Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Tennessee Titans: Full Report Card Grades for Tennessee
Close, but no cigar. The Tennessee Titans took the lead just before halftime but were unable to maintain it until the end of the game. They took another loss, falling to the Pittsburgh Steelers 27-24.
But there was a silver lining to the dark cloud. The Titans defense found ways to be effective against the Steelers passing game. The offense looked good despite Delanie Walker's absence, and most of all, Zach Mettenberger showed marked improvement.
Still, a loss is a loss. And this was a tough one.
Here are the grades for each unit on the Titans.
Quarterback
1 of 9
Zach Mettenberger came out of the gate about as badly as he could have, throwing a pick-six on the first play. However, after that, he was solid.
After the initial hiccup, Mettenberger completed 15 of his 23 passes for 263 yards and two touchdowns. He also showed great pocket awareness, never taking a sack despite taking five hits.
He still made some rookie mistakes, especially when getting rid of the ball quickly, but the improvement looked like it may have been real.
He's not there yet, but by the end of the season, Mettenberger may prove to be a capable starter.
Grade: B+
Running Backs
2 of 9
Bishop Sankey had some impressive runs against the Steelers. He broke tackles and showed a lot of power, along with the elusiveness he already demonstrated in prior games.
Even so, he only saw 11 carries and one target, netting just 45 total yards.
After Sankey was Shonn Greene, who had three carries for six yards, and Dexter McCluster, who had five yards rushing and 17 yards from a pass.
Jackie Battle didn't get any runs, but he did catch a couple of passes for four yards.
Grade: C+
Receivers and Tight Ends
3 of 9
With Delanie Walker missing the game with an injury, the receiving corps started with a handicap but stepped up and played well anyway.
Justin Hunter missed a couple of catches, but in only two receptions, he had 48 total yards. He also did an excellent job as a downfield blocker.
Kendall Wright was the group's standout, catching four balls for 70 yards, but it was Nate Washington who led the team in receiving yards with an 80-yard touchdown run after the catch.
Chase Coffman, filling in for Walker, even got involved with three catches for 32 yards all in one drive.
Grade: A-
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Offensive Line
4 of 9
The offensive line cleaned up its penalty problem for the most part. Only one penalty was called against the unit the entire game.
There were some problems containing the Steelers' all-out blitz, but that was to be expected. For the most part, blitzers from the Steelers were held long enough to give Mettenberger time, which is why Ben Roethlisberger took five sacks and Mettenberger took none.
Run blocking could have been better, but overall, it was a solid performance by a unit that has had some struggles recently.
Grade: B+
Defensive Line
5 of 9
Again, the defensive line (and linebackers) excelled in pass defense but fell short in run defense. I've always been of the opinion that the linebackers are mostly responsible for the running game, but it's a big part of the defensive line's job too.
Jurrell Casey was great again, but he can't be on the field for every snap. He had seven total tackles, including one tackle for loss.
Other than Casey, no one really stood out. Ropati Pitoitua had a pretty poor game, as he and Karl Klug each had three tackles.
Sammie Hill failed to make an impact, and Mike Martin had one tackle. For once, most of the pressure on the quarterback came from the linebackers.
Grade: C-
Linebackers
6 of 9
Like the defensive linemen, the linebackers just had no answer for Le'Veon Bell. Still, outside of run defense, the linebackers were great.
Avery Williamson had two sacks and a tackle for loss and led the team in tackles with eight.
Derrick Morgan forced Roethlisberger to throw the ball several times and was credited with a half sack and five tackles.
Shaun Phillips and Quentin Groves each picked up a sack, as well as a tackle for loss, and Wesley Woodyard had the other half sack that he shared with Morgan.
All of that said, there was still a big problem in both getting off blocks to get to the running back and with tackling Bell once contact was made.
In the end, having a great performance in one aspect and a failing performance in another averages out to a C, so that's more or less what the linebackers deserve.
Grade: C+
Defensive Backs
7 of 9
The defensive backs had a pretty good game. For most of the season, the Titans have been getting killed by quick plays when the front seven sent multiple blitzers, but that was not the case against the Steelers.
Michael Griffin and Blidi Wreh-Wilson both had solid games. Griffin got beaten in coverage a few times and made some other mistakes, but he laid out some big hits and picked up a tackle for loss and two defended passes.
Wreh-Wilson had some good defended passes but made what could have been costly mistakes other times.
Jason McCourty looked like his old self again, with seven solo tackles, a defended pass and an interception.
Coty Sensabaugh had a quietly solid game, and George Wilson tied Avery Williamson to lead the team in tackles.
Grade: B
Special Teams
8 of 9
The Titans special teams had a good night. Because of the strange kickoffs that the Steelers kept attempting in the first half, the offense was always able to start with good field position.
Ryan Succop was perfect again, but Brett Kern had an uncharacteristic bad night with a measly 35.3 yards per punt.
Bishop Sankey, Jackie Battle and Karl Klug each got a chance to return kicks, and all did fairly well.
Even the Steelers' only good return came back for a penalty, so overall, the Titans special teams unit had a very good game.
Grade: B+
Coaching
9 of 9
Both Ken Whisenhunt and Ray Horton pulled out all the stops against the Steelers, and both managed to be effective in ways they hadn't been before.
The defense spent most of the game stifling Roethlisberger until the problems with the running game returned.
The offense made Mettenberger look better than he had before, by a wide margin.
Hopefully, the two will continue to bring that kind of ingenuity to the remainder of the schedule.
Grade: A-
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