Three Rams-Titans Week 2 Predictions: Cam Ward’s new right tackle, new-look passing attack, Matthew Stafford in danger too

Three things to watch out for in Rams-Titans Week 2

Easton Freeze — Tennessee Titans Beat Writer
Add as preferred source on Google

The Tennessee Titans host the Los Angeles Rams in Week 2, and their task to avoid an 0-2 start is to take down a playoff-caliber opponent in their home opener. Here are three predictions based on team statements and game strategy for what we’ll see on Sunday:

A New Starting Offensive Tackle

In Week 1, the Titans best starting tackle went down in the third quarter. Second year OT JC Latham came out with an aggravated hip strain, something he had dealt with in the back-half of training camp. You can read more about his situation linked here, where he surprisingly declared himself out for Week 2 a day early.

When Latham left the Denver game, swing tackle Oli Udoh came in and played the remaining twelve snaps. In that short timeframe, he allowed a sack and a QB hit. It wasn’t great. So with a full game of backup services needed in Week 2, it stands to reason he isn’t the lock starter. In fact, his head coach told us as much: the right tackle situation is up in the air. It could be Udoh, but there are two other real candidates to get the nod as well.

Notably, the other OT on the active roster right now isn’t one of them. Rookie UDFA Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson is merely cosplaying an active roster player for the time-being, as the front office hides him in plain sight to avoid the possibility of losing him. If they were to cut him and put him on the practice squad where he belongs to develop this year, the odds of one of the other 31 teams snatching him up on waivers is high. More on that situation linked here if you’re interested, but the bottom line is that he’s going to be leap-frogged by John Ojukwu this weekend as a practice squad gameday elevation. So Ojukwu is one of the other viable options to start.

The third option is who I’m betting gets the nod, though. It’s Blake Hance, the lineman billed as this team’s “Swiss army knife” swing backup. They’re comfortable with him playing either guard or tackle positions in a pinch, and with a full week to prepare somebody to step in against the Rams, I’m betting on him being their guy. This isn’t one of my internet predictions that comes with a heavy dose of insider winking and nodding, just an educated hunch. We’ll see… whoever it is, I have minimal faith in them holding up particularly well against this Rams front. Which brings us to our next prediction:

Constant Quarterback Danger

Neither starting quarterback is going to be very comfortable this weekend. For Cam Ward, that’s because of the Rams ferocious pass rush led by defending DROY Jared Verse. A backup right tackle and LT Dan Moore likely seeing the most of Verse himself on the left side based on tendencies, well, it’s just not a recipe for roaring success.

For the Rams side of things, Matthew Stafford and his tenuous back health situation means he’s in constant danger this year. The way this has been covered the past month, it sure seems like one sack could put him in a really bad spot physically. Throw in the fact that this week, Jeffery Simmons and the Titans interior DL are at an advantage. Both of the Rams starting guards are dealing with bum ankles, and the starting center struggled in Week 1. The pocket may get crushed with regularity because of this, forcing an already below-average mover at QB to get on his horse whether he wants to or not.

These mutual passing game situations mean at least one of two things to me. Either this turns into a game with double-digit combined sacks, and/or it becomes a low Time To Throw (TTT) fest. That brings us to our final prediction:

The Highs And Lows Of A Quick Passing Game

The Titans are going to be getting the ball out of Cam Ward’s hand as quickly as possible in the home opener. It was undoubtedly a focus this week in practice, and Callahan’s play sheet for this one will be tailored for it. I don’t expect them to fully unleash Ward in the way many impatient fans want to see just yet; in part because it’s just his second game, but more importantly, because they’re going to be guarding against him getting killed back there. The protection situation up front is likely to leave them no choice.

What it does mean they’ll do though, at least in my opinion, is show us some true quick passing game concepts. This is the “good news” portion of this prediction. A quick passing game similar to what Joe Burrow has employed with great success in Cincinatti is something I’d really like to see Cam Ward try. He’s capable of it. I think it would suit him well, as long as the Titans pass catchers are buttoned-up in their operation. If the play like they did in Week 1, they won’t be clearing that bar. So a bounce-back is in order there.

Here’s the downside of how I expect this week’s passing game to look: screens. It feels like the majority of Titans fans are really, really over the screen passing in this offense. I don’t fundamentally disagree with them being a part of this (or any, for that matter) offense, I just think the Titans players aren’t good enough or tight enough yet to pull them off efficiently. Whether it’s more an execution or more a scheme issue is beside the point, though: It didn’t work well last week. And I’d bet we see a decent serving of it again this week due to the time constraints the OL is offering, which is certain to be met with dismay by many online. So, sorry in advance.

Related Articles