Titans D-line will be strong even without Haynesworth

When you lose a defensive MVP type of player, you would expect a team to have a set back the following year. This will not be the case in the '09-'10 with the Tennessee Titans.

The Titans decided to let all world DT Albert Haynesworth test the free agent market, and lost him to the Redskins. Haynesworth signed a 7 year $100 million dollar deal which included $41 million in guaranteed money.

Haynesworth actually was offered more money from the Buccaneers In a recent radio interview with Adam Schein, (who might I add, I am big fan of his show Loud Mouths on Fox Sports NY) Haynesworth said

"I could've made more money with Tampa Bay if I really wanted to. They offered me a whole lot more, and even with their tax situation, it could have been 20 percent more. But you look at Washington, they've got a lot of the pieces together. They're right there. They're in a huge market. It's one of the largest markets in the world. You've just got a large, huge media outlet and it can be life beyond football. Going to Tampa, I mean, great city. Looking at it from the off-season standpoint, I love the water. I love to be out in the sun. It's just awesome, but it would've been like another Nashville. Tampa doesn't have that big market and they don't have a huge fan base like the Washington Redskins do, so I think it was just a choice just to look at it that way"

Haynesworth has been the best defensive player in the NFL over the past two seasons in my opinion, but in the past he did have a bad rap for taking off plays, and he has been injury prone his entire career. Haynesworth has missed time every year since his rookie season.

Haynesworth really turned his career around after the ugly face stomping incident back in 2006 against the Cowboys. Haynesworth was suspended five games, an NFL record for an on field action.



Since the incident, Haynesworth has been a changed man. Playing in the NFL was a privilege that he did not want to lose. The injuries still occurred, but you didn't see him taking any plays off. He was a dominating force. Most thought that his career season was because he was in the last year of his contract. I am not one of those believers. I think Haynesworth just grew up.

Haynesworth was slapped with the franchise tag after the '07 season. Titans GM Mike Reinfeldt wanted to see Haynesworth do it one more season before rewarding him with a large contract. This was obviously the right decision given his track record. Needless to say, Haynesworth outplayed his '07 season with a monster season last year, thus pricing him out of Tennessee. Franchising Haynesworth last year allowed the team to secure CB Courtland Finnegan and both starting offensive tackles Michael Roos & David Stewart. If you look at the contracts they received, Tennessee got these players at a bargain price in my opinion.

So where does this leave the Titans for the 2009 season? Suprisingly, I think the team is in excellent shape heading into the season. The loss of Haynesworth hurts, but I think the loss of their depth at corner losing Chris Carr & Eric King stings just a bit more.

Tennessee added free agent DT Jovan Haye from the Buccaneers in the offseason, and also drafted DT Sen'Derrick Marks in the 2nd round out of Auburn. Marks was hampered by an ankle injury last year, but when he was healthy, he was one of the best DT in the nation.

Tennessee drafted a pair of defensive linemen last season as well getting DE Jason Jones who has since slid over to DT, and DE William Hayes from Winston-Salem State who was ranked 66th among DE prospects from draft guru Mel Kiper. The duo of Jones/Hayes registered 4.5 sacks in a week 16 game against the Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers, a game played without Albert Haynesworth. (Jones 3.5, Hayes 1)



The Titans also have DT Tony Brown who CBS Sports writer Pete Prisco called the most underrated player on the team. I agree with Prisco 100% with his assessment.

Jacob Ford, Dave Ball & Kevin Vickerson round out the rest of the Titans "unknown" defensive line. Ford had 7 sacks, Ball had 4.5 sacks, and Vickerson is very effective as a run stopper.

The other two linemen are of course Kyle Vanden Bosch & Jevon Kearse. Vanden Bosch is entering the final year of his contract, and I think we might see a Haynesworth type of performance out of him this year. Vanden Bosch was plagued with injuries all last season. He ended the year with only 4.5 sacks, his lowest number since joining the Titans. Kearse was effective at times last year, but he clearly isn't the player he was five years ago. He has only managed 3.5 sacks in each of his past three seasons.

The most important piece to this Titans defensive unit is defensive line coach Jim Washburn. This will be Washburns 11th season with the Titans. He has made careers out of many players including Vanden Bosch.

The Chain Gang will be back in the '09/'10 season, some of the faces might have changed or they might not have the "flashy name", but one thing is certain. The results will be the same.

Kerry Collins starting QB but should he be ?

When the 2009 NFL Season opens in Pittsburgh on September 10th, the man behind center will not be the future of the franchise Vince Young, it will be journey man Kerry Collins.

Collins lead the Titans to a NFL best 13-3 record last year, more importantly managed the games and limited turnovers. Collins only had 7 interceptions and 1 fumble lost last year. Compare that to Vince Young who in 2007-2008 season had a total of 20 turnovers. Young didn't have the benefit of having a superstar running back like Chris Johnson to work with though, or a good receiving core either. Young had 2 interceptions and 2 fumbles (both recovered by Tennessee) in the season opener against the Jags last year.

