The Tennessee Titans have given up on first-round pick Jake Locker and will turn to Zach Mettenberger to lead this team for the final stretch of the regular season. It’s honestly a win-win for the Titans, because if Mettenberger plays well enough, then they can feel comfortable with moving forward with him as their franchise quarterback. But if he fails, then the Titans would likely lose enough games to receive a high draft pick, which would undoubtedly be used to draft a top quarterback.
Mettenberger had a chance to watch his tape against the rival Houston Texans from his starting debut in Week 8, and I’m sure he’s had plenty to digest after struggling to start the contest. The bye week definitely helped the team as a whole, but the biggest beneficiary is Mettenberger, who has plenty of raw tools and arm strength but struggles with his consistency and decision-making. He finished with solid numbers against the Texans but will face a bigger test this upcoming week against the Baltimore Ravens, though the Ravens did get shelled by a red-hot Ben Roethlisberger through the air.
Chop Chat
This upcoming game against the Ravens is one of five tough games the 2-6 Titans will have to face in the second-half of the season, so the schedule only gets more difficult. They did face a treacherous first four weeks before getting a four-week break before the bye, though they did go 1-3 in a four-game stretch against the Cleveland Browns, Washington Redskins, Jacksonville Jaguars (this was their win, and it was a two-point victory at that), and Houston Texans. That win over the Kansas City Chiefs is starting to look like one of the biggest upset wins of the season, though there are a significant number of candidates.
Titans fans embracing the “Suck for the Duck” campaign will like the upcoming slate of games for the second-half of the season, so let’s take a look at which tests are on the horizon for Mettenberger, who is the team’s biggest storyline at this point.
Week 10 Baltimore Ravens: Despite the fact that the Ravens are coming off of back-to-back division losses, I can’t see them losing to the Titans, especially since the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers are two very good football teams. I actually don’t think the Titans are going to get blown out or anything, though all bets are off if Joe Flacco runs hot. I think this is a great test for Mettenberger, especially when it comes to his ability to succeed under pressure. Rookie tackle Taylor Lewan is already one of the Titans best players, in my opinion, and I can’t wait to see what he does against the Ravens.
Week 11 Pittsburgh Steelers: With the way Ben Roethlisberger is playing, the Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the scariest teams in the NFL, and things could get ugly if he’s able to pick on Blidi Wreh-Wilson and Michael Griffin, who was reportedly on the trading block, in coverage. Troy Polamalu and Ryan Shazier should be back by then, but the Steelers defense is still soft in coverage and can be beaten by the likes of Delanie Walker, Justin Hunter, and the always under-appreciated (on a national scale, of course) Kendall Wright.
Week 12 Philadelphia Eagles: The Titans certainly didn’t get a light trio of games following the bye, and the Philadelphia Eagles might be the most difficult opponent of the three. While Mark Sanchez gives the Titans an opportunity to grab some key picks that could help catalyze an upset, it’s never about the quarterback in the Eagles offense. The rest of the O is incredibly scary, as Jeremy Maclin is playing at an elite level, and the now-healthy offensive line is paving some holes for LeSean McCoy, who is back on track. Throw in Jordan Matthews, Zach Ertz, and Darren Sproles, and there are simply too many weapons for the Titans to contend with. For those of you on Mettenberger watch, he’ll be tested by two star talents in Malcolm Jenkins and Brandon Boykin, but the rest of the Eagles secondary, especially Cary Williams, is burnable.
Week 13 Houston Texans: Ken Whisenhunt and the Titans are probably tabbing this as a revenge game, because they went into the bye week on a sour note after being blown out by the Texans. Realistically, the Texans are the better team and were expected to win, but they shouldn’t have lost by two touchdowns. The Texans have gifted skill position players, but their quarterback situation is the worst in the division.
Week 14 New York Giants: It’s hard to figure out how good the Giants are, and their once-elite secondary is now paper-thin after another season-ending injury. Once one of the deepest cornerback groups in the NFL, the Giants are down to Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie and the underrated Zackary Bowman, who was once a liability while with the Chicago Bears, as Prince Amukamara joined Walter Thurmond as top CBs with season-ending injuries. That’s obviously great news for Mettenberger, and I think Walker and Wright or Washington could have strong days. Projecting the Giants offense is always a crapshoot, but they should be solid once Rashad Jennings comes back. That said, the matchup to watch will be Jason McCourty vs. Odell Beckham Jr., as they are two great young players in this league; talented WR-CB battles are usually fun to watch, too.
Week 15 New York Jets: After a tough stretch of five games, the Tennessee Titans get a much-needed two-game break, as they get to face two teams that are worse than they are right now. I don’t anticipate Michael Vick relinquishing starting duties to Geno Smith by the time these two teams square off, because Vick actually used star receivers Percy Harvin and Eric Decker to great effect despite the fact that the Jets lost to a very good Chiefs team. The Jets offense went from having no weapons to having more than enough talent at the skill positions, but the Titans will be spared by what will likely be merely average quarterback play. Meanwhile, hopefully Mettenberger can turn in a better-than-average performance against the Jets secondary.
Week 16 Jacksonville Jaguars: Even though the Titans defeated the Jags earlier this year, this is a game they can’t count on winning again. Not only was their two-point victory too close for comfort, but the Jaguars offense is capable of putting up sizeable yardage, even with the raw Blake Bortles busy throwing INTs. Denard Robinson is a scary back, though the Titans can hope that rookie Bishop Sankey can counter by then. This should be another close one, and it could come down to which skill position players rise to the occasion.
Week 17 Indianapolis Colts: The Colts blew the Titans out of the water when they faced off earlier this season, as Andrew Luck helped Indy drop 41 on Ray Horton‘s defense. I don’t think the Titans will lose by as much the second time around, but I can’t see them containing the Colts deep passing attack. They’ll probably give up around 30-35 points, but the hope is that they can counter with at least 20 of their own. Aside from Vontae Davis, nobody in the Colts secondary scares me, and Greg Toler, Mike Adams, and LaRon Landry can be picked on in coverage.
I think the Titans will finish the season with anywhere from three to five wins. Their easiest game on tap is that battle against the Jets, though their skill position players (Harvin, Chris Ivory, Decker, and others) give me some pause. At the very least, they’ll win one of their two games in Week 15 and 16, and they should be able to add one other game to the win column. I can’t see them defeating the Colts, Eagles, or Steelers, but the Ravens, Giants, and Texans are teams they are capable of upsetting (to be fair, beating the Texans wouldn’t necessarily be an upset). I’ll split the difference and give the Titans a mirror 2-6 record for the second half of the season with a 4-12 finish. That’s definitely not good, but this team’s main concern is building talent for the future. They already have a few impressive building blocks in Taylor Lewan, Kendall Wright, Jurrell Casey, Jason McCourty, Derrick Morgan, and the criminally underrated Delanie Walker.