Before the season started, the Tennessee Titans had high expectations on the defensive side of the ball — and for good reason.
Up until the point where injuries depleted their roster, the Titans were every bit of an elite defense a season ago. From weeks 3-10, the 2022 Titans only allowed 15.1 points per game while ranking:
- 1st in Success Rate
- 1st in Rush EPA
- 1st in Rushing Success Rate
- 6th in EPA per play
- 6th in Dropback Success Rate
- 6-1 record over that span
This year, it’s the complete opposite. From weeks 3-11, the Titans have allowed an average of 21.4 points per game, while ranking:
- 31st in EPA per play
- 31st in dropback EPA
- 28th in dropback success rate
- 26th in success rate
- 23rd in rushing success rate
- 21st in rush EPA
- 2-6 record over that span
*Numbers collected from RBSDM*
Even if you’re not a fan of analytics and prefer to stick to the old-fashioned data, Tennessee still ranks in the bottom 10 in:
- Takeaways (32nd)
- Quarterback Hurries (31st)
- Opposing Quarterback rating (31st)
- Quarterback pressures (30th)
- Yards allowed (28th)
- Yards per play (24th)
Needless to say, when the defense was supposed to be your biggest path to relevancy and it underperforms to this extent, it’s hardly a surprise to see Tennessee’s season going by the wayside.
The loss of Jim Schwartz was undoubtedly much more important than it was initially perceived. He’s been fantastic with the Cleveland Browns, instantly revitalizing their defense upon his arrival. Meanwhile, the team he departed drastically regressed in every possible way.
It’s too late to save this season, but one thing is for sure: Tennessee has to make several improvements to the player and possibly coaching personnel this offseason if it wants to get back to being a dominant group in 2024.
