........TITANS IN TRAINING-DAY 6

Now the mundane by day 6 is supposed to set in at training camp, meaning seeing the same drills over and over, watching the offense make some great plays, then the defense makes some and then they both make mistakes, but so far this training camp is different.

First, you have to keep an eye on the OL and DL when they go one on one in their drills.  There is more action after the whistle stops than during the play and you know, just like Tuesday in their first full day in full pads, something is going to happen and on Wednesday, it almost did about 10 times. 

But so far thru the camp, the defense is easily dominating in about every aspect but the coaching staff says that is usually the way it goes during the camp but the offense has been spectacular at times, especially when Vince Young rolls out of the pocket cause at moments he looks unstoppable.

Now my observations from camp so far:

1) Albert Haynesworth-He looks like at any moment is going to pass out and that is not good.  He said he was in shape when he reported but I am not sure on what ‘in shape’ scale he was referring about.  He looks sluggish, slow, after the ball is snapped, especially if it is going the other way, forget about it, he isn’t running to it, but we all know what Albert can do when motivated and I am sure by the first game, he will be ready to go.

2)  Vincent Fuller-  The nickleback, not the band, has been flying to the ball.  He is a nice compliment to Chris Hope and when the Titans go to the Nickel D, he will be just fine out there.  He is not shy of contact, a bit undersized but still tough as nails.

3)  Kerry Collins- I tell you what, if something happens to Vince and they put Kerry in, this team will not miss a beat, and in fact, might be a tad better.  Sure he runs like me on sand, but he can fire a ball with precise accuracy thru about 5 defenders to the right person.  His value to this team is unlimited and he looks just as sharp now as he did leading Penn State to the national title in 1994 or the Giants to the Super Bowl in the 2000 season.

They are back again on Thursday at 3:30.  Another blog will follow.

.....TITANS IN TRAINING-DAY 5

You know if you are a Titans fan, you gotta love Kyle Vanden Bosch.  Ever since he first came to the team in 2005, his motor has not stopped running.  We are not kidding, it never stops.  He plays like it is truly the last play he will ever play in his life.  So when the Titans put on full pads for the first time in camp on Tuesday, and with the temperature near 100, you knew something was going to happen and it did.

KVB and Eugene Amano got into several fist throwing, helmets flying tangles all throughout camp.  Head coach Jeff Fisher had enough, called the team together, basically told them to chill out.  But this happens every single year and you know deep down, Fisher had to be loving it.  What coach wants a defense who is soft and doesn’t get after it?  Zero, none and he had to be smiling about it.

The defense continues to really shine in camp, though.  They are top notch up and down.  Defensive Line, Linebackers, DB’s, are really dominating thru and thru.  Jeff Fisher said that this 2008 team was the best conditioned team he has ever been around as head coach and it has really shown.  No one cramping, no one having to sit anything out.

Jevon Kearse hurt his toe when someone stepped on his foot, but he should be ok.  LenDale White was excused from camp for personal reasons and Chris Johnson and Chris Henry were getting all of the carries and Henry, was looking good at times, just bowling guys over.

They will do it all again on Wednesday at 3:30

Titans In Training Day 4

Youth can be dangerous in the NFL, that is unless they are REALLY, REALLY good. The Titans have plenty of good players, but I believe 2nd year man Michael Griffin truly could be special before it’s all said and done. Last year he was outstanding on special teams before moving into the starting line-up and once he did all he did was make plays.

Year two is off to a strong start. Today Griffin was clearly the star of camp after picking off Vince Young twice. Coach Fisher said the two former Texas teammates must have had a deal, but truthfully, Griffin doesn’t need the help. As time goes on I am less and less of a combine and numbers guy. Give me football players! Michael Griffin has the numbers, but most important he is a football player. Great instincts, doesn’t avoid contact and has a nose for the football.

Other notes from camp today include the first injuries of the season. Kicker Rob Bironas and punter Josh Miller both strained groin muscles today, they should be OK after a few days off. Defensive end Ulrich Winkler went down with a leg injury and had to leave the practice field, Coach Fisher could not give any details after practice, but they appeared to work on his knee.

