Titans Pre-Season Look Part 1

By: Clark Shelton

 As a Titans fan, I hear a lot of positive vibes at the local watering holes lately about the possibilities of the upcoming season. Then I see in the news that one fan camped out for single game tickets and they had to wake him up and I see the other side. After last year’s snooze fest, there seems to be any tons of reasons for fan apathy. However, for the first time I can remember, this off-season was filled with free agent activity and our draft seemed to fill other needs. Over the next few weeks, we will break down this upcoming season by position as we head to the first pre-season game of the season. Today, we will take a look at Special Teams and the Defensive Secondary. We encourage your comments as we work to become your new Source for Tennessee Titans news and coverage.

 SPECIAL TEAMS:

New Special Teams Coach Nate Kaczor, brings a new prospective to a group that showed promise last year. Darius Reynaud exploded last year with 1,650 return yards and 3 touchdowns and should solidify him as the team’s #1 returner. The question of how Marc Mariani will return after his devastating injury last year is the big one. If he’s able to go, will he return to old form? And with a very deep roster of WR’s competing for position, will he be able to transition in that role? Of noticeable interest on the roster is veteran RB Jalen Parmele and Arizona State Rookie WR Rashad Ross, should Mariani have lost a step.

While Brett Kern seems to have the punter position sewn up, Rob Bironas looks to comeback from a self-admittedly shaky year. The usually steady Bironas was 25 of 31 last year, his worst year since 2006. Enter Maikon Bonani, rookie from South Florida. While his stats question accuracy at longer distances, there will be the opportunity to impress the new Special Teams Coach at this year’s camp.

 DEFENSIVE SECONDARY:

What was a predictable week-to-week nightmare last season has suddenly shown signs of life and, at least, colorful quotes for the upcoming season. When the Titans lost Cortland Finnegan to The Dark Side (all future references of Coach Fisher and the Rams will be known as The Dark Side), they lost significant leadership on the defensive side of the ball. Michael Griffin was obviously not ready to step up in that role, which also affected his play last season. Enter free agency and Bernard Pollard and George Wilson. Pollard brings a ”chippy-ness,”, a swagger to the secondary that has been missing. And while he may be known for his brash comments, his ability to back them up makes him a force to be reckoned with on the field. Back that with leadership qualities already shown on Super Bowl teams and the Titans hit a home run with this pick-up. Wilson is a bit quieter, but the two-time pro-bowler is not to be underestimated, ability wise, and will bring a stability and leadership to the field also. Then there’s the enigma that is Griffin. Flashes of brilliance followed by flashes of almost apathy. Hopefully, now that he won’t be required to be “the guy,” he will be able to return to Pro-Bowl form.

And then there is cornerback…McCourty, Verner,  Sensabaugh and Campbell will spend the pre-season looking over their shoulder as the Titans brought in 4 rookies to compete at the spot. Most notable of that group is 3rd round pick Blidi Wreh-Wilson out of UConn and 6th round pick Kahlid Wooten out of UCLA.

While Secondary Coach Brett Maxie has a lot of decisions to make in his second year, leadership in the secondary won’t be one of them. See you next week when we look at the Linebackers and Defensive Line.