2008 Tennessee Titans Prospect
What can you say about the Tennessee Titans other than 1960 and 1961 was a great year? Not too hard on the titans now! After all, this team has managed to win eight division championships and one conference championship, most of which were won in the modern era. (More than can be said about some longtime NFL teams that haven’t seen a Super Bowl party in decades.) Point for point, the Tennessee Titans handle themselves very well. In 2006 they floundered with an 8-8 record, but in 2007 they finished with a 10-6 score and finished in third place in the AFC South division. While the Titans haven’t enjoyed a strong Super Bowl year since the 1960s, they did play a remarkable season in 1999, finishing with a big 13-3 score and going all the way to the Super Bowl before falling. to the St. Louis Rams.
What does Season 49 hold for the Titans? Jeff Fisher is back as coach of the Titans and currently holds the longest tenure as a team’s head coach, first accepting the job in 1994. What can you say about Titans Coach Fish? He is well respected by the team and by owner and Texas oilman Bud Adams, and is universally known as “Coach Fish.” Respect and nicknames aside, some NFL fans criticize Fisher for his lack of aggressiveness in crucial moments of the game. The consensus is that he tends to play conservative based on old field goal tricks to win games. The coach certainly put this philosophy to the test last season when he called so many field goals that kicker Rob Bironas actually made an NFL-record eight field goals in a single game.
What happened to the Titans roster? The team has seen great players leave and others have started a new future with the franchise. Since March, the team has seen two players retire in Erron Kinney and Benji Olson. However, the team managed to give up important players like Michael Roos, Donnie Nickey, Justin Gage and Daniel Loper. There are currently no injuries reported, which means good news for the start of the season.
The team also had an impressive collection of draft picks. Chris Johnson was the most popular running back at East Carolina University. Defensive players included Jason Jones, operating as a defensive tackle for Eastern Michigan University and William Hayes as a defensive end for Winston-Salem State University. Other notable drafts included tight end Craig Stevens and wide receiver Lavelle Hawkins from California, linebacker Stanford Keglar from Purdue, and cornerback Cary Williams from Washburn University.
What do football fans think of the Titans’ playoff chances next year? Fans and pundits alike focused on criticizing the Titans’ offense, specifically the team’s inability to score touchdowns in the red zone area. In fact, the Titans ranked last in the NFL in red zone TD efficiency in 2007 and only crossed the goal line on 20 of their 55 possessions inside the other teams’ 20-yard line. Fans remain optimistic that new talent like Alge Crumpler and Chris Johnson will spice up the offense, making the Titans shine as Tennessee’s top franchise.