Tomorrow’s the first day of full pads! Strap it up, time to find some more football players!

Titans In Training Day 3

The Titans haven’t played a down this season and the signing of Justin McCareins is already paying off. The veteran wideout and former Titan has come and immediately led his group by examble. Ask any of his teammates and the first thing they talk about his how hard this guy works. Hard work can be contagous and that’s a good thing for the Titans.

On day 3 McCareins looked tremendous. He made by big play after big play and caught virtually everything that came his way. Is he Vince Young’s favorite target? Too soon to tell. Will he catch 60 balls this season? Still too soon to tell, but I wouldn’t bet against it. The thing we don’t talk about is this guys blocking ability. He will help turn 10 yard runs into 20 and 30 yarders. He’s quiet, but he’s tough as nails and fights every single play.

A million bucks is a lot of money, but Justin McCareins was a steal.

........TITANS IN TRAINING-DAY 2

Many thanks to the Titans for providing all of us covering training camp with a plethora of story lines because camp can get pretty mundane.

The top story on Saturday, the return of Albert Haynesworth to the practice field.  Big Al signed his contract on Friday and was at camp Saturday.  Albert said he has been working out on his own but he looked really winded on a lot of the drills and even admitted afterwards that being in shape and ‘football shape’ are two totally different things and has some work to do.  He said he hopes to be in ‘football shape’ by the time training camp ends.  (And so do the Titans brass.)

Then the other story line on Saturday, first round pick Chris Johnson signed his contract and was in camp.  Let me tell you this off the top, this dude is good and lightning fast.  Not just I might outrun the db’s chasing me, but Olympic kind of speed.  He said during OTA’s that he wanted to get in camp as soon as possible because he didn’t want his teammates to think badly of him and he wanted to be there with them thru all of camp.  (I wonder if Pacman Jones ever said that?  Hmm, let me think, no.)

Other than that, it was your typical day 2 of training camp.  The coaches say the team has a long way to go before they get ready for opening day, the players say they just want to keep working hard and getting better.

Players who are performing well so far:  Biren Ealy, the second year man who made the team as a free agent last year, (like a walk-on in college) has looked most excellent in catching the ball and running the routes.  Also, Mookie Johnson, the second year man who blew out his knee on the opening of training camp last year, is just massive.  He is quick, he is mean and he is explosive.  Big things are going to happen for that guy.

.........TITANS IN TRAINING, DAY ONE.........

Well it has been 6 and half long months, yep that long, since the Titans last played a game that mattered.  Friday, training camp for the 2008 season started, and with that, the 2007 season was put to rest.

The big news:  Albert Haynesworth signed his one year tender and will be at practice come Saturday.  It is an incentive based contract that if they are met, the team cannot franchise Albert next year and maybe, hopefully, they can reach a long term deal, because like it or not, when Big Al is not in there, that team suffers on defense.

The new offense:  Well we all know that when Vince sits in the pocket, it can be a little shaky.  Ok, A lot shaky, but when he is rolling out, sorry VY naysayers, he is absolutely unstoppable.  When he gets out there on a bootleg, good luck stopping him.   His passes are sharp, they are on target and they zip. 

Even though day one is in the books, Jeff Fisher said that there is a long, long way to go until he feels very comfortable with his team.  He did say on Friday that he was extremely pleased with their conditioning and their attitude, two things that pay off big time in the heat and humidity of August and September.

........ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL!?!?!?!?!

 

      Training camp starts this Friday, the 25th for the Titans and all eyes are looking forward to that first game on September 7th, against the Jacksonville Jaguars, in what some are saying is going to be one of the top 10 games of the year.

       But first, the boys must survive another tough training camp and the times have been released and here they are for you.