WR Justin Gage had a great year despite only 34 receptions. He looked great down the stretch, and should look good along side free agent speedster Nate Washington and first round selection Kenny Britt. This was the first time the Titans drafted a WR in the 1st round since their draft blunder in 1998 where they drafted Kevin Dyson over future hall of famer Randy Moss.

New Offensive Coordinator Mike Heimerdinger who was the Titans OC during the Steve McNair days also was added to the mix last year. Could Young have had that same success that Collins had last year? We will never know, but Heimerdinger did wonders with McNair who was a "project" coming out of 1-AA Alcorn State.

In a recent ESPN interview below, Young said,

"I'm ready to play football, And I don't know what NFL player around the league don't want to play or be a starter. So what I'm saying is that I'm ready to play ball. And if it's not here, in my next two years that I'm not going to be able to play here, then I'm telling guys around the league, I'm ready to play ball. That's basically what I'm saying. ... I'm just saying I'm ready to play football, and if I don't get a shot to play again here, then obviously I'm not going to be here."

I do believe there will be an open competition for this spot, but clearly Fisher will not tolerate Young's mistakes and pouting. Young actually has a better career completion percentage then Collins does, and he can make plays with his legs that Collins cannot. On the flip side Collins throws one of the nicest deep balls in the league, and that is something Vince has struggled with so far.

When your team is built around a solid running attack, ball control & good defense, you need to have your quarterback limit his mistakes. Tennessee made mistake after mistake in the playoffs last year against the Ravens, and still almost won the game. Throw in a pick or two from Young in that game and it would have been a 10 point game.

This fan is hoping that Vince can turn it around and start playing like the QB we all thought and hoped he would be coming out of college. We need a new hero in Nashville, and I believe Vince can be that guy.

MVP Steve McNair murdered

Steve "Air" McNair was not only one of the best quarterbacks that I have seen play in my lifetime, he was also my favorite Titan of all time. McNair was found dead in a residence he was leasing yesterday. Autopsy results show that this was a homicide.

The Tenneessee Titans organization was waiting for coach Jeff Fisher to address the media about this tragic situation. "I am deeply saddened and at this point do not have the words to describe this loss,’’ Fisher said. “It is an extremely emotional moment and I don’t have the words to explain how I am feeling. I ask people to please pray for Mechelle and the entire McNair family. This is a tragic moment for his family, and it is a tragic moment for anyone who knew and loved Steve.’’

McNair was known for his warrior type leadership. He played injured numerous times and he led the Titans to their only Super Bowl back in 2000. The game was most known for Kevin Dyson getting tackled at the 1 yard line as time expired, but it was the drive that Steve McNair led in the final moments of that game that defined his career.

McNair had numerous other accolades including 3 pro bowl births, and Co-MVP in 2003 with Colts QB Peyton Manning.

In 2006 the Titans broke the hearts of many fans by releasing McNair. It was a move that saved the Titans nine million dollars against the cap. Many Titans fans myself included were more upset over the way they handled the situation. "Steve was told that until he got his contract straightened out, he wasn't welcome at the facility," said Cook. "Heck, he's got his contract already straightened out and now he's trying to fulfill it by reporting for the offseason."

McNair signed with the hated Ravens and led them to a 13-3 record in his first season. McNair battled injuries the rest of his career with the Ravens and was forced to retire.

He may not have hall of fame numbers on paper, but Steve McNair is a hall of famer in my book.
Heres hoping that another player the caliber of McNair graces the Titans franchise in the near future. We definitely could use one.

Lendale White contract situation.

The Titans have a big decision to make after this up coming season, and by big, I mean big as in Lendale White. White is only under contract for this coming season, and reportedly is 20 lbs under last seasons weight.

"Listen, Listen.Contract year or not, I know what they’re going to say and it’s hilarious, yeh. I’m not doing this to have the titans redo my contract or make it better. This is the end of my contract with the titans, if the titans Titans don’t pay me, someone will. My heart is with the titans, I want to be a Tennessee Titan, I didn’t lose this weight to get a better contract.” White said

We saw first hand in the playoffs what kind of player Chris Johnson is against one of the best defenses in the NFL. Johnson gets injured, and the offense was just not the same. Lendale had some good games, including a monster game against the Chiefs where he had a 80 yard touchdown run, but the future is with Johnson not White.

White clearly wants to cash in big during free agency. The Titans FO is not stupid, the more TDs Lendale gets next year, the higher the price tag will be to resign him. I expect to see a lot of Chris Johnson in the redzone.

The NFL is a two back league now, but I don't see how the Titans can pony up the cash for him next year, unless he really proves to be more than just a short yardage back.