2015-16 NFL Preview: Tennessee Titans

The Ultimate Sports Blog's

2015-16 NFL Preview

2014-15 Record: 2-14

Last Playoff Win: 2003 Wildcard vs. Baltimore Ravens

Last Playoff Appearance: 2008 Divisional vs. Baltimore Ravens

Last Super Bowl Win: None

Last Super Bowl Appearance: Super Bowl XXXIV vs. St. Louis Rams (1999)

Head Coach:

Ken Whisenhunt (47-65 all-time in NFL; 2-14 all-time in Tennessee, 4-2 in playoffs)

Assistant Head Coach: Dick LeBeau

Offensive Coordinator: Jason Michael

Defensive Coordinator: Ray Horton

2014-15 Team Leaders:

Passing Yards: Zach Mettenberger (1,412 passing yards, 59.8% completions, 8 TD's, 7 INT's, 83.4 QB rating)

Rushing Yards: Bishop Sankey (152 attempts, 569 yards, 2 TD's)

Receiving Yards: Delanie Walker (63 receptions, 890 yards, 4 TD's)

Tackles: Michael Griffin (112 tackles)

Interceptions: Jason McCourty (3 interceptions)

2014-15 Team Rankings:

Passing Offense: 22nd in NFL

Rushing Offense: 26th in NFL

Points Per Game: 30th in NFL

Least Points Allowed Per Game: 29th in NFL

2015-16 Potential Starters:

Player Guide:

Purpe - Elite Starter
Blue - Above Average Starter
Green - Average Starter
Orange - Below Average Starter
Grey - Rookie
Red - Disgusting, Awful, Horrible, E.J. Manuel


Offense:

QB: Marcus Mariota

RB: Bishop Sankey

WR: Harry Douglas

WR: Kendall Wright

TE: Delanie Walker

C: Brian Schwenke

OG: Andy Levitre

OG: Chance Warmack

OT: Jeremiah Poutasi

OT: Taylor Lewan


Defense:

DE: Jurrell Casey

DE: DaQuan Jones

DT: Sammie Hill

LB: Brian Orakpo

LB: Derrick Morgan

LB: Avery Williamson

LB: Zach Brown

CB: Perrish Cox

CB: Jason McCourty

FS: Michael Griffin

SS: Da'Norris Searcy

2015-16 Schedule:

(September 13) vs. @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers

(September 20) vs. @ Cleveland Browns

(September 27) vs. Indianapolis Colts

(October 4) BYE WEEK

(October 11) vs. Buffalo Bills

(October 18) vs. Miami Dolphins

(October 25) vs. Atlanta Falcons

(November 1) vs. @ Houston Texans

(November 8) vs. @ New Orleans Saints

(November 15) vs. Carolina Panthers

(November 19) vs. @ Jacksonville Jaguars

(November 29) vs. Oakland Raiders

(December 6) vs. Jacksonville Jaguars

(December 13) vs. @ New York Jets

(December 20) vs. @ New England Patriots

(December 27) vs. Houston Texans

(January 3) vs. @ Indianapolis Colts

Final Prediction: 3-13 (1-5)


Overlook: The Tennessee Titans have been irrelevant in the NFL for what seems like forever now. For more than a few seasons, the Titans were stuck in the old "6-9 win cloud" that can absolutely stall NFL teams from getting over that hump to "Super Bowl contender". Why does it stall NFL teams? Because when you get 6-9 wins a year, you are usually in the "too good to get a significant draft pick-too bad to get a playoff spot" limbo that every NFL team dreads. Personally, I would rather have my team bottom out and get only 2-3 wins, secure a top 5 draft pick and hopefully bring in someone who can rejuvenate the team and the fans. That's how you get a franchise turned around quickly and that's what the Tennessee Titans are hoping happens to them after the wheels fell off the wagon last year. Last year was a rough one for the Titans. The team set the record for the lowest # of wins since they became the Titans in 1999 and it wasn't pretty. However, there is some silver lining in all of this. After an off-season filled with rumors and head scratching, the Tennessee Titans are hoping they finally got their franchise quarterback when they drafted Marcus Mariota with the second overall pick. Can Mariota save this once powerful franchise and bring them back up to the upper echelon teams in the NFL?

If Mariota is going to get the Titans out of NFL "hell", it's probably not going to happen this year. Looking at the Titans roster on offense, you notice that Mariota isn't exactly going to have a lot of weapons to work with. Bishop Sankey was extremely disappointing last season and we all know how badly Mariota needs a good running game to be an effective quarterback. If Sankey can't get it done this year, the Titans need to move on and move on quickly. Mariota's best receiver is actually his tight end, Delanie Walker. Walker led the Titans in receiving yards last year and he'll probably lead the team again this year. Why? Because the wide receivers are extremely mediocre and the team is severely lacking a true #1 guy. The offensive line is also all over the place. There isn't an elite guy on the line and to be honest, outside of Chance Warmack and Taylor Lewan, you can keep the rest. Jeremiah Poutasi has the chance to be good, but Mariota needs someone who's good right now in order to help build up his confidence. Can a rookie offensive tackle fill that spot? So many question marks with this Titans offense. I won't go anywhere near it in regards to fantasy football.

The defense is definitely the strength of this Titans team, and that's unfortunately not saying much. Sure, I don't HATE what Tennessee is offering up on defense, but I'm also not in love with it either. There are a few holes that could definitely use some patching up and there isn't an elite player anywhere on this unit. However, the defense is still the best part about this team mainly because of Jurrell Casey, the linebackers, and a few defensive backs. Ken Whisenhunt is building something here though. If he can get an upgrade at defensive tackle, free safety, and one of their inside linebacker positions next off-season....then watch out.

So what's the ceiling with this Titans team? I think with a rookie QB that has little to work with, an average defense,  and an average head coach, you shouldn't be expecting much. 3-5 wins is likely the ceiling, but what you want to see this year as a Titans fan is for Mariota to continue to develop into a franchise QB. That's the big one. The Titans have been lacking a true franchise QB for as long as I can remember and if Mariota can blossom into one, Tennessee just took one huge step closer to winning a Super Bowl title.