The Tennessee Titans weren’t able to secure a win on Saturday in their preseason debut against the Chicago Bears, but that’s not really what the preseason is about.
Sure, a win is always good, but we’re really looking for players to make strides and show they’re capable of helping the Titans during the regular season.
With the Titans sitting the vast majority of their starters, we got a great look at what Tennessee has to work with on the bench. Some players made the most of the opportunity, but others sputtered and hurt their cause.
With all that in mind, let’s take a look at the players who qualified as winners and losers, as well as those who fell somewhere in between following the preseason Week 1 loss to the Bears.
Winner: Coach Terrell Williams
Terrell Williams got his first taste of head coaching on Saturday thanks to the opportunity given to him by Mike Vrabel — and if I didn’t know any better, I wouldn’t have had any idea it wasn’t Vrabel at the helm.
Things ran smoothly and Williams looked to be in full control. I hope the rest of the league takes notice because Williams is someone who deserves a shot.
Winner: QB Malik Willis
Willis showed a ton of improvement in his 2023 preseason debut. He looked much more comfortable while displaying better pocket presence, accuracy and decisiveness.
The Liberty product led the Titans on a pair of scoring drives, one of which he finished off with a touchdown run. The other came at the end of the first half and saw him take the Titans into field goal range for three points.
He did have a pair of turnovers, but one of them was on a tipped pass that, while high, should’ve been caught by tight end Josh Whyle. He also lost a fumble that was squarely on him after he held the ball for too long.
In addition to that, Willis missed Mason Kinsey in the end zone for what would have been a go-ahead touchdown late in the game, but he did connect on three big plays beforehand to get Tennessee close.
Willis, who was night and day better than last season, looked like the superior quarterback over Will Levis on Saturday, as he should. That will help him keep his grip on the backup quarterback job for now but this competition is far from over, as the gap between the two isn’t big by any stretch.
In between: QB Will Levis
At no point in his preseason debut did Levis look lost, and the gap between he and Willis remains close, although Willis is ahead of him for the backup quarterback job at the moment.
Levis had some accuracy issues, even on passes he completed, and his internal clock wasn’t fast enough in some instances. He had a chance at a game-winning drive late, but it was thwarted via a bad interception.
All that said, he flashed his mobility, showed solid pocket presence, and he displayed his arm talent on a nice throw on the run to Kinsey for a 21-yard gain.
Overall, it was an encouraging performance for the Kentucky product, but he remains behind Willis in the battle for QB2.
Winner: RB Tyjae Spears
Spears was among the biggest standouts of the afternoon, with the rookie running back showing off impressive cuts and toughness that included an impressive stiff-arm on his longest carry that went for 14 yards.
Spears notched a solid return on a kickoff, also, taking the attempt 22 yards.
We didn’t get to see much from the Tulane product in the passing game (one catch for four yards on one target), but there’s no question his performance left us excited to see more, especially in tandem with Derrick Henry.
Loser: TE Josh Whyle
It was a rough debut for Whyle, who was part of a pair of turnovers on the day.
The Cincinnati product couldn’t reel-in a high but catchable ball from Willis that went off his hands and led to an interception, and he lost a fumble after a reception in the second quarter.
The rookie tight end, who finished the game with two catches for nine yards, didn’t make any ground on Trevon Wesco for TE2 and will hope for better days in the weeks ahead.
Winner: Starting O-line
The starting offensive line (LT Andre Dillard, LG Peter Skoronski, C Aaron Brewer, RG Daniel Brunskill, RT Chris Hubbard) only had one series, but there was a lot to like about it.
The pass protection for Willis was good, and the group was able to open up holes in the ground game for Spears. Granted, it was a small sample size, but we’ll take it after what has been a lackluster training camp for the unit.
Losers: O-line depth
While the starters were good, the backup guys were not. Willis and Levis were sacked eight times with the second- and third-teamers in there, and while not all of those were on the line, most were.
Xavier Newman and Jaelyn Duncan were responsible for at least one sack each, and Newman added a penalty for good measure.
Based on what we saw today, the Titans won’t be in good hands if any of their starters go down to injury.
Winner: RB Julius Chestnut
Chestnut wasn’t better than Spears, but he did easily outperform Hassan Haskins. Chestnut looked like the better runner on Saturday, en route to seven carries for 46 yards, including a long of 26. Meanwhile, Haskins finished with just 12 yards on six carries.
Chestnut no doubt helped his cause to make the roster on a day where Haskins didn’t do much and Jonathan Ward (knee) left early due to injury.
In between: WR6 candidates
Racey McMath had a team-high 53 yards, but it’s not like he had any “wow” moments that put him squarely in the lead for the final spot (if there is one) at wide receiver. The same can be said for the rest of the guys vying for a roster spot.
Tre’Shaun Harrison and Kearis Jackson both tallied 34 yards, and Reggie Roberson finished behind them with 20. Even Mason Kinsey got in on the action, finishing with 40 yards, the second-most on the team.
I don’t think any of the aforementioned WR6 candidates pulled ahead by any semblance of a sizeable margin after their showings on Saturday, so this competition remains close.
Winner: CB Eric Garror
Garror was one of the defensive players who stood out the most, as he notched a pair of good open-field tackles and a pair of tackles for loss. His four tackles were tied for second-most on the team.
Adding to his defensive showing, Garror had 26 yards on two punt returns, including a 17-yard return with under a minute left in the game to give Tennessee another chance at a game-winning drive.
Thanks to his impressive showing, Garror has now put himself on the map for a roster spot.
In between: Defensive depth
It was an ugly start to the game for the Titans’ defense, which sat the vast majority of its starters.
The Bears ripped off a pair of long touchdowns (although one probably should’ve been called back due to a block in the back) when the starters were out there on the first two series, and there were some other big plays sprinkled in the rest of the game.
The pass-rush was quiet for most of the game, although Caleb Murphy and Sam Okuayinonu were standouts after both notched a sack. Coverage left a lot to be desired, also, but Tre Avery notched an interception, albeit on a badly overthrown ball.
Things did settle down as the game progressed and the Titans didn’t allow another touchdown after the first two while also securing a pair of turnovers. However, this group didn’t inspire much confidence after its up-and-down preseason debut.
Loser: RB Hassan Haskins
With Spears and Chestnut being among the bigger standouts in preseason Week 1, Haskins went in the opposite direction after failing to get anything going on the ground.
Haskins carried the ball six times for just 12 yards, with his biggest highlight being a one-yard touchdown run after being stuffed on the previous play. He did have two kickoff returns for 40 yards, but even his long of 21 was the shortest attempt of the players who returned kicks on Saturday.
Losers: The kickers
Yes, Caleb Shudak made his field goal from 41 yards out, but it barely went through the uprights. Had it been from four or five more yards out, he probably misses it wide right.
Meanwhile, Trey Wolff missed his lone attempt of the day from 48 yards out.
Both kickers made their extra points, but that’s hardly going to get anyone excited for either player. This showing on Saturday is enough for me to want to see a veteran signed in the week ahead to add more to this competition.
