Tennessee Titans Team Report by Chris Smith
| Ten Projections (9/3) | Passing Stats | Rush Stats | Receiving Stats | Fantasy | |||||||||||
| Change | Name | Pos | Att | Comp | % | Yds | TD | Int | Att | Yds | TD | Rec | Yds | TD | Pts |
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| Totals | #NumberFormat("#tot_patt#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_pcmp#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#evaluate(100*tot_pcmp/tot_patt)#", '_____._')#% | #NumberFormat("#tot_pyds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_ptds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_int#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_ratt#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_ryds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_rtds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_rec#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_cyds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_ctds#", '__,_____')# | #NumberFormat("#tot_pts#", '__,_____')# | ||
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Quarterbacks Starter - Steve McNair Backups - Neil O'Donnell, Billy Volek Starting Quarterback: Steve McNair has always been a fantasy starter predominantly because of his phenomenal rushing skills. However during the 2001 campaign, McNair finally began to display the passing talents that had teams drooling when he came out of Alcorn State. He battled injuries all season, which is his Achilles heel, but he threw for an impressive 3350 yards and tossed 21 touchdowns against only 12 interceptions. The solid passing statistics combined with his usual stellar output in the rushing game helped McNair to end up in the top five fantasy quarterbacks. The bottom line on McNair is he has the tools and players around him to at least match his success of last year. We have him throwing for over 3100 yards and 17 touchdowns but we also wouldn't be surprised to see him with even better numbers. He is a great fantasy starter and an unbelievable backup to your fantasy roster. Backup Quarterback(s): The Titans have a wonderful security blanket by the name of Neil O'Donnell, the 12th year veteran quarterback from Maryland. McNair has had injury issues to deal with the past several years and O'Donnell has filled in admirably whenever he has needed to. He brings poise, experience and professionalism to the field and the Titans barely miss a beat when he enters the game in relieve of McNair. O'Donnell has little, if any fantasy value to the average fantasy owner but he is a great pickup near the end of the draft if the owner selected Steve McNair earlier on. The third string quarterback will be Billy Volek. He is an unknown at the NFL level and needs to get some playing time in NFL Europe to improve his skills. Running Backs Starter - Eddie George Backups - Robert Holcombe, Skip Hicks, Rafael Cooper Starting Running Back: Eddie George has been a workhorse his entire NFL career. After his career season in 2000, it appears as if George could keep on churning out top ten rushing seasons year after year. However, George battles injuries throughout the entire 2001 campaign and the result was a feeble 939 rushing yards on 315 carries with only 5 rushing touchdowns. So far in pre-season, George looks focused, driven if you will to erase those poor numbers of a year ago from everybody's mind. He is a competitor in the truest sense of the word and has been working out harder this past off-season than he has ever done before. The Titans have a pretty easy schedule this year to try and establish a good running attack against in 2002 and we expect George to bounce back with a good season. Not as good as the 2000 year but certainly much better than he was last year. The only concern about him is that the running style he has on the field has to take a toll on his body. He doesn't avoid being hit but rather searches out the contact on the field. Much like Earl Campbell did back in the late 70's and it took a toll on his body, cutting off his career early. We have him with over 1300 rushing yards and 8 touchdowns, and he is sitting at a solid twelfth in our list and rising. Backup Running Back(s): There is a good battle taking place for the right to back up Eddie George at running back. Both Skip Hicks and Robert Holcombe are seasoned veterans who bring decent skills and production to the team. Both are big, strong running backs who can bang away at a defense in the same general fashion of George and both are hungry to be the man if George suffers an injury. At this time, it appears that Holcombe has made the leap into the # 2 slot for the team but it is still very close to call. Keep a close eye on this situation if you are a George owner. The wildcard of the running back position is NFL Europe standout, Rafael Cooper. Not likely to have any impact with the team but he showcased solid talent with Amsterdam. He had a league leading 10 touchdowns and was the second higher producer in yards from scrimmage. Fullback(s): Greg Comella, Mike Green, Dan Alexander: The Titans have a ton of talent at the running back position and will have to cut a player or two