(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

Who I want to hear a lot more about: Chris Johnson 

Not as a running back, because all this speculation about the Titans’ backfield situation bores me. Smash and Dash are still in place for at least another year. Whether Tennessee keeps LenDale White or moves on to Javon Ringer in 2010 is irrelevant right now, because it is premature to speculate about that.

I’m interested in Johnson moving out wide once in a while. Towards the end of the 2008 season, the Eagles had a play where they would have Brian Westbrook and Corell Buckhalter in the backfield at the same time. 

Westbrook would motion out wide, and defenses would focus on him at receiver. The defense would ignore Buckhalter, who’d run up the middle for a pretty good gain. 

This play could be even more successful with White and Johnson in the backfield. If Johnson motions out wide or into the slot, this could give defenses a huge problem. 

If they are in man coverage, not only does one man have to cover him, but a safety would probably have to play deep zone coverage just for the purpose of trying to stop Johnson, who is capable of outrunning the entire defense. This safety playing deep would leave more running room for White.

There’s also the advantage of a personnel mismatch. If a team has two running backs in the backfield, and then a tight end to block and two wide receivers, it looks like a running formation. For that reason, defenses are usually going to be in their base 4-3 or 3-4 packages instead of a nickel or dime.

If Johnson motions out into the slot, a team then has a very pass-heavy formation, with four players lined up in position to run deep routes. This creates a mismatch in the secondary, as there are only four defensive backs. If Johnson is covered one-on-one, he can just go deep on a streak and will have a very good chance of getting open. 

If he is double-covered by two defensive backs—you’re not going to assign a linebacker to help cover someone who runs a 4.24 in the 40-yard dash—then the tight end will probably be covered by a linebacker, which is not a favorable matchup for the defense.

Not only could the Titans stretch the defense by passing deep from this formation, the emphasis on the pass would cause the defense to create more running room for LenDale White. If the defensive backs are playing a few yards off of the line of scrimmage to prevent Johnson or the receivers from outrunning them, the Titans can hit them with short passes, or even set up a screen to Johnson.

Last year, Johnson didn’t display the greatest hands. I’ve read that he worked almost exclusively out wide during OTAs, so I’m thinking if he can improve his pass-catching, he could be a much more complete threat to defenses.

Who I don’t want to hear another word about: Vince Young

If he sneezes during practice, hundreds of Titans fans will be on the Internet that night discussing who said “Bless you” to him and who didn’t.

It’s this simple: He is probably one of the most physically gifted quarterbacks in the league right now. He’s got a big frame, great height, and phenomenal speed. 

His throwing motion is questioned, but his height makes his sidearm release almost a non-issue. He has good arm strength and accuracy and is able to fit passes through the smallest holes in coverage, but his problem is finding those holes. 

Young has nobody to blame for his lack of success but himself. He’s never going to win the starting job back through the media, so he has to stop talking and improve his game.

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