TitanInsider Board

Not the scheme. It's rather sound.....good defense.

a) DE: We desperately lacked a pass rush last yr. Mainly in the form of a couple good pass rush DE's. We picked up Wimbley, but then let one of our decent DE's from last yr go....off to Seattle, I think, where he's playing well. Wimbley has been nice to see and Morgan has been decent. (Morgan is not a true pass rush DE. He's an all-around DE...always has been) So we still don't have a decent pass rush. We still need to fix it with a really good pass rusher and maybe another DE for depth. We need to spend a 1st-3rd rd draft pick on a pass rusher....and either spend a later pick on a DE or get a good vet in FA.

b) CB: So we didn't boost the pass rush......and then we lost a top-10 NFL CB in Finn. Court and ATV are doing ok, but the loss of Finn is hard to swallow. We need to improve the pass rush, let Court and ATV mature, and get a young promising CB to add to the roster.....maybe spend a medium to high draft pick.

c) S: Griffin has been ok, Babs has been ok, but Rojo was not......at least not yet. Both Griffin and Babs have played well enough to be decent, but if they are lacking pass rush and CB help???? We locked up Griffin with a contract, but we need to start planning for life after Babs.

d) OLB: Ayers has looked considerably better this yr than last, but he's still a 2nd yr player that is learning the position. He looks like he has potential, but he'll need another yr or two before things click for him. Field General McCarthy is plain awesome. B/c he's young and inexperienced he is out of position on occasion, but then he cleans it up with a big stop the next play. Give him a yr or two and he may be top-5 or 10 at his position in the league. Spoon is decent, but mainly on 1st and 2nd downs. He is aging and doesn't have the skill set anymore to get it down on 3rd. Enter the Zach Brown Band. He's as athletic as it gets, but he's as raw as it gets and is a project player. He will take at least 2-3 yrs before he really can take over and do well........if he develops that much at all. So we have a really good outlook for 2 of the 3 LB spots, but the 3rd is a questionmark.....but a questionmark with massive potential. I wouldn't be adverse to spending a med to lower draft pick on a OLB that could either prove to be a starter or depth behind Brown.

e) DT: Love the Klug, Casey, Martin combo. The only knock on the DT's is that they all are young, inexperienced, and that we lack a really good thumper plug. We need a guy that is a 1st and 2nd down DT that is large and plugs up the middle. Marks could be that guy, but he's very inconsistent and has been tagged with the dreaded "lack of motivation" tag. So I think we could spend a med to lower draft pick and work out just fine.

So in all, we are looking at a potential top 10 NFL defense in a few yrs.....but if we don't start addressing needs that are smacking us in the face every yr then we will continue to get smoked.

Actually, the Titans don't have a defensively scheme. They base their defense on their opponent each week, so it always changing. I don't particularly cate for this philosophy. I think a defense is better if it has an identity and I definitely don't think we have the personnel to mold a new defense every week.

Terry made a great point on 102.5 Friday that the only time the Titans have been good (and the D was good) they had a player on the defensively line that wreaked havoc (Kearse early in his career, Haynesworth and Vanden Bosch). Our pass rush is horrible, it is the defense's biggest problem. It was a big reason why we went 0-6 in 2009 also so this isn't a new problem. Babin made a difference the one year he was here but they've Bern scraping the barrel since IMO. Obviously, the front office was counting on Derrick Morgan but so far he has basically been a bust. Our second year tackles have taken a step back which hasn't helped. I'm sure we miss Washburn as well. Wimbley is decent but they need somone else to show up.

Yes, getting McCarthy back will help a lot, especially with TE coverage where we are getting killed, and we do miss Finny but until our front four can get some pressure on the QB we are going to have problems.

Edited. Wasn't 104.5, it was SportsNight on 102.5, can't keep them straight sometimes.