that should get picked up quickly by another team. The Titans missed blocking fullback, Lorenzo Neal in a huge way last year and they signed Greg Comella to fill that hole in the offense. He is no threat to run with the ball but is a fierce blocker that will help open those holes for George. Mike Green and Dan Alexander are tweener running backs. They have some running skills of a featured tailback and yet have the size of a fullback. Neither are great blockers though and if they cannot make it as a backup running back, they won't be likely to get on the field often as a fullback. Dan Alexander especially is an intriguing talent. He is 252 pounds and has good speed. He will be a productive back somewhere in the NFL within the next two seasons. Wide Receivers / Tight Ends Starters - Derrick Mason, Kevin Dyson Backups - Justin McCareins, Drew Bennett Starting Receiver(s): Both Derrick Mason and Kevin Dyson have come into their own as legitimate NFL receivers. Mason has become a true force on the football field and is ranked 17th overall in the receiver position. He is a decent 1st option at receiver on your roster and a fantastic #2. Kevin Dyson has rebounded all the way back from his serious knee injury during the 2000 season. He had a wonderful second half last year after the rust wore off and he should continue to gather momentum into this campaign. These two receivers give McNair the best duo at receiver he has ever enjoyed in the NFL and they'll likely cause havoc in opposing defenses for the next several seasons. Backup Receiver(s): Justin McCareins is an interesting player. He has good size and speed and is a good young prospect. He will see some action as the team's third receiver and will do well when called upon. Drew Bennett is another young talent that the organization is high on. He was an undrafted receiver but made the Titans last year and quickly became a fan favorite. He will get some reps but has little, if any fantasy value unless somebody gets hurt. Tight End(s): Frank Wycheck, Erron Kinney - The Titans are blessed at tight end where they have two legitimate starting tight ends they can put on the field at one time. Frank Wycheck has been a top tight end in fantasy football for what seems like forever. He continues to put up strong numbers year after year and we have him ranked 7th overall in the tight end position this year. Erron Kinney could be a top tight end if he ever gets the opportunity. He has great ball skills as well and will get many looks in the 2 tight end set the team uses at times. He is ranked in the top 25 as well so he does have marginal worth in a twelve-team league that incorporates the tight end position. Place Kicker Joe Nedney: Nedney is a solid, veteran kicker who will knock most of his chances through when he gets the opportunity. In kicked three game-winning field goals last year which got the Titan fans behind him in a big way. He needs to improve on his 71.4 % accuracy from a season ago though. We have him with an 82.8 % accuracy rate this year. He is a starting fantasy kicker. Defense The Titans went from one of the best defenses in the league during the 1999 and 2000 campaigns to one of the very worst last year. The reason why was the inability to replace the star defensive backs who left for greener pastures after the 2000 season. After Blaine Bishop missed most of the season with a foot problem, the defensive backfield completely collapsed. Bishop is no longer on the team and the Titans signed veteran players Lance Schulters and Tony George to help shore up the unit along with second round draft pick Tank Williams who will be given every opportunity to win the job. Second year corner back Andre Dyson will be much better with a year of experience under his belt as he has the talent to do well in the NFL. The team is pretty solid at the defensive line position with potential greatness in both Jevon Kearse and Kevin Carter if they can get their heads screwed on straight. However the team is hurting in the middle where they lost both Josh Evans and Jason Fisk. Linebacker is an average group at best with little in the way of standout talent although Keith Bullock, a third-year player out of Syracuse has the potential to become great. Overall, this unit doesn't look terrific but does have an easy schedule. They will finish around the middle of the pack in fantasy numbers. Coaching Jeff Fisher is a good head coach. He had his first losing season with the Tennessee Titans a year ago and doesn't expect to go through that again this year. After years of mediocrity, the team had two seasons of great football before last season's fall from glory. Fisher will get this team pointed in the right direction again. Intangibles A once proud franchise is hungry to regain their position as one of the top teams in football. However they have some big holes to fill if they are to become an elite team once again. The best intangible they have is the hunger of Eddie George to put last season's nightmare behind him and he will be running like a man possessed in the upcoming months. If George regains his past form, the Titans should be a motivated, tough team to beat. |