Tennessee Titans: Cecil Watch—Hall of Fame Game Edition

One of the biggest stories for the Tennessee Titans is how their defense will do without their former defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz.

I am going to try and follow Chuck Cecil's work on a week by week basis this season gaging his success based on how well our defense plays this year as opposed to last year. I will take into consideration the loss of Albert Haynesworth as well.

Background Information

Chuck Cecil was a walk-on at the University of Arizona who eventually became an All-American safety. Though stats were not kept as well back then as they are now, you can measure his success based on the fact that he was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

Cecil only played seven years of football in the NFL with Green Bay, Phoenix, and Houston. Cecil made an impact on the league getting on the cover of Sports Illustrated with the title, "Too Vicious for the NFL?" He then then backed up that statement by receiving the highest non-suspension fine the NFL had ever given in 1993.

Retiring in 1995, Cecil took a few years off before returning to the NFL to coach.

Coaching

In 2001, Cecil was hired by the Titans as defensive assistant for quality control. This simply meant he watched a lot of film for little pay. In 2004, he was promoted to coach of safeties and nickel backs, before being promoted to coach of the entire secondary in 2007. 

To look at Cecil's success thus far, we have to compare 2006 (the year before he became secondary coach) to 2008 (the year he was promoted).

In 2006, the Titans had 14 interceptions throughout the secondary. This past year the secondary grabbed 19 picks.

In 2006, the Titans had no players from their secondary selected to the Pro Bowl. This past year three Titans represented Tennessee's secondary.

One major change that is almost impossible to measure by stats is tackling. If you were a Titans fan in 2006, you would be so angry every time Pacman would dive at a players legs and just miss. Or Reynaldo Hill would be stiff armed to the ground.

This past year, you were impressed by how well Cortland Finnegan and Nick Harper tackled. One way to measure this is in 2006, Chris Hope had 121 tackles; however, in 2008 he only had 78. This is not because Hope has gotten worse, its simply because the cornerbacks are making their tackles initially, and Chris Hope doesn't have to clean up.

This could be because of a personnel change, or it could be because Chuck Cecil is just a good coach.

Methods

Cecil is encouraging his players to play with the same passion he did. On Cecil's first day, he wrote VIOLENT on the chalkboard as the players came into the room. Most players were excited for Cecil's new method as soon as they saw that word.

Every game since Cecil took over as secondary coach, he has headbutted his players before the game. These players had helmets and he didn't, which might be why they got so fired up.

"Sometimes you wonder whether or not he wants to put the pads on and do the job for you,'' Michael Griffin said.

It's that kind of intensity I would like to see carry over from him to the players.

Hall of Fame Game

So what was the most impressive stat about the Hall of Fame game for Cecil? The defense didn't give up one touchdown. Not only did the starters not give up a touchdown, but the backups didn't either. That is a sign of good coaching.

Tackling

The starters' tackling was solid in this game, however it was obvious the rookies still need some work. Mouton's diving at receivers' feet reminded me of the old Pacman days.

Defensive Line

The defensive line was solid. It was very interesting to see the different setups they had. Jevon Kearse played both end positions, while Jason Jones and William Hayes played both tackle and end. Kevin Vickerson and Larry Birdine looked fantastic, which says a lot about our defensive line depth.

Run Defense

The run defense was absolutely perfect. Marshawn Lynch was held to seven yards on three carries. The best part was our defensive line was doing most of the tackling against the run.

Pass Defense

This was a little shaky, though the Bills ran the no-huddle offense which obviously caught our defense off-guard at times. Overall, the pass defense was above average. The pick by rookie Jason McCourty was very impressive, especially since it was the interception that sealed the game. The defensive line also impressed me by getting to the quarterback.

Blitzing

The question everyone has had for Cecil this off-season is "Will you blitz more than Schwartz did?"

Cecil's original answer was that it wasn't going to change much. It might have been the fact that it was a preseason game, but the Bills first offensive play, Cecil blitzed Nick Harper who stopped the running back for a short gain.

That was the only effective blitz I saw that game, but hopefully there will be more where that came from.

Overall

This was a very impressive first game for Chuck Cecil. The defense played outstanding, and any Titans fan should be happy with what they saw. If the defense continues to play at this level, by the end of the season Titans fans will be asking "Albert who?"

Don't forget to watch the Titans' second preseason game this Saturday at 7p.m. CST. And join me next week as I continue to track Chuck Cecil's progress as the new Defensive Coordinator for your Tennessee Titans.