Entering the Week 14 contest against the Miami Dolphins, we couldn’t find a single person who thought the Tennessee Titans would win — and that includes our staff, which also picked against the Titans.
The sentiment was understandable considering the quality of opponent and how badly the Titans have played all season long. However, thankfully games aren’t played on paper and miracles are possible.
This win was so great for so many reasons and was quite the result after what was an absolutely crushing defeat in Week 13.
We go over those reasons and much more as we take a look at the biggest takeaways from a historic win over the Dolphins.
Will Levis cements himself as "the guy"
What the Titans did on Monday night in coming back from a 14-point deficit that late in the game was historic. Making it even better was the fact that their rookie quarterback led the charge, and did so on a national stage.
These are the kinds of wins that can catapult a young-signal caller and win over the fan base. After Monday night, I doubt there is a single Titans fan out there who has any doubt that Levis has cemented himself as the future of the franchise.
Now, he has to continue developing ahead of an offseason in which the first goal for the Titans will be surrounding Levis with enough talent to help him take that next step in 2024.
The good news is, Tennessee will have $100 million and some draft picks to work with, which makes the future even brighter in Nashville.
The defense played its best game of 2023
Where did that come from?!
Without Jeffery Simmons, the Titans’ run defense struggled but the pass-rush had arguably its best game of 2023, with five sacks and consistent pressure making things more difficult for Tua and Co.
Per @NextGenStats, Tua Tagovailoa was pressured on 39% of his dropbacks tonight and sacked 5 times
When facing pressure, Tua completed 4-of-11 passes for 27 yards (-20.4% CPOE)
Without pressure, Tua was 19-of-22 for 213 yards (12.6% CPOE)
— Marcel Louis-Jacques (@Marcel_LJ) December 12, 2023
We also saw a sensational game from Harold Landry, who tallied three sacks and five QB hits in what was yet another sign he’s almost — if not fully — back to form after a torn ACL last year.
The biggest surprise was the secondary, which didn’t give up many big plays and was solid in coverage overall, even without Kristian Fulton, which might have been more of a positive than a negative. In all, Miami finished with just 240 yards through the air.
If not for some blunders that put the defense in terrible positions, the unit may not have allowed a single touchdown to Miami’s offense, something that was unthinkable going into the game.
Adding to that, the Titans’ defense was the first in 2023 to not give up a single touchdown to the Dolphins’ unit over the first three quarters of a game.
Considering the situation and the overall performance, there’s no question this was the defense’s best showing of 2023. It might be too little to late in terms of helping Tennessee get to the playoffs, but it was good to see nonetheless.
Titans need a new punt returner
What can’t get lost in the thrilling win is the blunder by cornerback and punt returner Eric Garror, who made things more difficult after he muffed a punt that set the Dolphins up for their first offensive touchdown of the game.
Garror then nearly muffed his next attempt before finally reeling it in. I won’t even blame the second one on him, though, as he should’ve been pulled after the aforementioned boneheaded decision.
Thankfully, the Titans were able to erase the mistake with a miraculous win. However, that doesn’t change the fact that the Titans have to go back to the drawing board at punt returner in Week 15.
Ty Zentner was excellent in his debut
Zentner had impossible shoes to fill in his Titans debut, as he was taking over for star punter Ryan Stonehouse. But the Kansas State product answered the bell, averaging an impressive 48.8 yards per punt over five attempts. He also didn’t make any mistakes as the holder.
If only the Titans could scout the other positions like they do punter, they’d have a dynasty. Nevertheless, Tennessee appears to be in good hands for now.
This kind of win trumps draft positioning
Yes, the Titans have a worse draft spot than last week, but there’s still time to move up in the order, especially after most of the teams in front of them won.
However, the kind of win the Titans pulled off in Week 14 trumps everything else, as it was a great sign for the future of the franchise and Levis and could do wonders for his development.
Draft positioning is important, sure, but Levis taking a giant leap forward like he did on Monday night is more important.
Titans are still fighting
Despite all the terrible things that have happened this season, the fight this team has shown the last two games proves head coach Mike Vrabel has not lost the locker room.
Granted, he’s made his fair share of mistakes that can’t be overlooked, but it’s clear the Titans still have the right man for the job and this has renewed my faith in Vrabel to turn this ship around once the team has the talent necessary.
