5 Adjustments Tennessee Titans Must Make in NFL Week 4

It's difficult to get a handle on this Tennessee Titans team after getting blown out of the stadium in Week 3 against the Cincinnati Bengals.

The 33-7 loss puts the Titans at 1-2, with their first divisional game looming against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 4.

An upset win over the Colts would drastically change the outlook of this team, which isn't pretty at the moment.

This will mark the third game in four weeks that the Titans will face a 2013 playoff team, so splitting those four games would be a solid victory.

It's still extremely early in the season, and no one in the AFC South looks to be unstoppable. That leaves the Titans with a strong opportunity to right the wrongs and put themselves in a good situation to conclude the first quarter of the regular season on a high note.

For the Titans to get to 2-2, they need to make these adjustments against Andrew Luck and the Colts.

Fix the Offensive Line

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I believe it's time for the Titans to cash in on the first-round draft pick of Taylor Lewan and see what they have. The belief was that Lewan would really make his splash next season, but the Titans can't afford to wait.

This offensive line hasn't lived up to its reputation early on, and it's played a big part in why the Titans have come out flat in two straight games. The Titans have to improve on their pass-protection issues if Jake Locker is going to become a more consistent quarterback.

Lewan is technically an offensive tackle, but he's extremely versatile. The Titans need his energy right now on the offensive line. 

Replacing the struggling Andy Levitre is the most likely opportunity for us to see Lewan, per Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com.

I wasn't a big fan of the Lewan pick in the first place. However, if he comes in to save the day, then I could be proved wrong. 

Get Dexter McCluster More Involved

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It's baffling to me that Dexter McCluster isn't being used more in the running game. 

McCluster received just one carry against the talented Bengals defense, while also being targeted just twice in the passing game.

Three opportunities is not enough for a player who is getting paid the amount of money that McCluster is getting paid. He has to get more involved in this offense.

As great as the Titans' stable of running backs looked in Week 1 against the Kansas City Chiefs, it hasn't looked anywhere close to that in two losses. It has to find some balance and keep defenses honest.

McCluster is a guy who can keep defenses honest when he's on the field. That's what he was brought in to do. Short throws to McCluster in space is what we need to be seeing with this offense. Nothing fancy but something to get Jake Locker into an early rhythm.

Since Locker is dealing with a wrist injury, it's unclear if he'll even be available to play in Week 4, according to NFL.com's Chris Wesseling.

Many of us expected this day to come at some point. This will put the emphasis on two quarterbacks who have very little experience as NFL starters. It will make the Titans running game even more critical, and McCluster has to play a bigger role in that moving forward.

More Discipline

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This one is as straightforward as you can get. The trend of the Titans hurting themselves continued in the lopsided loss to the Bengals.

It starts with Blidi Wreh-Wilson's four penalties in a matchup with A.J. Green. You can circle it as a big X-factor as to why the Titans defense had no answers.

It doesn't get any easier against the Colts, who have Reggie Wayne and T.Y. Hilton. Wreh-Wilson will have to bounce back and play more disciplined. You can live with him getting beaten from time to time against superior receivers, but there's no excuse for four penalties.

However, this problem doesn't end with Wreh-Wilson. It's a problem the entire team is dealing with. Ken Whisenhunt owned up to the issue, per John Glennon of The Tennessean, saying the personal fouls are "a reflection on me and that's one of the things that can't continue."

The Titans were penalized for a total of 99 yards, with two of them being personal fouls. A much cleaner and smarter effort will be needed against the Colts, or a similar outcome will occur. 

Finish Drives

Darron Cummings/Associated Press/Associated Press

Ryan Succop missed two field goals against the Bengals

We knew that the kicking game could be an issue for the Titans this season. A great effort from Ryan Succop in Week 1 quieted those concerns, but they've sprung back up after a poor effort against the Bengals.

The two missed field goals happened early in the game to kill a lot of momentum for the Titans.

The margin of error is too small for the Titans to not be finishing drives with some sort of points. They're not the type of offense that can create an endless number of scoring opportunities each game. They're getting there with some of their young talent but aren't there yet.

Penalties and a forced throw from Jake Locker that led to an interception also ended a critical drive with no points to show for it. 

The score doesn't reflect it, but the Titans actually moved the ball pretty decently against a stout Bengals defense. They just didn't cash in on their opportunities. 

The Colts defense is beatable, and the Titans have to make the most of their opportunities to have any chance at a win.

Vertical Offense Has to Improve

Darron Cummings/Associated Press

An expected bright spot that has been anything but bright is the Titans wide receivers. They've struggled to do anything more than catch the short, intermediate routes. Those can add up and be effective but only if the defense feels threatened that it'll be beaten deep.

As of now, the Titans have given opposing defenses no reason to fear them vertically.

Delanie Walker has been the lone bright spot in the passing game thus far, but he's simply not enough. We saw evidence of that last season.

Paul Kuharsky of ESPN.com believes that instituting more play action would help the Titans receivers get behind the defense. With that said, Whisenhunt has never been a big play-action guy.

More play action would also open up more opportunities for Jake Locker to make plays outside the pocket, where he's always been more effective.

I keep waiting for Justin Hunter to have his breakout game of 2014. If it comes against the Colts, then we could be whistling a much different tune this time next week. He's certainly capable of waking this Titans offense up from its slumber.