The Tennessee Titans weren’t taking it easy during voluntary workouts earlier this week, as evidenced by the team pushing sleds on Monday.
While the approach garnered plenty of attention considering the amount of injuries the Titans have had in recent years, this isn’t something new for a Mike Vrabel-led team.
The idea is to push players now with the hope they will be better able to avoid injuries and outlast opponents in games down the road. The injuries in particular have been a major issue for Tennessee the past two years.
This approach is new to Titans cornerback Sean Murphy-Bunting, who noted that a lot of teams aren’t doing what Tennessee is doing right now.
“We do a lot of things that other teams in the league aren’t doing at this time,” he said. “We’re pushing sleds on Monday, we’re doing things that’s different. But, at the end of the day, it’s enjoyable. You come out here and it feels like you’re working for something.”
Linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair mentioned seeing a sign on the wall at the team facility about expectations, with conditioning being part of them. He quickly found out that the Titans practice what they preach.
“They had a sign on the wall that was talking about expectations,” he said, per ESPN’s Turron Davenport. “In the expectations, you see conditioning as one of them. You’re just like, ‘Ah, that looks good.’ But, conditioning here, it’s real. We’re doing a lot.”
Another new Titan, veteran offensive lineman Daniel Brunskill, likened the approach to building up a callus, something Vrabel has talked about before.
“Every team has a different philosophy,” Brunskill said, per John Glennon of Nashville Post. “Some teams like to make sure guys aren’t getting injured. They do just enough to where guys are in shape, and able to do the things they can.
“There’s another philosophy where you work super hard and build up that callus, so then things don’t hurt as bad [during the season], and you don’t get those same injuries you would because you weren’t doing enough. At the end of the day, it’s just different philosophies. I think either of them really work.”
Brunskill also noted how conditioning will help with the style of offense the Titans are running.
“Everything is speed off the ball,” he said. “How fast can we get into the defense with no false steps? Conditioning helps with that, it helps us work our tempo.”
While this philosophy has not helped the Titans avoid a stunning amount of injuries the past two years, it’s impossible to put all the blame on Vrabel’s approach, as there’s a lot that goes into players getting hurt.
However, you can bet your bottom dollar this conversation will be revisited (and this approach blamed) down the road if the Titans can’t stay healthy overall for a third straight year.
