Titans blame the cold weather for slow start and loss to Commanders
NASHVILLE – It’s almost inexplicable how unprepared the Tennessee Titans looked when they took the field at Northwest Stadium to battle the Washington Commanders on Sunday afternoon. “Battle” is generous, to be honest. Because one quarter into the game on Sunday, the Titans had managed to punt twice, fumble twice, and trailed 28-0 in a flash. […]
NASHVILLE – It’s almost inexplicable how unprepared the Tennessee Titans looked when they took the field at Northwest Stadium to battle the Washington Commanders on Sunday afternoon.
“Battle” is generous, to be honest. Because one quarter into the game on Sunday, the Titans had managed to punt twice, fumble twice, and trailed 28-0 in a flash.
Tennessee was penalized 11 times in the first half and made mental and physical errors alike.
It left many people wondering what happened to the team that upset the division rival Houston Texans one week earlier. Jeffery Simmons even said it felt like they played hungover. But the answers provided in the Titans locker room after the game were somehow even worse.
According to rookie cornerback Jarvis Brownlee Jr., the sloppy and slow start and be blamed on…the cold weather?
Now let’s make one thing very clear. It’s not like the Titans were playing a snow game in Buffalo in January. It was a clear day with temperatures at 41 degrees at kickoff. You could certainly do worse for Landover, Maryland in December.
So really however you slice it, this is bad look for the Titans. It’s either a lazy excuse for looking like a Division-II college team for the first quarter, or it’s true and Tennessee was really struggling to play because of the weather.
If it’s true, this Titans team might actually look this ugly for the rest of the season because conditions in Nashville on Sunday were pretty much identical to the 41 degrees the Titans played in.
Sunday’s game was a huge indictment on the Titans coaching staff. Things had been trending in the right direction, but we all watched the Titans do things that poorly coached teams do.
Stupid penalties like roughing the passer on 3rd down and 12 men in the huddle. A defensive game plan that seemed unprepared for a heavy dose of runs. Sloppy special teams (per usual) and bad ball security.
Those are characteristics of teams that are out-coached and out-maneuvered.
None of this is to say that Brian Callahan and Co. can’t right this ship and get the team back on the right track. To their credit, the second half was much more competitive. But we also can’t ignore the obvious.
At the very least, they need to stop blaming the moderately cold weather for shortcomings.
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Brutal NFL Sunday for Titans fans.
