDs in the red zone. There’s a heavy emphasis on that by coach, and we didn’t do it today at all on offense.”

2. The silver lining to that red cloud would be that kicker Nick Folk continues to be rock-solid when routinely asked to convert in these situations. His 13 field goals are three off the NFL lead, and he’s one of only two kickers to have attempted at least 10 and made them all.

Folk has contributed 46 points this season. The rest of the Titans have scored 42.

3. Yes, there were bright spots Sunday for the Titans, the biggest being that the pass protection was better – not flawless, but better – against a good defensive front. It’s encouraging that a weak spot appears to be improving as the season progresses, which needed to happen for this offense.

And as a result, Ryan Tannehill played well. He was only sacked once, and the Titans’ 259 passing yards were their most in a game since Nov. 27 of last season.

Four of the Titans’ longest six plays Sunday were passes to DeAndre Hopkins, who was by far the offense’s most productive player and has been for much of this season.

“That extra half second makes all the difference, you know,” Tannehill said. “A few plays where (Hopkins) had to move a little bit to get himself open, had some play-action plays where he was able to get behind the defense. When we’re able to have that extra half second, then I feel really confident we’ll find a good place to go with the football and we’ll make a play.”

4. The Colts should have had at least one more sack. On a third-and-long play in the second quarter, DeForest Buckner beat Aaron Brewer and missed a clear shot at Tannehill, who shook him off and completed a throw to Tyjae Spears for the first down.

The next play, by the way, Brewer was flagged for holding, nullifying what would have been Henry’s longest run of the afternoon. In defense of Brewer, earlier in that same possession, he’d knocked a Colts defender on his backside during a 13-yard screen pass to Henry.

5. The 429 yards allowed Sunday by the Titans’ defense was the most by an opponent since last season’s loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. So in the Titans’ last 14 games, the offenses that had the most statistical success against them were coached by the same person. First-year Colts coach Shane Steichen was formerly the Eagles’ offensive coordinator. That’s an ominous trend against a rival and a coach you’ll face a lot more and again this season.

“After every play, somebody was, ‘Oh, my bad,’” Titans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair said. “Like we all had that one play. Nobody is going to be perfect, but I think in a game like this that’s so crucial, division opponent, coming down, everybody is throwing haymakers back and forth … we just can’t afford to have that many ‘my bads’ from anybody, myself included.”

As a side note, Steichen’s background made an interesting coincidence out of Kristian Fulton’s critical pass interference penalty on a third-and-12 late in the game. The collision (think about a block-charge decision in basketball) was remarkably similar to a penalty that Fulton picked up against A.J. Brown on a touchdown in last season’s Philadelphia game.

Tennessee Titans’ Kristian Fulton says refs were wrong on pivotal pass interference call

6. From a purely Titans perspective, the unfortunate play in which Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson injured his shoulder stood out as one of the few instances this season in which Harold Landry reached a quarterback. Since a sack in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Chargers, Landry hasn’t logged a QB hurry or a TFL in the past three games.

7. Reserve edge rusher Trevis Gipson only saw nine defensive snaps Sunday, but early in the fourth quarter, he was able to flush Gardner Minshew from the pocket on what ended up being an incomplete pass thrown out of bounds. It was one of few times that Minshew – who was 11-of-14 in relief and never sacked – was forced off script by Titans pressure.

8. Hopkins had eight catches and was close to a ninth – and his first Titans touchdown – when Henry barely led him too far into the back of the end zone on the offense’s first possession. While Henry has completed short tosses around the goal line (like the previous week), he was asked in this instance to make a far more challenging throw on a first down from the Colts’ 13-yard line. And it wasn’t a bad effort by the running back. Henry lobbed it into a space behind defenders. Just a tad bit too much.

“Derrick isn’t a quarterback,” Hopkins said, “so I can’t fault him too much for however he threw it.”

9. The Colts only punted once in this game. But the same was true for the Titans, who had three drives of at least 10 plays. All three of those possessions ended in field goals.

The Titans’ one red-zone TD came on a nice play call by Tim Kelly. With Henry in the backfield, Spears lined up as a receiver and then, after a fake to Henry, took the end-around 19 yards for a well-blocked touchdown. A continued thumbs-up to the combo of these two running backs in the game together. That’s proving to be a problem for defenses.

Previously: How Tyjae Spears, repaired knee and all, is sprinting to stardom with Tennessee Titans | Estes

10. And finally, welcome back, Kyle Philips. The receiver was out there for his first regular-season game since about this time last season, returning the Colts’ lone punt and appearing in 13 offensive plays (22%), often as a slot receiver in long-yardage situations.

Philips didn’t log a catch, but he was targeted once by Tannehill on a third-down throw in which the QB was pressured into an incompletion.

“Felt good. Felt healthy. It was just nice to be out there again,” said Philips, who hurt his knee during the preseason, the latest in a struggle with injuries during his two NFL seasons.

Reach Tennessean sports columnist Gentry Estes at gestes@tennessean.com and on the X platform (formerly known as Twitter) @Gentry_Estes.