***********************************************************************************************************

July 25:  3:30

July 26:  3:30

July 27:  3:30

July 29:  8:30 and 3:30

July 30:  3:30

July 31: 3:30

Aug. 1:  3:30

Aug. 2:  Noon

Aug. 3:  Off

Aug. 4:  8:30 and 3:30

Aug. 5:  Noon

Aug. 6:  8:30 (with the Rams) and 3:30 (with the Rams)

Aug. 7:  8:15 (with the Rams) and 3:30 ( with the Rams)

Aug. 8:  Off

Aug. 9:  Preseason game, 7pm LP field (seen only on News 2)

Aug. 11:  3:30

Aug. 12:  3:30

Aug. 13:  3:30

Aug. 15:  7pm game with the Raiders

Aug 17-20:  3:30

Aug 22:  at Atlanta (seen only on News 2)

.....Are you Kidding Me?

  ………….There was an article in the Tennessean last week where they interviewed some Titans fans who said that maybe the team let up on Pacman Jones to soon.  Yeh, let me read it to you again, some fans feel that Jeff Fisher and the Titans gave up on Pacman Jones to soon.

       Are you kidding me?  Seriously, where is the punch line in this?  From a guy who has covered that trainwreck the last 2 years, i say they should have gotten rid of him a long time ago.  I cannot tell you how many times when there would be a great local sports story going on, only to have to blow that story off because of something Pacman had gotten himself into, again.

    And it just wasn’t cool local stories he was affecting, but when some of his teammates would hold their charity functions, all the questions were usually not about the good deeds the guys were doing in the community, but Pacman’s latest trangressions. 

     This happened time after time after time.  The players have said they will miss the talents of Pacman on the field, but will not miss his antics off the field. 

    The day he got traded to the Cowboys was a good day for many Titans fans and a lot of sportswriters and sportscasters in Middle Tennessee.  Many are waiting for his next screw-up down in big D, but hopefully he will get his act together and turn his life around.

     I don’t care if he intercepts 25 passes a year and leads the Cowboys to 10 straight Super Bowl wins, the Titans are much better off he is gone, long gone.

Random Thoughts

My job at 6 and 10 each night is fairly simple, report the facts, hopefully in an educational and entertaining manor. It’s not my job to give my opinion. It’s my job to give you the tools you need to form your own.

I am a man with opinions that need to be heard though and this is one outlet I have. So here are a few.

What’s the deal with Brett Favre? Either you retired our you didn’t! If he wants to play he should say so. If he doesn’t want to practice that’s just ridiculous. There’s this prevailing thought that the Packers owe it to him to let him comeback. Didn’t they pay him for every game he ever played? Is he better than Aaron Rogers? Almost certainly. Is this act getting old? Without a doubt!!!

Michael Vick’s the latest athlete to declare bankruptcy. What? How is this possible? 4-Years ago he signed a 10-year deal worth $130-million dollars! No he didn’t get all of that money, but still. WHAT? He claims to be at least $10-million in the hole. I’m no saint, forgive me I have a credit card bill. I even have a car payment and oh yeah, I have a mortgage. However, I can pay them all. There is an overwhelming thought with a lot of players that they can burn thru their cash because they think there will ALWAYS be another deal and ALWAYS be countless millions around the corner. Michael Vick thought wrong. By the way, he is still in prison so clearly his lack of judgement goes beyond how he spends his money.

There are some reports saying the I-R-L may not return to Nashville next year. Again, what? Last I saw this is a circuit that’s struggled mightily on the American radar but as he repeatedly sold out Nashville. Let’s see sold out venue, night race, popular track, national cable tv, yeah sounds like a bad idea. Better give that date to someone who can’t sell it out and has potholes everywhere.

While I’m at it, how is the Sprint Cup in Texas twice, California twice, Phoenix twice, Richmond twice, but they can’t find the time to stop once in Gladeville? No, I won’t bicker with going to Atlanta, Charlotte, Daytona and Bristol twice they’ve earned it and so have the fans. Talk about abandoning your roots though? I guess I’m just not smart enough to see the wisdom of this decision.

I could go on and on, but I won’t I will leave you with this though. The insanity ends here! The Chicago Cubs win the World Series this year. That’s an opinion now, it will be fact later.